FRANCISCO JOSE de GOYA y LUCIENTES
Fuendetodos 1746 - 1828 Bordeaux
Ni así la distingue (1st edition), 1799
He still cannot make her out
Etching, aquatint and drypoint on laid paper
200 x 150 mm.; 7 7/8 x 5 7/8 inches
Reference:
Caprichos, plate 7
Delteil 108
Harris 106.III.1
Notes:
1. A very fine impression on laid paper from the 1st edition of 1799.
2. This print plays on the difference between "to see" and "to perceive". Obviously, looking at the young lady’s stance and her knowing smile, the young man, in spite of (or perhaps because of) his magnifying glass, does not appear to perceive her true nature. A broader interpretation of this work could consider it as an attack on a generally felt shortsightedness of the privileged classes of the time. The Biblioteca Nacional text is much more to the point:
Se ciegan tanto los hombres luxuriosos, que ni con tente distinguen que la señora que obsequian, es une ramera.
(Lecherous men close their eyes so much that not even with a magnifying glass can they distinguish that the lady whom they are pursuing is a prostitute).
3. The Prado text explanation is more general:
Como a de distinguirla? Para conocer lo que ella es no basta el anteojos necisita juicio y practica del mundo el esto es precisamente lo que falta al pobre caballero.
(How can he make her out? In order to know what she is, a monocle would not be enough. There would be needed both worldly judgement and practical experience. This is precisely what this poor gentleman lacks).