"Tenth Commandment" (from "Harper's Weekly," Vol. XIV) 1870

Winslow Homer’s "Tenth Commandment" was printed in Harper’s Weekly in 1870 as a wood engraving. The artwork shows two women on a train, seemingly coveting what they see through the window: a grand house, a well-groomed soldier, and a neighbor's ox. These images invoke the biblical prohibition against coveting. Such symbols of aspiration have deep roots. The ox, an ancient symbol of wealth and labor, brings to mind the story of Europa and the Bull from Ovid’s *Metamorphoses*. The woman’s desire echoes throughout time, seen again in Botticelli’s *Venus*, reborn from the sea, longing for earthly beauty. The act of observing others' lives stirs a primal unease. This tension—between longing and morality—engages our subconscious. We are drawn into the women's desires, recognizing our own. The cycle of yearning, transgression, and repentance is unending. It is an emotional truth, forever echoing in the human soul.