Goya And Anthropomorphism

Francisco Goya y Lucientes, Witches' Sabbath.  1798.

Goya, No Title, 1821 -23.

Goya, The Bewitched Man.  1798.  

The Man Bewitched By Force, a play by Antonio de Zamora. The protagonist, Don Claudio, is led to believe that he is bewitched and that his life depends on keeping a lamp alight. This was a satire of the ruling class and was performed for 150 years.  The devil mockingly presents the fool with the lamp.

Neither More Nor Less, Plate 41 From Los Caprichos.

At the time 1797 - 1799, Goya was court painter to Charles IV.  Goya had more than one chat with the Inquisition.

Of What Will He Die?

  

And So Was His Grandfather, Plate # 39.  I take this as a comment on hereditary nobility, a curse upon Spain.  Check out 'Lazarillo Del Tormes'.  In Chapter 3, Lazarillo becomes the servant of a Squire. The Squire openly flaunts his status despite not being able to feed himself, let alone Lázaro. This is a parody of the importance of having a strong image among the nobility.  

 

You Who Cannot, # 42

Attempts. A Novice Witch Practices Flying.  

The ram is, of course, a demon, the skull is used for black magic, and the pitcher holds the ointment that will produce the hallucination interpreted as flying.  Said ointment was often made with belladonna, mandrake, henbane, wolfsbane, and jimson weed, all of which contained atropine, hyoscyamine and scopolamine.  Jesus.  Just handling this stuff would cause you to trip your ass off, never mind rubbing it all over the bare body.  Life must have been pretty dull for a lot of these ladies.  The cats are familiars and judging from the look on the face of the center one we are not welcome here.

Bravo!  

Look How Serious They Are!  

Stupid donkeys bear unbelievable and silly creatures as burdens.  Goya was most anti-clerical but supposedly he did not attack the church itself, although I think he did.  Like almost everything else satirical or pointed he created he left the interpretation vague.

The Chinchillas.  Spain's ruling class as deaf and blind useless mammals being spoon fed everything they know.  The implication is that the are good for nothing, although chinchilla makes a great fur and is delicious.   

Sprucing Themselves Up.  Anthro bats primping, I have no idea where Goya was going with this.

You Won't Escape.  A comment on predatory old rich men as winged monsters, the young woman will be married off in a cynical bargain.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Cat Fight, 1786.  Not anthropomorphic but with Goya one never knows.

Keep moving.