Just like Sisyphus, plate 27 from Actualités 1869

This lithograph was made in France by Honoré Daumier. It shows a figure from Greek mythology, Sisyphus, condemned to roll a boulder up a hill for eternity, only to have it roll back down each time. In Daumier’s image, the boulder is labeled ‘Budget’, and the print appeared in a series called Actualités, or ‘Current Events.’ This simple substitution reveals the politics of imagery. Daumier made this work in the 1860s, a period of rapid industrial expansion and social change in France. The image suggests that the burden of the national budget, the allocation of financial resources by the state, falls squarely on the backs of the working classes, an endless and punishing task with no prospect of reward. As art historians, we might look at other prints from this series, research the political climate of the time, and analyze the visual language Daumier employs to critique the social structures of his era. Only through understanding the social and institutional context can we appreciate the full power of art as a form of political commentary.