The Emperor is a cigar manufacturer who isn't very successful. Customers buy his cigars mainly out of politeness. Despite being chairman of the card club "The Merry Whist Players," he doesn't earn any real respect for it. He pins his hopes on his son, Kareltje, who should become a doctor, lawyer, or notary. But Kareltje, bullied at school for his large head, fails to live up to his father's expectations. When school doesn't work out, Kareltje tries working as an errand boy in businesses where his father introduces him, but that doesn't get him anywhere either. "A Disappointment" is one of the books Elsschot himself valued most.