Plate two, from A Harlot's Progress

Plate two, from A Harlot's Progress by William Hogarth English, 1697-1764, is a central image in the artist's seminal six-part sequence documenting the swift moral and physical decline of a young woman named Moll Hackabout in 18th-century London. Executed in 1732, this groundbreaking work is classified as a copperplate print, demonstrating Hogarth’s sophisticated command of the printmaking medium to achieve intricate detail and high contrast.

The series is a defining example of the 'modern moral subject,' a genre the artist developed to satirize the hypocrisy and vice rampant in Georgian England. While Plate One showed Moll’s arrival and immediate exploitation, the second piece typically depicts her established as a mistress. Hogarth uses carefully arranged domestic elements and visual cues to expose the instability and moral rot underlying the superficial luxury of her new life.

The widespread dissemination of these copperplate prints throughout England, often copied and pirated, demonstrated the immense appetite for illustrated narratives that blended high art with popular theater. Hogarth's visual storytelling established him as the pre-eminent satirist of his time, transforming social commentary into a highly profitable art form accessible to the public. Because of its cultural significance and historical age, the image is frequently referenced in discussions of public domain art history. This historically significant print from 1732 remains a crucial document of social history and is held in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.