Association en commandite our l'exposition de l'humanité a la santé des pratiques c. 19th century

This lithograph by Honoré Daumier presents us with an unsettling scene, rich in symbolic meaning: death, personified as a skeleton in a gentleman's suit, sits at a table, sharing a drink with a man in a dark suit. The Grim Reaper, identified by his scythe, in a black top hat, is deeply rooted in the human psyche as the ultimate leveler, bringing an end to all, regardless of status. This symbol transcends time, found in medieval memento mori and danse macabre. We see it here again as a satirical view of 19th-century French society, where Death is not a distant threat but an active participant in everyday life. Note how Death appears preoccupied with a newspaper listing remedies, almost as though he is involved in the business of mortality. Is Daumier suggesting the corruption of the medical profession, profiting from human suffering, hand in hand with Death? Perhaps he is suggesting the cyclical nature of life and death, or the uneasy alliance between the individual and their inevitable fate.