The Great Exhibition "Wot is to Be", Probable Results of The Industry of All Nations in The Year '51, Showing What is to be Exhibited, Who is To Exhibit, in Short How Its All Going to Be Done 1850

George Augustus Sala made this satirical lithograph, “The Great Exhibition "Wot is to Be," in anticipation of the 1851 Crystal Palace Exhibition. It offers a humorous critique of Victorian society and its obsession with progress and industry. The print imagines bizarre exhibits, blending human figures with vegetables and absurd inventions, reflecting anxieties about industrialization. It exaggerates class distinctions, portraying the upper class as ridiculous vegetables and lampooning the working class through caricatures. The presence of dancers alludes to the cultural expectations of women, particularly in the performing arts, and the societal pressures they faced. Sala’s caricature employs humor to reflect the social and political landscape of his time. The artist asks us to consider the cultural expectations and societal inequalities perpetuated by the dominant narratives of progress. It underscores the emotional cost of industrial advancement.