Jozef en de vrouw van Potifar 1691 - 1767

Louis Surugue created this print, "Joseph and Potiphar's Wife," which is based on the Old Testament story, sometime between 1686 and 1762. It depicts a scene of sexual harassment. Prints like this one, often circulated amongst the bourgeoisie, served as moral lessons. They reinforced gendered and class expectations: men should be virtuous and women chaste. Yet, I wonder what happens when we see this image with contemporary eyes? Can we see, for instance, how the story of Joseph and Potiphar's wife, becomes a story about power, race, and class? As a Black woman, Potiphar’s wife was in a precarious position in a white, patriarchal society. What does it mean that it is her word against Joseph's? Do we read this as a story of moral fortitude on behalf of Joseph, or a story of the vulnerability of women, particularly Black women, in the 17th and 18th centuries?