The Goose Girl

A young girl, identifiable as a peasant by her kerchief and her work-roughened hands and feet, extends her leg to dip a heel into the stream. In this painting, Millet refers to a long tradition in European art of depicting the idealized female nude in a natural setting, often in the guise of a mythological figure. The artist reworks this convention from a Realist perspective, emphasizing the goose girl's working-class status, adolescent body, and vulnerable pose. Millet developed this composition through numerous studies made over a period of seven years.