etiquette manuals
Politeness instruction books
Etiquette manuals are books prescribing proper behavior in social situations—how to address others, conduct correspondence, host gatherings, or navigate formal occasions.
The genre flourished in the Victorian era but continues today, adapting to new contexts: business etiquette manuals, wedding etiquette guides.
They reflect and reinforce social hierarchies, telling readers which fork to use and how to introduce a duchess.
- calling cardsPersonal contact slips
- business cardsPrinted contact information handouts
- corsetsBoned, laced bodice garments
- bowRespectful forward inclination
- politenessCourteous, respectful conduct
deportment · courtesy · decorum · civility · protocol · formal address · customs · table manners · place settings · correspondence · cross-cultural communication · plate · frock coats · white gloves · diplomacy · honorifics · professionalism · handshake
etiquette manualsintuitive knowledge
Understanding without explicit learning
natural instinct · common sense · gut feeling · tacit knowledge · street smarts
etiquette manualscrude jokes
Humor emphasizing the indelicate
vulgar language · locker room talk · profanity · bathroom humor · trash talk