Publisher's Synopsis
Routledge's Manual of Etiquette - The Complete Book of Etiquette by George Routledge. Etiquette for Ladies - Etiquette for Gentlemen - Ball-Room Companion - Courtship & Matrimony - How to Dress Well - How to Carve - Toasts and Sentiments. Etiquette is a code of behavior that delineates expectations for social behavior according to contemporary conventional norms within a society, social class, or group. The French word etiquette, literally signifying a tag or label, was used in a modern sense in English around 1750. From the 1500s through the early 1900s, children were taught etiquette at school. Etiquette has changed and evolved over the years. 'To introduce persons who are mutually unknown is to undertake a serious responsibility, and to certify to each the respectability of the other. Never undertake this responsibility without in the first place asking yourself whether the persons are likely to be agreeable to each other; nor, in the second place, without ascertaining whether it will be acceptable to both parties to become acquainted. Always introduce the gentleman to the lady-never the lady to the gentleman. The chivalry of etiquette assumes that the lady is invariably the superior in right of her sex, and that the gentleman is honoured in the introduction. This rule is to be observed even when the social rank of the gentleman is higher than that of the lady. Where the sexes are the same, always present the inferior to the superior. Never present a gentleman to a lady without first asking her permission to do so. When you are introduced to a gentleman, never offer your hand. When introduced, persons limit their recognition of each other to a bow. On the Continent, ladies never shake hands with gentlemen unless under circumstances of great intimacy.'
