Figure 5.8 JeanBaptiste Greuze: The Village Bride or The Village Agreement, oil on canvas, 92 × 117
cm, 1761. Paris, Musée du Louvre.
Source: DeAgostini/G. Dagli Orti/Getty Images.In order for such subjects to convey moral messages, a particular kind of ideal viewer was often
assumed: male (often susceptible to the sight of attractive, vulnerable women), patriarchal, sympathetic
and receptive to reformist ideas. A viewer of this kind might even be imagined as inscribed into the fabric
of such works, which dealt with socially relevant themes such as the legal and social aspects of marriage,
models of good fatherhood or the way in which families treat older people (Crow, 1985, 163). Greuze’s
works suggested little by way of a different life for women, except insofar as they might benefit from the
better morals of those men who surrounded them (Barker, 2005, 75, 238–240). Later in his career the
content of Greuze’s work was less idealistic, yet continued to inspire many imitators, including Étienne
Aubry (1745–1781) and Lépicié (Brookner, 1972, 138–155; Conisbee, 1981, 168). His failure to acquire
the status of history painter (see Chapter 2) and growing criticism of his technique; for example, in his
figure drawing, which was increasingly, from the 1780s, compared negatively with David’s, played their
part in the collapse of his career. In addition, Greuze realized perhaps that the kind of reforms at which
his works hinted were not yet welcomed by more selfseeking constituents of the public – as we have
seen, immorality remained a common concern in France in the 1780s. Fragonard’s art continued at that