Plate 42 from "Los Caprichos": Thou who canst not (Tu que no puedes)
This plate is captioned with the first part of a Spanish proverb, "Thou who canst not / carry me on your back," represented by two men, each struggling under the weight of a content donkey. Their footwear identifies the men as peasants or laborers. The print has been interpreted as a satire on the uselessness of the nobility and the clergy, whose upkeep had become a financial burden for the impoverished working population. In other prints from the Caprichos, the ass appears as a device to ridicule ignorance in professions such as medicine, education, and the law.
Artwork Details
- Title: Plate 42 from "Los Caprichos": Thou who canst not (Tu que no puedes)
- Series/Portfolio: Los Caprichos
- Artist: Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes) (Spanish, Fuendetodos 1746–1828 Bordeaux)
- Date: 1799
- Medium: Etching, burnished aquatint
- Dimensions: Plate: 8 7/16 × 5 15/16 in. (21.5 × 15.1 cm)
Sheet: 11 5/8 x 8 1/4 in. (29.5 x 20.9 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Gift of M. Knoedler & Co., 1918
- Object Number: 18.64(42)
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes)
1799, posthumous impression
Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes)
ca. 1815–19 (published 1864)
Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes)
ca. 1815–19 (published 1864)
Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes)
ca. 1815–19 (published 1864)
Goya (Francisco de Goya y Lucientes)
ca. 1815–19 (published 1864)
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