Updating Lady Troubridge

September 29, 2016 | Posted by Peter Jakobsen | LIFE | 0 Comments |

(By James Gillray)

Refinement lies in the heart and the spirit rather than in outward appearance, but it is by what we do and say that we prove that it exists within us.”   [Laura Troubridge, The Book of Etiquette.]

Since the publication of that book in 1926, have there been any paradigm shifts?

WEDDING MUSIC

1926: “The bride usually enters to the strains of Lohengrin, and goes down the aisle to those of Mendelssohn’s Wedding March.”

2016: The dominant partner will karaoke “Every Breath You Take.”

INTRODUCTIONS

1926: “Care should be taken when making an introduction to pronounce the two names clearly.”

2016: ‘No need. Who cares, mate? If strangers haven’t met online already, there’s always Google.’

INVITATIONS

1926: “…almost invariably sent out on an engraved card.”

2016: Intercepted via FaceBook or over the police radio.

CORRESPONDENCE

1926: “Never put on paper what you would not care to see printed in a newspaper for all to read.”

2016: Sample SMS/Tweet/Post: “You’re a ****in ****sucking loser nobody cares whetha u live or die Get ovah it or you’ll be chained to a lamppost for dogs to **** on.”

DINNER

1926: “Dinner invitations must be answered at once.  It is most inconsiderate to leave a hostess in uncertainty and unable to complete her party.”

2016: Common SMS: “c u later if can make it mate.”

HOTELS

1926: “It is as important to remember one’s social obligations in an hotel as it is in the house of a friend.”

2016: ‘It is important to remember the mini-bar, the lubricant, and whether the TV fits through the window.’

COURTESY IN OMNIBUS AND TUBE

1926: “When the seat is given, the owner should be thanked for his kindness.”

2016: ‘Avoid vomiting on seats with fabric covers.’

BEFORE THE PLAY

1926: “Low tones are a mark of cultivation.”

2016: ‘Always try to avoid spitting, urinating, singing, snoring, smoking, fighting, or bursting chip packets in the last third of the movie.’

MOTORING ETIQUETTE

1926: “Considerate motorists, in passing through villages in hot weather, will slow down in order to raise as little dust as possible.”

2016: ‘Never more than 10 donuts outside the same house – never more than one bottle hurled at the same sign.’

KIDS ON A TRIP

1926: “…children…should be checked…if they speak too loudly or behave in such a way as to be tiresome to fellow-passengers.”

2016: ‘What’s your problem pal? She’s only singing Old MacDonald Had a Farm…’  “E-I, E-I, O!”

LEAVING A TIP

1926: “Tips should be given in accordance with one’s own means…”

2016: ‘Never pat a burning dog.’

DRESS

1926: “Speaking generally, it is in bad taste to dress extravagantly or showily when walking or mingling with people who are all plainly dressed.”

2016: ‘Pick the skankiest person at the Brownlow Medal dinner or the MTV Awards and adapt their costume, using bolts from Spotlight.’

CONDUCT WHICH IS INCORRECT

1926: “To question people about their private affairs.”

2016: ‘To ask people about their opinions.’

"But that's the only fork I knew."

“But that’s the only fork I knew.”

 

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