La Belle Hottentote

Throughout history, women have been consistently oppressed and objectified. The French print La Belle Hottentote and the English print Love and Venus-Sartjee the Hottentot Venus, both exemplify the misogynistic and racist nature of Europe in the nineteenth-century. Women of color were treated differently than white women, more specifically, African women were viewed not only as objects, but as science exhibits for wealthy Europeans to gawk at. Through the titles of the prints, the accompanying dialogue, and the depiction of several individuals, the message of the prints is apparent. La Belle Hottentote and Love and Venus-Sartjee the Hottentot Venus, reveal that nineteenth-century scientific methods were used to create and maintain an adverse

After all, “la belle” translates to “the beautiful,” so the initial reaction is that the print is a piece of admiration. After actually looking at the print, one can understand that the piece is not of admiration. The people in the print are not looking at Saartjie with appreciation, they are gawking at her as though she is a zoo animal. The man on the left is reaching out to touch Saartjie’s butt, like she is a forbidden creature. Saartjie is standing on a box as if she is a science experiment being presented for all to see. It is ironic how “beautiful” is in the title of this piece when Saartjie is being presented as an abnormality. The comments made by the observers are also ironic compared to the title. The man on the left refers to Saartjie as “roast beef.” If this print was true to the title, the man would not be using such revolting language. The title, Love and Venus-Sartjee the Hottentot Venus, refers to Saartjie as Venus. In Roman mythology, Venus is the goddess of love, sex, and beauty. However, in the print Cupid is sitting on Saartjie’s butt as though she is a piece of furniture, not a beacon of beauty. The titles of both prints are clearly filled with irony as Saartjie is neither treated nor sincerely discussed with

Specifically, the man with the spectacles encourages all of the spectators to look closely at Saartjie. The spectacles magnify his view of Saartjie, allowing him a closer look, like he is examining a scientific exhibition in a museum. The man with the spectacles says “[W]hat a strange beauty” while staring at Saartjie. His comments are not compliments as he is simply fascinated with Saartjie’s genitalia. The man’s fascination can be likened to the sexualisation of African women. The South African Journal of Science describes how Saartjie’s body was dissected after her death, the dissector paid “especial attention to the buttocks and external genitalia” and the “external genitalia were . . . preserved in a bottle.” (Tobias 108) Saartjie’s dissection was one of an animal. Her genitalia dissection and preservation lead anatomists to “presume[d] sexual behavior” (Tobias 108) of African women because of the large sizes of Saartjie’s genitalia compared to European women. The field of anatomy sexualized and questioned the body of Saartjie, believing that Saartjie was “closest in bodily structure, behaviour and even language to non-human animals.” (Tobias 108) The ignorant judgements of anatomists and anthropologists have contributed to racist attitudes that are still present in today’s society. The distinguished First Lady Michelle Obama has been victim to comments declaring she resembles a gorilla. Perhaps