Download or read book Sorry written by Henry Hitchings and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. This book was released on 2013-11-05 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A humorous and charming investigation into what it really means to have proper manners Most of us know a bit about what passes for good manners—holding doors open, sending thank-you notes, no elbows on the table—and we certainly know bad manners when we see them. But where has this patchwork of beliefs and behaviors come from? How did manners develop? How do they change? And why do they matter so much? In examining English manners, Henry Hitchings delves into the English character and investigates what it means to be English. Sorry! presents an amusing, illuminating, and quirky audit of British manners. From basic table manners to appropriate sexual conduct, via hospitality, chivalry, faux pas, and online etiquette, Hitchings traces the history of England's customs and courtesies. Putting some of the most astute observers of humanity—including Jane Austen and Samuel Pepys—under the microscope, he uses their lives and writings to pry open the often downright peculiar secrets of the English character. Hitchings's blend of history, anthropology, and personal journey helps us understand the bizarre and contested cultural baggage that goes along with our understanding of what it means to have good manners.
Download or read book Men and the Emergence of Polite Society Britain 1660 1800 written by Philip (Research Editor, New Dictionary Of National Biography) Carter and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-07-30 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents an account of masculinity in eighteenth century Britain. In particular it is concerned with the impact of an emergent polite society on notions of manliness and the gentleman. From the 1660s a new type of social behaviour, politeness, was promoted by diverse writers. Based on continental ideas of refinement, it stressed the merits of genuine and generous sociability as befitted a progressive and tolerant nation. Early eighteenth century writers encouraged men to acquire the characteristics of politeness by becoming urbane town gentlemen. Later commentators promoted an alternative culture of sensibility typified by the man of feeling. Central to both was the need to spend more time with women, now seen as key agents of refinement. The relationship demanded a reworking of what it meant to be manly. Being manly and polite was a difficult balancing act. Refined manliness presented new problems for eighteenth century men. What was the relationship between politeness and duplicity? Were feminine actions such as tears and physical delicacy acceptable or not? Critics believed polite society led to effeminacy, not manliness, and condemned this failure of male identity with reference to the fop. This book reveals the significance of social over sexual conduct for eighteenth century definitions of masculinity. It shows how features traditionally associated with nineteenth century models were well established in the earlier figure of the polite town-dweller or sentimental man of feeling. Using personal stories and diverse public statements drawn from conduct books, magazines, sermons and novels, this is a vivid account of the changing status of men and masculinity as Britain moved into the modern period.
Download or read book In Pursuit of Civility written by Keith Thomas and published by Brandeis University Press. This book was released on 2018-06-05 with total page 378 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Keith Thomas's earlier studies in the ethnography of early modern England, Religion and the Decline of Magic, Man and the Natural World, and The Ends of Life, were all attempts to explore beliefs, values, and social practices in the centuries from 1500 to 1800. In Pursuit of Civility continues this quest by examining what English people thought it meant to be "civilized" and how that condition differed from being "barbarous" or "savage." Thomas shows that the upper ranks of society sought to distinguish themselves from their social inferiors by distinctive ways of moving, speaking, and comporting themselves, and that the common people developed their own form of civility. The belief of the English in their superior civility shaped their relations with the Welsh, the Scots, and the Irish, and was fundamental to their dealings with the native peoples of North America, India, and Australia. Yet not everyone shared this belief in the superiority of Western civilization; the book sheds light on the origins of both anticolonialism and cultural relativism. Thomas has written an accessible history based on wide reading, abounding in fresh insights, and illustrated by many striking quotations and anecdotes from contemporary sources.
Download or read book Debrett s New Guide to Etiquette and Modern Manners written by John Morgan and published by Thomas Dunne Books. This book was released on 2001-11-16 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is no better time than now for a definitive guide to contemporary civilized living. As traditional codes of behavior have given way to an increasingly informal society, many people are disconcerted by the current lack of guidelines. The established rules are as important as ever, but need adaptation for the complications and developments of the twenty-first century. The Debrett's New Guide to Etiquette and Modern Manners cuts through the confusion to combine the very best of traditional standards of conduct with acceptable modern innovations. Packed with no-nonsense step-by-step advice, it covers everything from basic table manners to how to equip yourself at the grandest royal and diplomatic gatherings. Written with clarity and wit, this book celebrates the charm, beauty, and fascination of classic good manners, and their enduring role in a civilized society.
Download or read book Politeness in the History of English written by Andreas H. Jucker and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-04-16 with total page 223 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the Middle Ages up to the present day, this book traces politeness in the history of the English language.
