A Scene from The Beggar's Opera
Dublin Core
Title
A Scene from The Beggar's Opera
Description
The painting paints a scene from the famous opera at the time: The Beggar's Opera. In this scene, on trial for a robbery, Captain Macheath stands imprisoned in shackles with his two lovers sprawled on the floor pleading for his life. The two lovers are his mistress, Lucy (who kneels beneath her father with the keys on his belt who is in charge of jailing) and his wife, Poly (who kneels beneath her father who is a genius ready to argue on the behalf of Macheath.
Creator
William Hogarth
Source
Tate Gallery, London
Publisher
National Gallery of Art
Date
1728-1729
Contributor
Megumi Gupta
Relation
William Hogarth
Format
Oil on canvas
Type
Painting
Coverage
Similar to themes in Roxana, this shows how vulnerable and dependent women are to their male figures around them. In the painting and thus the portrayal of the popular opera, we see the women sprawled on the floor, begging their respective fathers (first main male figure) to help them save their present main male figure, despite his wrong doing. Their position on the ground emphaissies this power discrepancy.
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Oil on canvas
Physical Dimensions
51.1 x 61.2 cm (20 1/8 x 24 1/8 in.)
Files
Citation
William Hogarth, “A Scene from The Beggar's Opera,” Enlightenmens, accessed January 27, 2023, http://enlightenmens.lmc.gatech.edu/items/show/157.