Gentleman [ Taste & Manners / Politics & Society ]
… the new gentlemen: industriousness, sincerity, honesty, benevolence. Lord Chesterfield's instructions to his son on the art of pleasing were now regarded as superficial, corrupting. This entry considers this shift in gentlemanly sociability … his wealth from the possession of land, of an estate. The word gentleman signified a high status that set a man apart from the lower orders, or plebeians. However, from the late seventeenth century British society was slowly being … million. Its ‘membership’ included traders and dealers from merchants to shopkeepers, professionals and some skilled artisans. They were literate, and many were aspirational, eager for public recognition to match their financial success. …
Benevolence | Middling sort | Politeness | Rank
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