Download or read book British Burma and Its People written by Charles James Forbes Smith-Forbes and published by . This book was released on 1878 with total page 390 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A Handbook on Good Manners for Children written by Erasmus and published by Random House. This book was released on 2011-11-30 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When did you last tell your children to put their hand over their mouth when they yawn? When did you last suggest that when they are introduced to someone they should shake hands firmly and look them in the eye? Do you suggest that they should wait until everyone is served before they eat rather than hoover up the best bit for themselves? Do you demand that your young daughter dress decorously lest she elicit outraged looks? Do you think that the children of today have disgraceful manners? Unlike, of course, when you were young ... Well, that's certainly what Erasmus of Rotterdam thought in 1530 when he published De Civilitate Morum Puerilium: A Handbook on Good Manners for Children. He felt that learning good manners was crucial to a child's upbringing, and that the uncouth and ill-disciplined behaviour around him demanded a new kind of book. After all, as William of Wykeham memorably said in the 1350s, 'Manners maketh man'. A Handbook on Good Manners for Children is considered to be the first treatise in Western Europe on the moral and practical education of children. It was a massive bestseller - indeed the biggest-selling book of the sixteenth century - going into 130 editions over 300 years and being translated into 22 languages within ten years of its publication. In it, Erasmus concerns himself with matters such as how to dress, how to behave at table, how to converse with one's elders and contemporaries, how to address the opposite sex and much else. For example: Table Manners 'It's just as rude to lick greasy fingers as it is to wipe them on your clothing, Use a cloth or napkin instead.' 'Some people, no sooner than they've sat down, immediately stick their hands into the dishes of food. This is the manner of wolves.' 'Making a raucous noise or shrieking intentionally when you sneeze, or showing off by carrying on sneezing on purpose, is very ill-mannered.' 'To fidget around in your seat, and to settle first on one buttock and then the next, gives the impression that you are repeatedly farting, or trying to fart.' The advice is as relevant today as it was 500 years ago.
Download or read book Men and the Making of Modern British Feminism written by Arianne Chernock and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 2009-12-18 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Men and the Making of Modern British Feminism calls fresh attention to the forgotten but foundational contributions of men to the creation of modern British feminism. Focusing on the revolutionary 1790s, the book introduces several dozen male reformers who insisted that women's emancipation would be key to the establishment of a truly just and rational society. These men proposed educational reforms, assisted women writers into print, and used their training in religion, medicine, history, and the law to challenge common assumptions about women's legal and political entitlements. This book uses men's engagement with women's rights as a platform to reconsider understandings of gender in eighteenth-century Britain, the meaning and legacy of feminism, and feminism's relationship more generally to traditions of radical reform and enlightenment.
Download or read book English Etiquette written by Alena Kate Pettitt and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This is not another etiquette book detailing the antiquated, excruciating, and frankly confusing minefield of rules lauded by traditionalists. Let's face it, many of us will never need to know which side a snail fork should be placed at the dinner table, nor are we likely to 'take tea' with the Queen. Yet we could all do with a little help in perfecting our manners, self-confidence, and social graces for everyday living. English Etiquette details everything the English know about why etiquette matters, in a modern, understandable, and unpretentious way -- while teaching you how to cultivate a traditional and charming countenance to rival any royal. Covering topics such as gallantry and grace, common decency, lifestyle choices, the quintessential English wardrobe, and behaviour in the home, you will learn how to shoehorn a little English gentility from this practical field guide into your daily life. So pull your socks up ladies and gentlemen, pour yourself a cup of tea, and join The Darling Academy as we return to a culture of good manners, civility, and chivalry the world is longing for. A proper, polite, and graceful way of living is making a comeback. Long may it prevail."--Page 4 of cover.
Download or read book Etiquette for Americans written by Woman of fashion and published by . This book was released on 1898 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Politics of Gender in Victorian Britain written by Ben Griffin and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-01-12 with total page 365 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This groundbreaking history challenges traditional assumptions about the development of British democracy and the struggle for women's rights.
Download or read book The Making of Manners and Morals in Twelfth Century England written by Fiona Whelan and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2017-01-12 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How different are we from those in the past? Or, how different do we think we are from those in the past? Medieval people were more dirty and unhygienic than us – as novels, TV, and film would have us believe – but how much truth is there in this notion? This book seeks to challenge some of these preconceptions by examining medieval society through rules of conduct, and specifically through the lens of a medieval Latin text entitled The Book of the Civilised Man – or Urbanus magnus – which is attributed to Daniel of Beccles. Urbanus magnus is a twelfth-century poem of almost 3,000 lines which comprehensively surveys the day-to-day life of medieval society, including issues such as moral behaviour, friendship, marriage, hospitality, table manners, and diet. Currently, it is a neglected source for the social and cultural history of daily life in medieval England, but by incorporating modern ideas of disgust and taboo, and merging anthropology, sociology, and archaeology with history, this book aims to bring it to the fore, and to show that medieval people did have standards of behaviour. Although they may seem remote to modern ‘civilised’ people, there is both continuity and change in human behaviour throughout the centuries.
Download or read book The Prodigal Tongue written by Lynne Murphy and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2018-04-10 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: CHOSEN BY THE ECONOMIST AS A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR An American linguist teaching in England explores the sibling rivalry between British and American English “English accents are the sexiest.” “Americans have ruined the English language.” Such claims about the English language are often repeated but rarely examined. Professor Lynne Murphy is on the linguistic front line. In The Prodigal Tongue she explores the fiction and reality of the special relationship between British and American English. By examining the causes and symptoms of American Verbal Inferiority Complex and its flipside, British Verbal Superiority Complex, Murphy unravels the prejudices, stereotypes and insecurities that shape our attitudes to our own language. With great humo(u)r and new insights, Lynne Murphy looks at the social, political and linguistic forces that have driven American and British English in different directions: how Americans got from centre to center, why British accents are growing away from American ones, and what different things we mean when we say estate, frown, or middle class. Is anyone winning this war of the words? Will Yanks and Brits ever really understand each other?
Download or read book English Politeness and Class written by Sara Mills and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-10-19 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Politeness plays a vital role in maintaining class differences. In this highly original account, Sara Mills analyses the interrelationship between class and linguistic interaction, uncovering the linguistic ideologies behind politeness in British English. She sheds light on the way politeness and rudeness interrelate with the marking of class boundaries, and reveals how middle-class positions in society are marked by people's use of self-deprecation, indirectness and reserve. Systematically challenging received wisdom about cross-cultural and inter-cultural differences, she goes beyond the mere context of the interaction to investigate the social dimension of politeness. This approach enables readers to analyse other languages in the same way, and a range of case studies illustrate how ideologies of politeness are employed and judged.
Download or read book All Manners of Food written by Stephen Mennell and published by University of Illinois Press. This book was released on 1996 with total page 412 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: So close geographically, how could France and England be so enormously far apart gastronomically? Not just in different recipes and ways of cooking, but in their underlying attitudes toward the enjoyment of eating and its place in social life. In a new afterword that draws the United States and other European countries into the food fight, Stephen Mennell also addresses the rise of Asian influence and "multicultural" cuisine. Debunking myths along the way, All Manners of Food is a sweeping look at how social and political development has helped to shape different culinary cultures. Food and almost everything to do with food, fasting and gluttony, cookbooks, women's magazines, chefs and cooks, types of foods, the influential difference between "court" and "country" food are comprehensively explored and tastefully presented in a dish that will linger in the memory long after the plates have been cleared.
Download or read book Modern Manners written by P. J. O'Rourke and published by Open Road + Grove/Atlantic. This book was released on 2007-12-01 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An “extremely funny” take on the decline of civility, from the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of How the Hell Did This Happen? (The Plain Dealer). In Modern Manners, cultural guru P. J. O’Rourke provides the essential accessory for the truly contemporary man or woman—a rulebook for living in a world without rules. Traditionally, good manners were a means of becoming as bland and invisible as everyone else, thus avoiding calling attention to one’s own awkwardness and stupidity. Today, with everyone wanting to appear special, stupidity is at a premium, and manners—as outrageous and bizarre as possible—are a wonderful way to distinguish ourselves, or at least have a fine time trying. This irreverent and hilarious guide to anti-etiquette offers pointed advice on topics from sex and entertaining to reading habits and death. With the most up-to-date forms of vulgarity, churlishness, and presumption, the latest fashions in discourtesy and barbarous display, O’Rourke is our guide to the art of incivility. “Modern Manners is O’Rourke doing what he has always done: making hilarious, insightful, often vicious fun of the world and all its inhabitants.” —People “A reader who rushes through [Modern Manners] from cover to cover—like I did—will feel like a child who has gorged on chocolate cake: happy, but a bit disappointed that it’s all gone. The reason O’Rourke’s book is so successful, however, is not just his great sense of humor. O’Rourke’s writing has a cutting edge behind it, which makes a reader’s laughter just a bit thought-provoking, and just a bit rueful . . . Very funny.” —Chicago Tribune
Download or read book Characteristicks of Men Manners Opinions Times written by Anthony Ashley Cooper Earl of Shaftesbury and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Shaftesbury's Characteristicks of Men, Manners, Opinions, Times is a collection of treatises on interconnected themes in moral philosophy, aesthetics, literature, and politics. This is the first new edition of Characteristicks as a coherent collection for almost a century. A substantial Introduction discusses Shaftesbury's works and ideas in the context of his times, and traces the reception and influence of his writings through the eighteenth century and beyond.
