My Financial Career by Stephen Leacock

My Financial Career

by Stephen Leacock

“My Financial Career” is one of Leacock’s earliest pieces, appearing in his first published humorous book, Literary Lapses. One of his most anthologized works, this short sketch of less than two thousand words already treats one of Leacock’s favorite themes: the effect of economics on the lives of men. When one remembers that Leacock took his doctorate in economics, it is not surprising that this piece illustrates the Everyman’s fear and mistrust of the bank as institution. Typical of his best work, the sketch opens quickly with the narrator’s frank admission that banks and everything about them “rattle” him.