Original antique engraving by James Gillray. First published in 1801. This engraving published in 1851 as part of the Bohn Edition.
"A Broad Hint of not Meaning to Dance" is a famous British satirical caricature published on 20 November 1804 by the master printmaker and caricaturist James Gillray. This print is from the Bohn edition of 1851. The sketch is based on a design by the amateur artist Brownlow North, and serves as a humorous and scathing critique of social awkwardness, vanity, and romantic rejection in Regency-era assembly rooms.
The artwork portrays a lively, provincial evening ball filled with energetic, though notably unrefined, dancers moving in the background. The core comedic narrative unfolds entirely in the foreground.
An ugly, incredibly conceited fop stands with his back to the fireplace, lifting his coat-tails to warm himself. Bent into a dramatic, low bow, he smugly offers an invitation to dance. In his clumsy vanity, he is completely oblivious to the fact that he is stepping directly on the hem of a woman's dress.
The target of his affection, a pretty young woman, gives her "broad hint" by aggressively walking away from him. She physically drags her wooden chair with her rather than leaving it behind, which would usually signal an intention to return to the dance floor. Her rapid escape causes her dress to tear loudly under his foot.
To the right, another woman sits directly against the wall, firmly gripping a closed fan—a historical symbol of social disinterest or lack of a dance partner.
During the early 19th century, assembly room dances were highly structured marital marketplaces where strict rules of etiquette governed how men and women interacted. Gillray utilized this structured environment to highlight the grotesque and funny realities of forced courtship.
Gillray was one of five children, and the only one to survive to maturity. In 1770 he was apprenticed to Harry Ashby, a London writing in engraver, and five years later W. Humphrey published a few of Gillray's illustrations including satirical works. By the time Gillray commenced his career satire was old, but personal caricature was in its infancy. Other exponents in this form of art were soon overshadowed by Gillray's superior craftsmanship. His figures were full of vitality, titillating and reflective of some political crisis or private scandal. As his popularity increased so did demand by the public to see more of his work. In the rapidly changing politics of the late18th century he would produce a plate in twenty-four hours. Although sometimes overlooked his speech bubbles were elaborate and Gillray would spend considerable time composing and redrafting the text.
Between 1791 to 1807 his career continued successfully in association with William and Hannah Humphrey. There after Gillray's health began to suffer. He eventually slipped into madness and died shortly before the Battle of Waterloo on June 1st 1815. Hannah, who had a close relationship with him nursed Gillray through out his final years and following his death the copper plates then formed part of Hannah's estate when she died in 1818. The executor's of Hannah's estate sold Gillray's painstakingly worked plates for there second hand copper weight. Hearing of this, the then publisher, Bohn who had previously expressed an interest in buying the plates set about purchasing them from a variety of different sources. Eventually acquiring over 500. In 1851 Bohn republished the engravings in a large folio volume, "The Works of James Gillray".
