A very great bear

Harrison Weir

1853

Wood engraving by R. E. Mason.

6¼ x 5 inches

Illustration for The Adventures of a Bear, facing p.43.

An anthropomorphic image, with the very great bear promenading among the respectable middle-classes, making ‘so imposing a figure in his new dress’ that he inevitably assumes an ‘air of pomposity’ (p.43). Amusing for children, Weir’s designs and Elwes’s words also make a sharp satirical point about false deference and snobbishness.

[Click on image to enlarge it.]

Scanned image and text by Simon Cooke

[You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned the image and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]