The First Stage of Cruelty
ca. 1750
William Hogarth sketched this chaotic street scene as a stark warning to 18th-century Londoners about the dangers of bad behavior. In the foreground, a group of boys is gleefully tormenting a dog and a cat, while the background buzzes with adults looking on or participating in the mayhem. This drawing serves as a preparatory study for his famous print series 'The Four Stages of Cruelty,' which tracks a grim path from childhood animal abuse to eventual execution. Hogarth was basically the original graphic novelist, using his art to tell moral stories that shocked viewers into behaving better.
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