Political Mathematician's, Shaking the Broad Bottom'd Hemispheres Possibly 1807

James Gillray etched and aquatinted this political cartoon titled "Political Mathematicians, Shaking the Broad Bottom'd Hemispheres". At its center, a giant pair of breeches teeters precariously, filled with tiny figures feasting inside. Breeches, historically, have represented power. In this artwork, the breeches are embroidered with foxes—symbols of cunning and deceit. This recalls the imagery of Reynard the Fox in medieval fables, embodying shrewdness and manipulation. The act of "shaking" introduces a sense of instability and unease. We might recall the image of Atlas, burdened with the globe, his shoulders slumped with the weight of the world. Here, the political mathematicians attempt to control fate. The "hemispheres" evoke not just geography but also the dual nature of the human mind, the conscious and the unconscious. The emotional weight of this image lies in its potential for chaos. It evokes a collective anxiety about the instability of political power. Gillray taps into our primal fears of collapse.