Degas’ The Tub, done in 1886, has elements of both Western and Japanese art. As David Britt writes in a book translated from Klaus Berger, “A pastel such as The Tub still models the body through chiaroscuro, but the sharp outline, the ‘arranged’ pose, the steep downward angle of view past the dressing table, and the sharp contrast with a background form - here the bathtub itself - are entirely keeping with Japanese precedent.” (Britt 63) However, although the painting certainly does contain many Japanese similarities, it does not keep entirely with Japanese precedent. Instead of having an “arranged” pose, the woman portrayed in The Tub is in a very natural position. She is crouching down in the tub washing herself. Nothing about her body position is pretentious or “posed.” Degas in fact prided himself on his figures being completely the opposite - candid and unrestrained. As he said, “my women are simple, honest creatures who are concerned with nothing beyond their physical occupations… it is as if you were looking through a keyhole.” (Degas) The pose is very similar to some of the poses portrayed in the Japanese prints. However, Degas’ woman is much more natural, as opposed to the slightly more rigid and unrealistic feel that many of the Japanese prints had.