The Contract; or Different Ways of Looking at a Thing

John Doyle's hand-colored lithograph depicts three elegantly dressed men greeting a portly middle-aged figure—John Bull, personification of England itself. The leftmost politician bows obsequiously while speaking honeyed words; the central figure shakes his hand with practiced warmth; the third turns away with indifference, cane in hand. Each speech balloon reveals their true thoughts, exposing the gap between public flattery and private contempt.

Doyle worked in the tradition of Gillray and Rowlandson, using physiognomy and caricature to mock political hypocrisy. The lithographic medium allowed rapid production and wide distribution of satirical commentary. This print belongs to the visual satire lineage—sharp observation of power, character revealed through exaggerated feature and posture—that directly influenced the comic strip's language of expression and sequential narrative.