In a psychohistorical study of Clara Schumann, wife of the composer Robert Schumann, the author offers her interpretation of the various relationships in the subject's life. Suffering the loss of her mother when her parents separated, Clara endured loyalty conflicts throughout her life. She had to submerge her identification with her mother to placate her father on whom she was solely dependent. Her father was extemely demanding and cared for her only as long as she delivered what he required. In due course, she attained freedom from her father only by entering into conflicting identifications and expectations with her new husband,