During the 17th century, Dutch genre painting flourished, appealing to middle class patrons by depicting everyday life with charm and often a moral. Jan Steen was among the most successful genre painters, weaving witty commentary into his pictures of merriment. Rhetoricians at a Window, c. 1661-1666 (oil on canvas, 29 7/8 x 23 1/16 inches) serves as an exemplar, depicting a naturalistic scene combined with layers of meaning. Even the title may be read on many levels. Just as a rhetorician may refer to an eloquent speaker, so, too, may it allude to a pompous or bombastic person. Rhetorician also conjures up the notion of rhetoric, or the act of making a persuasive argument based on a point and counterpoint structure. This painting cleverly provides several layers of point-counterpoint arguments revealed through visual analysis, careful reading of physiognomy of the figures, and assessing the composition as a whole, including how it engages the viewer. Visually, Steen presents a naturalistic scene set in a tavern or inn, believable in its details. Four prominent figures are easily readable, not cartoonish or types, but portrayed with individualistic features. Two more shadowy figures emerge from the background. The four figures up front are framed in a window that fills the upper 2/3 of the painting, pushed forward in shallow space to the picture plane. The location is identifiable as a public place where drink is served by the prominent, diamond-shaped sign, nailed to the window frame just off center, hanging in the lower third of the painting. The sign features crossed swords, common symbols for power, protection, justice, courage, and strength. Here, the crossed swords also serve as an apt emblem for the crossed arguments of the point and counterpoint of rhetoric. Across the top of the painting is a swag of grapevine, with a bunch of grapes just right of center and another bunch on the far left, as the vine tumbles down the left window frame. The lively swoop of the grapevine softens the strong geometry of the rest of the composition. The window dominates the frame and is comprised of a central cross inside its rectangular shape, suggesting the possibility of a moral at the center of this story. The cross also implies a crossroad, choices to be made when a point and counterpoint intersect. Both the top of the window’s rectangle and the bottom of the sign’s diamond are cropped out of the picture, creating an immediacy and aliveness of a zoomed-in vantage point. The diamond of the sign is mirrored in diamond-shaped leaded glass in the top two quadrants of the cross. Close examination reveals that two of the panes are broken, perhaps by revelers inside. The brick structure of the building adds more geometry with stabilizing verticals and dominant horizontals, which buttress the horizontal window ledge. The colors are earthy and muted, reflecting the earthy scene. The red velvety cap of a figure just right of center immediately attracts attention, but the rest of the palette is marked by shades of brown, golden yellow, and soft green. The bricks appear textural, accomplished through illusionistic shadow in the mortar to suggest depth, and laying down smooth layers of multiple color, with oranges and greens highlighting the tans and browns, as if the architecture were alive and organic, changing colors over time. The sign’s diamond frame is matted in deep brown, mustard yellow and rus