Gluttony was considered to be one of the mortal sins along with drinking and debauchery. The painting "Battle between the Carnival and the Lent" by Peter Bruegel Sr., is like a large caricature, where King the Butcher with spear-spit riding on a tun challenged the emaciated Lent - the "Emperor of Fish-eaters"- armed with a wooden baker's shovel. So, laughter and joy contrasted serious and meditative life.

In any time property and food symbolize power which should be taken away and shared. Gillray drew some caricatures that dealt with poor crops and "bread" rebellions, criticizing George X and his Cabinet. In revolutionary Russia the slogan "He who does not work, does not eat." was extremely popular; in the caricatures of that time the artists drew fat ministers, generals, capitalists, and clergy.

During Stalin years inner enemies got "thinner" to hide among hungry workers who starved because of the crafty designs of those enemies. On the other hand, the "external" enemies got "fatter" eating their folks and the population of numerous colonies out of house and home.

In caricature it does not look surprising that nothing is spared from being eaten: I. Cruikshank described Suvorov swallowing enemies; in anti-Napoleon caricatures the French emperor was eating money, weapons, buildings, cities, and continents.

Thank God, food is not only a social phenomenon, but it is a part of our private life. Food should be bought, cooked, and eaten: this process is the inexhaustible source of caricatures' topics. Two main figures of fun have come forward: a waiter and a cook; also M. Genin proclaimed a motto: "The worse the cook is, the more polite the waiters are". "Krokodil" caricaturists tried their best in the "fight" for the quality of food and service. But in vain... nothing had changed in any sphere.