In The Hireling Shepherd, how is the Literary significance discussed?
In 1859 Robert Barnabas Brough published a short story entitled "Calmuck" in Charles Dickens' magazine Household Words. It was a thinly disguised account of Hunt's experience painting the picture and of his relations with his model Emma Watkins. Some of Hunt's relatives were shocked by the apparent implication that Watkins had come to London to be with Hunt. Hunt wrote an outraged letter to Dickens, who claimed to be unaware that the story was based on real events.Brian Aldiss used the painting as a leitmotif in his 1968 novel Report on Probability A.
Brian Aldiss Report on Probability A Charles Dickens Household Words Robert Barnabas Brough