William Hogarth, Before and After

On one level, of course, these scenes are comical, and yet, as with so much of Hogarth's work, they are also biting social satire and a grave moral warning. 

I tend to avoid any public assertions on matters of sex, not because I am prudish, but because I find that very few people are willing to honestly reflect on the role of desire in nature—the discussion inevitably degrades into rage or ridicule. I will only say that too many of our troubles come from the confusion between lust and love; a mind and a will overwhelmed by appetites, of any sort, are dangerous things.  

The facial expressions in all three version are priceless, and can tell us far more about the peculiar weaknesses of both men and women than any scholarly essay. 

In the prints, I am especially taken by the details of the books in the drawer, a text on piety in front of a trashy novel, and the two paintings on the wall of a cherub with a rocket. The dog is yipping in one scene, and sleeping in the next, while another book on the floor proclaims "every animal is sad after sex." 

William Hogarth, Before and After (first painted version, 1731) 

William Hogarth, Before and After (second painted version, 1731) 

William Hogarth, Before and After (engraving, 1736)