The Industrious 'Prentice Performing the Duty of a Christian: Industry and Idleness, plate 2

The Industrious 'Prentice Performing the Duty of a Christian: Industry and Idleness, plate 2, created by William Hogarth in 1747, is the second plate in his celebrated moral narrative contrasting the lives of two London apprentices. Executed using the specialized technique of etching and engraving, this particular print exists in the first state of two, offering insight into Hogarth’s meticulous process of developing his potent social commentary through widely circulated prints.

The scene captures the industrious apprentice, Francis Goodchild, fulfilling his moral obligation to his master and his God. Hogarth stages the scene as a public performance, where Goodchild is reading scripture before a congregation in the church. The depiction of women and other spectators focused intently on the young man’s pious act emphasizes the social pressure and expectation placed on youths to publicly display their industry. By showing Goodchild performing the duty of a Christian, Hogarth positions religion and active reading not just as personal devotion, but as a visible cornerstone of commercial and social success in the Georgian period. The act of public reading here signifies Goodchild’s inherent virtue and reliability, sharply contrasting with the slothful actions of his counterpart shown elsewhere in the series.

This influential plate belongs to the twelve-image series Industry and Idleness, which utilized accessible visual narratives to comment on class, vice, and virtue among the emerging middle class. The work remains an essential example of 18th-century British printmaking and resides within the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.