Take a look at this. It's an excerpt from a book called What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew: From Fox Hunting to Whist--the Facts of Daily Life in 19th-Century England by Daniel Pool.

The Gentleman

1. In riding horseback or walking along the street, the lady always has the wall.
2. Meeting a lady in the street or in the park whom you know only slightly, you wait for her acknoledging bow--then and only then may you tip your hat to her, which is done using the hand farthest away from her to raise the hat. You do not speak to her--or to any other lady--unless she speaks to you first.
3. If you meet a lady who is a good friend and who signifies that she wishes to talk to you, you turn and walk with her if you wish to converse...
4. In going up a flight of stairs, you precede the lady...; in going down, you follow.
5. In a carriage, a gentleman takes the seat facing backward. If he is alone in a carriage with a lady, he does not sit next to her unless he is her husband, brother, father, or son. He alights from the carriage first so he may hand her down. He takes care not to step on her dress.
6. At a public exhibition or concert, if accompanied by a lady, he goes in first in order to find her a seat. If he enters such an exhibition alone and there are ladies or older gentlemen present, he removes his hat.
7. A gentleman is always introduced to a lady--not the other way around...Likewise..., a social inferior is always introduced to a superior--and only with the latter's acquiescence...
8. A gentleman never smokes in the presence of ladies.

The Lady

1. If unmarried and under thirty, she is never to be in the company of a man without a chaperone. Except for a walk to church or a park in the early morning, she may not walk alone but should always be accopmanied by another lady, a man, or a servant...
2. Under no circumstances may a lady call on a gentleman alone unless she is consulting that gentleman on a professional or business matter.
3. A lady does not wear pearls or diamonds in the morning.
4. A lady never dances more than three dances with the same partner.
5. A lady should never "cut" someone, that is to say, fail to acknowledge their presence after encountering them socially, unless it is absolutely necessary. By the same token, only a lady is ever truly justified in cutting someone: "a cut is only excsuable when men persist in bowing whose acquaintance a lady does not wish to keep up." Upon the approach of the offender, a simple stare of silent iciness should suffice; followed, if necessary, by a "cold bow, which discourages familiarity without offering insult," and departure forthwith. To remark, "Sir, I have not the honor of your acquaintance" is a very extreme measure and is a weapon that should be deployed only as a last resort."

Wow! I would love to see that acted out in modern society just for a day or something, to see what people thought of it. Like, a day set aside just to experiment with it. I really would find it fascinating.

Other girls, of course, would find it horribly restricting. :) There are some girls who belong in 19th-century England... There are some girls who belong in 21st-century America. {shrug}

-Stephanie

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