Data Bases • Custom Term Papers • Free Term Papers • Free Research Papers • Free Essays • Free Book Reports • Plagiarism? Links • Top 100 Term Paper Sites • Top 25 Essay Sites • Top 50 Essay Sites • Search 97,000 Papers @ DirectEssays.com • Search 101,000 Papers @ ExampleEssays.com • Search 90,000 Papers @ MegaEssays.com Free Essays • Term Paper Sites • Chuck III's Free Essays • Free College Essays • TermPaperSites.com • My Term Papers • Get Free Essays • Essay World • Planet Papers	Search Lots of Essays Back to Subjects - Art hogarths marriage a la mode series hogarths marriage a la mode series One of Hogarth’s bitterest satires, Marriage à la Mode, showed the disastrous results of a marriage of convenience concluded between the son of a poverty-stricken nobleman and the daughter of an aspiring merchant (Jarrett 88). Yet this background information is not necessary to appreciate each painting independently. From the first painting, in which the ambitious fathers of the couple exchange money and titles, to the final two prints that show the husband and wife’s melodramatic deaths, each of the six prints tells both a episode in the story of this doomed arranged marriage and a story in and of itself. The first two Marriage à la Mode prints, The Marriage Settlement and Shortly After the Marriage, both contain numerous works of art, architecture, period dress and other carefully placed props that allow each work to tell a story without being dependent on the context of the series. Because of its immense detail, The Marriage Contract is perhaps one of the easiest prints to appreciate. Even without any prior knowledge of this work, an inexperienced art critic can still ascertain that the scene takes place in an aristocratic home. Copies of paintings after the old masters hang in gilt frames, the ceiling is painted and the walls hung with green damask. Two men sit at a table in some sort of business transaction, as evidenced by the presence of three lawyers, numerous documents and money. The gentleman on the right’s portrait hangs on the wall above the table, indicating that the deal is being brokered in his home. He is correspondingly dressed in fine clothes, whereas the other gentleman is more modestly attired. The skill with which Hogarth has represented the swelling aristocratic pride of the Earl and the lower-bred, commercial demeanor of the Sheriff was regarded by eighteenth-century critics, best acquainted with the social manners of their age, as masterly (Webster 103). A document that reads “Marriage Settlement of the Rt. Honble Lord Viscount Squanderfield” rests in the hand of the non-artistocratic gentleman, his careful perusal of the document indicating that he is the bride’s father. In turn, he has handed over a sum of money to the Viscount’s father (who the inexperienced viewer can assume holds the title earl). In turn, the Earl points to his contribution to the marriage settlement: a family tree that traces his lineage back to William the Conqueror (the tree reading “William, Duke of Normandye”). The Earl’s finger rests on the main trunk of the tree, of which he is the representative. Both trunk and branches are ornamented with coroneted names, but on a detached branch appears a mésalliance between a baron and a commoner (Webster 104). The husband-to-be sits nearby, with a clearly visible black patch on his neck to cover the mark of syphilis, which suggest both that he frequents brothels and that the tendency to fornicate with commoners runs in the family. A man resembling a lawyer stands by the window holding a packet of papers that read “A Plan of the New Building of the Right Hon…” and looks outside to the magnificent Palladian-style building-in-progress. Construction has come to a halt, undoubtedly due to lack of funds, hence the necessity for the Earl to marry his son to a wealthy (if untitled) man’s daughter. The man standing with the bride-to-be wears a lawyer’s black gown and white wig. His employment shows the weight and importance of the two parties to the marriage (Webster 104). His presence and that of the other two men (most likely lawyers as well) lends an air of officiality to the scene and the ensuing misery that is to come. The unhappy bride-to-be sulks in a chair, threading her handkerchief through her new wedding ring while the lawyer pays more attention to her than her future husband does. The viscount is seating next to his fiancée on a small sofa but has turned away from her to look at his own reflection in the mirror. This will clearly not be a happy marriage. Overall, Hogarth’s series engaged with mid-eighteenth century debates and anxieties relating to modern forms of wedlock (Hallett 178). Consequently, the Earl’s foot is clearly bandaged, indicating he suffers from gout, a disease superstitiously regarded as punishment which overtook the dissipated in later life (Webster 102). His greed, the main motive for the marriage, ultimately destroys his daughter-in-law and son. Also indicative of the problems with arranged marriage are the small dogs at the Viscount’s feet, who are unwillingly chained together in much the same way as