Funeste effet de la jalousie c. 1753 - 1813

Charles Boily made this print, "Funeste effet de la jalousie", sometime in the late 1700s, using etching and engraving. The image shows a boudoir scene that reflects the moral anxieties of pre-Revolutionary France. Here, a jealous husband discovers his wife in bed with a lover. The scene is staged like a theater, complete with heavy curtains, drawing our eyes to the drama unfolding. Boily uses the visual codes of the time to critique aristocratic society. The cuckolded husband, dressed in military garb, represents the old order, while the disheveled wife and her lover suggest the decadence of the aristocracy. We can imagine this print being circulated and consumed by members of the rising middle class, who were increasingly critical of the aristocracy's excesses. Studying prints like these, one could look at period literature, newspapers, and social commentary. Through these sources, art history can reveal the ways in which images reflect and shape social attitudes.