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| Carrington Bowles, The Man-Trap, 1780 |
Don't be deceived, she has a trick up her sleeve! Carrington Bowles' 1780 satirical print could have its own
theme song, for it serves as a warning to young men out there to be wary of one of the most feared things to an 18th century gentleman: women. You may chuckle, but "man-traps" were a genuine concern, especially because women were considered to be vamps whose voracious sexual appetite couldn't be satisfied. Many satirical prints show an amorous woman asking their exhausted lover for more sex.
Oh the horror!
Here we have the culprit, not in the act, but in her natural form: sitting in high fashion on her couch. She looks quite virginal in white, and her fair skin further serves to induce you to believe in her innocence. But if you are only to look behind her and see her daily income of love letters you could just save yourself from a dangerous man
eatertrap!
