A Harlot's Progress By: William Hogarth Published: 1731
Clothing in text: Reticule
Note in the above engraving that the young lady carries a large pouch on her right hand. Here is a closer view of the bag:
Social Commentary: In this first scene of A Harlot's Progress, Hogarth depicts an innocent young lady, possibly visiting the city for the first time. She wears a demure outfit as men leer at her in the doorway of the brothel. She has carried her reticule, and a small chatelaine is visible from her wait.
In this engraving, the reticule functions as an item from home, one of the last vestiges of a proper life for the young lady. It is stuffed full, but it is imagined that the contents are discarded, as they never show up again in the rest of the series.
It is this relationship with the reticule that captured the 18th century audience, as noted by Dabhoiwala, as she analyzed the response to the scene: "It put into an easily readable visual narrative the growing contemporary obsession with female victimization, libertine impunity, and the uselessness of punishment, complete with topical references to infamous real-life personages..." (Dabhoiwala 578). One false step, and the even the most genteel woman could fall prey to the vices of the 18th century.