William Hogarth (English, 1697–1764)
Gin Lane, February 1750/51
Engraving; Third State
Norton Simon Art Foundation, M.1979.67.56.G

On Gin Lane, alcoholism is rampant and social order has disintegrated: men starve and fight with animals, women—diseased and bare-breasted—fail in their maternal duties, and children fall to their deaths or are fed gin instead of milk. On Beer Street, however, the convivial masses drink a national British beverage, and hierarchy and productivity are maintained. Designed as a pair, William Hogarth’s engravings promote the “safe” enjoyment of beer over the “dangerous” consumption of gin. They were first published in 1751, the same year as Britain’s Gin Act, also called the Tippling Act, which curtailed the sale of cheap spirits.

Various economic factors, such as duties on ale and beer, international conflicts and surplus grain, led to the affordability and profitability of gin in Britain during the first half of the 18th century. By 1750 there were 29,000 licensed gin retailers in the United Kingdom. This flourishing distilling industry fueled a moral panic about the “Gin Craze.” In addition to fears that gin drinking might lead to increased vice or poverty in the working classes, some politicians worried that excessive indulgence by laborers would negatively impact commercial interests.

Packed with details, Hogarth’s two prints embody these anxieties. Death is everywhere in Gin Lane: a child is brutally skewered, a woman is lowered into a coffin and a man hangs in an abandoned building. Not so subtly, Hogarth places the Kilman Distiller next to the mortuary. References to extreme poverty, like an emaciated man, unconscious or near death from too much liquor, emphasize the horrific environment in which these people live. Gin Lane’s dilapidated setting was inspired by the infamous slum of Saint Giles in southwest London (Figure 5). Despite its reputation, the neighborhood was home to many London laborers, including a significant Irish immigrant population, which likely contributed to biases against the area. By comparison, Beer Street shows a healthy and industrious populace, enjoying an overflowing beaker of beer during their break. Women sit with their baskets of fish and vegetables, and a blacksmith waves a large shoulder of mutton in the air. Hogarth’s political engravings clearly communicate a belief that consumption habits dictate the ability to perform honorable labor.