[Before] [graphic]Hogarth, William, 1697-1764, printmaker[15 December 1736]engIn her bedroom, a young woman seems to resist the advances of an eager-looking young man sitting on her canopied bed. He pulls her towards him as she pulls away. On the wall to the left is a picture which shows Cupid lighting a firework; it is titled "Before." As she pulls away she upsets the dresser with a mirror; her powders and cosmetics have tumbled to the floor. In the drawer can be seen letters, a novel, and "The Practice of Piety", but on top is a copy of Rochester's Poems. The lady's dog jumps toward the couple. Her willingness to be seduced is suggested by the fact that she is not wearing her corset which can be seen on a chair to the right; her bonnet hangs on the curtains around her bedTitle and state from Paulson.Sheet trimmed within plate mark.Companion print to Hogarth's After, published on the same date."Price two Shillings & 6 pence"--Below design, on the right corner.Not in the Catalogue of prints and drawings in the British Museum. Division I, political and personal satires.1 print : etching with engraving on laid paper ; plate mark 42.4 x 32.7 cm, on sheet 56 x 45 cm.Leaf 26 in: Album of William Hogarth prints.