Hogarth, Boucher and Chardin

Paper Summary:

This paper analyzes paintings by William Hogarth, Francois Boucher and Jean-Baptiste-Simeon Chardin. It first looks at images and themes of excessive rationality, godlessness and human tragedy in Hogarth's six-part series "Marriage a-la-mode." It then discusses and compares female eroticism and objectification in Boucher's "The Blonde Odalisque" and Chardin's "Girl Peeling Vegetables."

Table of Contents:
William Hogarth
Boucher and Chardin

From the Paper:

" Wollstonecraft would no doubt be offended by either image. In The Blonde Odalisque, the subject's role is simply decorative: for men's visual pleasure. The subject gazes at something or someone of interest, perhaps (this would further increase eroticism) a man fancied. Wollstonecraft would say this painting trivializes and devalues its female subject: as a decorative object, not a full human being. In Girl Peeling Vegetables, similarly, the expression of the female is vapid; too empty-headed even to be bored with her tedious work. Her thoughts, when she thinks them, are covertly sexual, and the subtle but suggestive positions, and implied movements, of her hands reinforce this idea. Wollstonecraft would find both artists' views of women shallow, limited, and lacking in real-life complexity and dimensionality."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Scruton, Roger. "How to Distinguish Eroticism from Pornography." TLS. Retrieved February 28, 2007, from: <http://www.arlindo-correia.com/120805.html>.

More papers on Hogarth, Boucher and Chardin:

• Comparison Essay # 63080 : "Francois Boucher and Pablo Picasso"
• Essay # 142434 : "Internal And External Design Validity Clinical Significance"
• Case Study # 145039 : "Francois Boucher's Painting "The Toilet of Venus"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: