The Art of Good Manners

by Bodleian Library (Editor)

While many bemoan the lack of good manners in society today, the most courteous among us would feel mightily out of place across the dining table from a Dowager Countess. Upholding the highest standards of social decorum was of utmost importance for the 1920s British upper class and even more so for the aspiring middle class that sought to emulate it. Yet the path to perfect comportment seemed strewn—then as now—with pitfalls, from befuddling arrays of silverware to less-than-gracious houseguests. Originally published in the 1920s, this petite guide offers time-honored advice to avoid such pitfalls.
           
The Art of Good Manners ranges broadly across topics including courtship, children’s behavior, and civilized conversation before taking the reader through each course at a dinner party, where readers are reminded to neither gurgle the soup nor to make haste with the fruit course since “to peel an orange, apple or pear with a fruit knife and fork requires some practice.”
           
Charmingly presented, The Art of Good Manners is by turns humorously old-fashioned and timeless, and it makes the perfect gift for all who miss this elegant bygone era.

Genres: Nonfiction

80 pages, Hardcover

First published June 15, 2014

About the author

The Bodleian Library, established in 1602, is the main research library of the University of Oxford and one of the oldest libraries in Europe. In Britain it is second in size only to the British Library.

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Reviews

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

A handy little guidebook, and a good research tool as insight into what the up-and-coming needed to know about social interaction in early 20th century England.

[Victor Bolbot · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the book after some people called me savage...

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this reprint of a 1920s etiquette book for young men. Sure, it’s dated in places, but I was surprised at how much of the advice remains relevant and how, in some ways, the book was pretty progressive in its views. An interesting historical read that’s a good reminder of why manners matter. Recommended.