Regency Etiquette: Library Edition

Rating:
Summary: Perfection!
Review: RL Shep, the publisher who had the foresight to reprint this wonderful book first published in 1811 deserve all the compliments in this world (and the next) for recognsing this book as a classic. It is at once hilarious to our modern eyes, and a startling insight into life of the well bred miss in Regency Times.

The book is packed full of classical references and piously rendered good advice which jostle in happy company in each breathless sentence. Don't think that the archaic language will put you off- it is too funny to put down.

for example - on Dancing and other accomplishments we are confidently informed; "Set then, this music of Paphos far aside; instead of songs of wantons, if we are to have amatory odes, let us listen to the chaste pleadings of Plutarch, to the mutual vows of virtuous attachment."

This book was not a comical portrayal of its day, it was read for the good advice it rendered and indeed it is very revealing on the fashion dictates of the day - washing, exercise, diet, dancing, dress and general deportment. There are even a stack of cosmetic recipes in the back which you can have a go at trying for yourself - including Eau de Veau, a face tonic, which is made by boiling up a calves foot!

From the chapter "On Deportment": "Their is scarcely an observer of manners and their effects who will not maintain that the most beautiful and well-dressed woman will soon cease to please unless her charms are accompanied with the ineffable enchantment of a graceful demeanour."

There is good advice on colours, flowers, - I guess I could go on all day. The content is absolutely matchless and if you have an interest in this period - the Regency or Georgian times, you must have a copy.

My final note is on the quality of RL Sheps books - in short Excellent. They have bound the copy so well that despite my frequent mistreatment, bending it at the spine, throwing it in full bags to carry around and so on, it is sitll in almost perfect condition.

Rating:
Summary: Not so out-dated as one might think...
Review: While a good deal of this 1811 anonymously written etiquette primer is out-of-date and hopelessly old-fashioned, it still contains some remarkably good advice to women. Examples?? (1) Dress properly. Understand your body type and what type of, what cut of, and what color(s) of clothes truly flatter you. Do not be a slave to fashion. (2) Maybe I am a bit old-fashioned on this next one: dress modestly. I find it difficult to respect a woman in a too-short and too-tight skirt. (3) Try to better yourself by improving your mind and manners.

Otherwise, the book is a product of its time. We today obviously do not differentiate between a morning dress, a walking gown, or an opera dress. We do not dance the same type of dances. And the balance of power in terms of sexual politics has changed quite a bit.

On the whole, I found this a fascinating look at the world of women in the Regency. If you are a big fan of Jane Austen or Fanny Burney, this is a great companion text to understand the women and the motivations of their female characters.