Comment! encore une caricature sur nous... 1844

Honoré Daumier made this lithograph with ink on paper, a work that encapsulates his sharp wit and social critique. It satirizes the "Bas Bleus," a French term for bluestockings or intellectual women, commenting on gender roles and intellectual pursuits in 19th-century France. The image creates meaning through exaggerated features and expressions. The enraged woman's dishevelled appearance clashes with the other woman's bourgeois clothing. The print's publication in "Le Charivari," a satirical journal, meant it was placed within a context of political and social commentary. The artwork challenges the existing social norms by questioning the perception and treatment of women in intellectual circles. Studying Daumier’s caricatures and the publications they appeared in helps us to understand the social and institutional contexts that influenced his art and reflect on art’s role in questioning those contexts.