James Tissot: 1896                                                                                               By: Kaylie Sorensen

     In 1896, James Tissot began creating a unique interpretation of Rahab called “The Harlot of Jericho and the Two Spies.” Unlike most pieces illustrating Rahab, Tissot portrays her as a sexual, undesirable woman. The Women’s Suffrage Bill and issues following the Industrial Revolution heavily influenced Tissot’s decisions. The painting was created in London during the Victorian Era, which has been known to have a significant influence on artwork in England.
     The Industrial Revolution shaped the idea of the domestic sphere for women. After the 1820’s, women were assigned to roles inside the home while their husbands worked outside of the home. Tissot shows a connection to The Industrial Revolution by illustrating Rahab with no shoes on and the men with shoes on. Rahab’s appearance suggests that she was cleaning before the men’s arrival. Tissot’s painting implies society’s different expectation of opposing genders. Although Rahab was single, she was expected to act like a good wife and perform her domestic duties within the home.
     One primary concern during the Victorian Era was the rights given to women. In 1892, the Women’s Suffrage Bill failed. Despite the proposal, women’s rights were left unchanged and they continued to hold fewer rights than men¹. The Married Women’s Property Act of 1882 gave women the right to own and control their property, which upset many married men. Before any of The Act's passed, women legally belonged to their husband. 

"As soon as a woman married she disappeared as far as the law was concerned; now she was no longer a person in her own right but was merely an extension of her husband, unable to own property or even her own person (divorce was impossible for all but the most privileged women as it necessitated a special act of Parliament). A woman became essentially a chattel of her husband; her wealth and possessions were now all his."

                                                                                                                   - Claire Jones

     Men were frustrated with the new rights being given to women. It was difficult for them to appreciate this new change. Tissot connects the Married Women's Act's to his painting by illustrating Rahab dressed in white. It symbolizes her expectation to continue to be weak, innocent and pure. Tissot shows Rahab touching two men, which may suggest how society still expected women to be obedient to men and always to care for their needs. Single women were looked down upon and were supposed to find a man so they could abandon most of their rights. Tissot illustrates Rahab to be an outcast because of her lurking sexual urges with two men. If a single woman did not get married during this time, people considered them a prostitute since they were able to sleep with more than one man. Following the Industrial Revolution, lower class women typically resorted to prostitution because of how difficult it was for them to obtain higher professions². Although prostitution was legal, society viewed prostitutes negatively because it gave women visible freedom. Typically, lower class women ignored the negative stigma so they could provide for themselves. Tissot connected the role of prostitution to Rahab. He incorporates the issue of prostitution by showing how Rahab was single and involved with more than one man. In the painting, she is holding one spy’s hand, while simultaneously touching the other spy’s face and looking at his lips. The Industrial Revolution, the Women’s Suffrage movement and the issue of prostitution influenced Tissot’s negative interpretation of Rahab. Tissot may have argued that since she strayed from the domestic sphere, society viewed her poorly. She was not a wife, slept with more than one man and was a part of the lower class. His interpretation was appropriate during this period because she did not fit in with society. Her actions fell far from the expectations of England during the 19^th century.
     Tissot’s artwork of Rahab can be viewed today in the United States. After Tissot passed away in 1902, his unfinished painting was sold to Jacob Schiff ³. Schiff finished the artwork shortly after. In 1909, the illustration of Rahab was transferred by Schiff to the Jewish Museum in New York. Since Schiff was a religious Jew, he decided to place the painting in the Jewish Museum. Many Jewish people view Rahab’s religious conversion from a Canaanite into Judaism positively. Although the people of England looked down upon her actions, the Jewish people see her as a heroine because of her repentance to God. God forgave her sins for being involved in prostitution and her faith in God is honored.

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¹“British Women’s History Timeline”, History of Women, Accessed November 23 2015, http://www.historyofwomen.org/timeline.html
²Kelly, Nigel and Lacey, Greg. Modern World History. (Oxford, United Kingdom: Heinemann Educational Publishers, 2001), 298-301. http://www.pearsonschoolsandfecolleges.co.uk/assetslibrary/sectors/secondary/subject/historyandsocialscience/pdfs/ocrgcsebmwhwomenssuffragesamplepages.pdf
³“The Harlot of Jericho and the Two Spies, from The Old Testament,” The Jewish Museum, Accessed December 2 2015, http://thejewishmuseum.org/collection/26407-the-harlot-of-jericho-and-the-two-spies