 The engraving of "The Distrest Poet" in its third state was issued on 15 December 1741 as a companion piece to "The Enraged Musician", a comic scene of a violinist driven to distraction by the noise from the street outside his practice room.The initial plate for "The Distrest Poet" was produced soon after Hogarth had completed the oil painting, but the third state plate was not completed until late in 1740 at which time Hogarth advertised his intention to issue a three-image set