Temperance Enjoying a Frugal Meal

James Gillray represents the pinnacle of English political satire. He shares two features in common with Hogarth: firstly, he also sought the actors for his caricatures „in the street“ and secondly, the work of both artists reveals a multiplicity of meanings within attention to detail. He frequently depicted episodes from the life of the Prince Regent (later George IV). Temperance Enjoying a Frugal Meal is a reference to the Prince Regent’s typical predilections. The future monarch’s notorious avarice and gluttony is rendered by Gillray as a frugal repast, with the prince absorbed in feasting on a dainty egg washed down with a glass of water.