T'nez not' maitr' en voila un p'tit ... c. 19th century

Honoré Daumier created this lithograph, titled "T'nez not' maitr' en voila un p'tit..." as part of a series of satirical prints. In it, a well-dressed bourgeois hunter, gun in hand, is being directed by a peasant toward a small bird, illustrating tensions between social classes. Daumier, working in 19th-century France, was deeply critical of the bourgeoisie, and his art often held a mirror up to their affectations and exploitative practices. Here, the hunter, stiff and overdressed, is in stark contrast to the peasant who, despite his local knowledge, is relegated to a subservient role. The peasant's coarse features and posture underscore a societal hierarchy, one where rural labor is subservient to urban wealth. Daumier used his lithographs to stir the emotions of those who felt disenfranchised, fostering solidarity through shared experience and social commentary. His work serves as a historical document of class struggle, capturing the emotional weight of inequality through the accessible medium of print.