How Does Hyacinth Rigaud's Portrait of Louis XIV Function on a Number

question 21

Essay

How does Hyacinth Rigaud's Portrait of Louis XIV function on a number of levels as an image of absolute monarchy? What elements in the painting are there for substantially symbolic reasons?

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Definitions:

Commercial Interests

Activities and endeavors undertaken by businesses and organizations aimed at generating revenue and profit.

Large Plantations

Extensive farms, especially in the past, where crops like cotton, tobacco, and sugar were grown, often with the labor of enslaved people.

Cotton Gin

A machine invented by Eli Whitney in 1793 that revolutionized the cotton industry by greatly speeding up the process of removing seeds from cotton fiber.

Plantation Owners

Individuals who owned large agricultural estates typically in the Americas, often worked by enslaved people, especially in the context of crops like tobacco and cotton.