Brothel Scene

Expressions and gestures fascinated Edgar Degas, and he used both to focus on the relationship between a madam and a soldier in this brothel scene. Although only carelessly sketching, he still managed to give the episode an air of relaxed camaraderie. The woman gestures casually, lifting the edge of her skirt as she speaks. The soldier leans back easily in his chair with his arms wrapped around his knees, swinging his legs like a young boy.

Edmond de Goncourt's novel La Fille Elisa (The Girl Elisa) was published in March 1877 and quickly caught Degas's attention. In the same year, Degas sketched several drawings based on its events in his notebook. The book tells the tragic story of a girl who becomes a prostitute, first in the country and then in a poor quarter of Paris near the École Militaire. She later falls in love with a soldier and murders him in a rage.