Trulla Attacking Hudibras (Seventeen Small Illustrations for Samuel Butler's Hudibras, no. 4)

"Trulla Attacking Hudibras (Seventeen Small Illustrations for Samuel Butler's Hudibras, no. 4)" is an etching and engraving created by William Hogarth between 1721 and 1726. This particular piece is the fourth in a series of seventeen small prints Hogarth designed to accompany the mock-heroic poem Hudibras (1663-1678) by Samuel Butler. Hogarth’s early commission to illustrate this seminal work demonstrates his formative engagement with literary satire, a theme that would define his later career creating ‘modern moral subjects.’

Executed in the precise and detailed mediums of etching and engraving, Hogarth captures a moment of farcical mayhem as the protagonist, Sir Hudibras, is fiercely attacked. The crowded composition is thick with action, depicting the central female figure, Trulla, aggressively engaging Hudibras. The scene is populated by figures-in-motion, detailing a chaotic melee of men and women grappling amidst the distressed forms of horses. Hogarth’s detailed linear technique emphasizes the absurdity of the confrontation, using sharp contrasts to define the figures’ expressions and movements, perfectly translating the satirical violence inherent in Butler’s narrative.

This work is part of the extensive print collection housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The series is crucial for understanding Hogarth’s development as a narrative artist and a master printmaker in the early Georgian period. Due to its historical significance and age, Trulla Attacking Hudibras is widely considered a public domain artwork, ensuring that high-quality prints of this early satirical masterpiece are available for study and appreciation worldwide.