Gentleman [ Taste & Manners / Politics & Society ]
… (1691-1756), a Hackney draper’s son, read these periodicals inter alia to fit himself for advancement through polite conversation. He rose to become a Member of Parliament and Chief Justice, for which services he was knighted. 4 4 . W. … chuse, and how to behave in it’. Sobriety, good sense and virtue were the characteristics to be sought in a friend. In conversation a man should be ‘frank and unreserved’ but should also know when to speak and when to allow another his … guide of 1747, The Young Gentleman and Lady Instructed , advised readers to aim for goodwill, sincerity and honesty in conversation in society, and to avoid disputation, drunkenness, coarseness, and lewd language. The link to middling-sort …
Benevolence | Middling sort | Politeness | Rank
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