the Viscount and his bride are metaphorically. The second painting in the series, which Hogarth called The Téte-à-Téte, could also stand alone as a glimpse into the everyday lives of the 18th century aristocracy. Even if the viewer is not familiar with the series’ first painting, in which the indifferent couple watches their fathers arrange the marriage contract, he can still ascertain the time period, nature of the couple’s relationship (or lack thereof), their class, and the events that have just transpired by piecing together the carefully-placed clues Hogarth leaves. The secrets of a domestic interior have never been more probingly and sharply displayed (Webster 105). The viewer will most likely regard the sleepy couple relaxing in front of the fire first. Their fancy dress immediately joins them together (in contrast to the other two figures, who are both plainly-clothed), thus leading to the assumption that they are the master and mistress of the household. Their fatigue, apparent in the wife’s partially closed eyelids and languid stretch as well as the husband’s poor sitting posture, indicates that they slept so little the night before that they are still tired at twenty-after-twelve (the time displayed on the clock over the husband’s head). If the previous observations merely hint at the signs of an unhappy marriage, the next few clues confirm infidelities on both parts. Perhaps most prominently, there is the upturned chair that suggests the mistress’ “music teacher, “a constant butt of sexual innuendo in this period) has had to make an undignified exit (Hallett 171). In the next room, a servant yawns as he straightens the chairs, which, along with the masque in the mistress’ hand, and the deck of cards strewn on the floor, implies that she threw an all-night masquerade/gaming session. We know it was she who gave the party because a the book on the floor in front of her, entitled Hoyle on whist, is a manual of card games. Furthermore, the husband was most likely out of the house for most of the night, as evidenced by the lace cap (suggesting a visit to a brothel) in his pocket that the dog is sniffing. His infidelities are confirmed by the black spot on his neck, an indication of syphilis. The broken sword on the floor beside his chair reveals that he was involved in some kind of fight and, metaphorically, hints at the possibility of impotency. Rather than conversing with his wife, the master of the house stares indifferently into space, ignoring the mess around him and the servant/accountant who leaves the room with a stack of bills in his hand and a disgusted look on his face. The accountant carries a stack of unpaid bills in one hand and a single receipt in the other, thus confirming that the couple cannot really afford the luxurious lifestyle they lead. The one receipt the accountant carries reads “1743,” which, along with the Hoyle card manual (published in 1742) confirms an 18th century setting. Even without knowledge of the other five Marriage à la Mode paintings, These extravagant surroundings, combined with an obviously unhappy union, suggests that the marriage was arranged as a means of gaining wealth or titles (which is the case and becomes apparent more in the other paintings). Several paintings hang on the walls in the opposite room: “an upper row of old masters [depicting various saints], one covered with the traditional green curtain as if to protect it from the light; though the bed and protruding leg suggest that it is a composition concealed for its too-provocative nudity—a Venus perhaps, or more likely Leda or a Danae (Webster 104). This half-covered painting reflects the nature of the couple’s marriage: while they may appear to uphold the sanctity of marriage (as suggested by their choice of the respectable art hung on their walls) but make only a half-hearted attempt to hide their infidelities from each other. The Roman bust with a broken nose on the mantle and the painting above it, featuring Cupid playing a song on the bagpipes ironically titled “O Happy Groves” amidst falling ruins, suggest the similarly ruined and collapsing state of the couple’s marriage. Hogarth's remarkably exuberant satire of marriage for money, his pungent details of upper-class life, and his mastery of complex scenes find perhaps their highest expression in this series, generally considered his finest work. (Encarta). Although critics have commented that the series progresses somewhat abruptly, with little idea of what occurs in between the six scenes, rarely is any one painting referred to independent of the others. But because of the complexity of each scene, the paintings, The Marriage Contract and The Téte-à-Téte in particular, can easily stand by themselves as brilliant satires of arranged marriage in the 18th century. Such is the genius of Hogarth. Bibliography: Works Cited Hallett, Mark. Hogarth. London: Phaidon Press, 2000. Jarrett, Derek. England in the Age of Hogarth. London: Hart-Davis, MacGibbon Ltd, 1974. Webster, Mary. Hogarth. Danbury, CT: MasterWorks Press, 1984. Word Count: 1558
Copyright © 2005 College Term Papers, INC All Rights Reserved.