In 1869, France was under the rule of Napoleon III, but there were political troubles on the horizon. The Franco-Prussian War would break out in 1870, and the French defeat at its end would result in the Revolt of the Commune in 1871. By observing closely the life of poor people in the countryside, artists like Millet were making an indirect comment on the politics of the time, and on the unequal distribution of wealth.
