The man who practises unselfishness, who is genuinely interested in the welfare of others, who feels it a privilege to have the power to do a fellow-creature a kindness – even though polished manners and a gracious presence may be absent – will be an elevating influence wherever he goes.
I do not mourn the death of the printed letter in a snobby, East Coast, patrician way – ‘Where have our manners gone?’ – but because I love objects, I love paper, and I love something that I can hold to my chest for a moment. Still, I bear no grudge against the e-mail form itself.
Evil communication corrupts good manners. I hope to live to hear that good communication corrects bad manners.
I could start a war in 30 seconds. But some countries spend 100 years trying to find peace. Just like good manners, peace has to be learned.
Men and women must be educated, in a great degree, by the opinions and manners of the society they live in.
High rank and soft manners may not always belong to a true heart.
Be simple in words, manners, and gestures. Amuse as well as instruct. If you can make a man laugh, you can make him think and make him like and believe you.
Manners are one of the greatest engines of influence ever given to man.
Unfortunately, chivalry seems to be on the decline, but let’s hope that manners can remain important. I, for one, will certainly be an evangelist with it.
Manners are the hypocrisy of a nation.
Let’s say you need a perfectly obedient servant who never gets tired, never needs to be paid, and is virtually indestructible. If you’re in a galaxy a long time ago and far, far away, you’ll just fly off to the local droid auction and pick up one of those shiny gold models with lovely manners.
Increasingly I think of myself as some strange and solitary conductor, introduced to a group of very dynamic musicians who happen to be my characters, and I have no idea how they are going to play together, and I have certainly no idea how I am going to put manners on them.
Politeness is half good manners and half good lying.
Indeed, Miss Manners has come to believe that the basic political division in this country is not between liberals and conservatives but between those who believe that they should have a say in the love lives of strangers and those who do not.
My telephone manners were, well, offensive to some. As I lugged my cell around, yammering away, I noticed cold stares from passersby who viewed me as a kind of techno-terrorist, or at least incredibly rude.
Let us not become so intense in our zeal to do good by winning arguments or by our pure intention in disputing doctrine that we go beyond good sense and manners, thereby promoting contention, or say and do imprudent things, invoke cynicism, or ridicule with flippancy.
I mean, every novel’s a historical novel anyway. But calling something a historical novel seems to put mittens on it, right? It puts manners on it. And you don’t want your novels to be mannered.
I think the biggest reason I was able to express myself and not be intimidated was by not having a mother. For example, mothers teach you manners. And I absolutely did not learn any of those rules and regulations.
Respect goes a long way when you carry yourself a certain way and show manners when you first meet someone. If you do that, then it’s hard for somebody not to like you.
A close family member once offered his opinion that I exhibit the phone manners of a goat, then promptly withdrew the charge – out of fairness to goats.
I believe the death of Bobby Kennedy was in many ways the death of decency in America. I think it was the death of manners and formality, the death of poetry and the death of a dream.
It’s really important for children to have good morals and good manners, and that they’re thoughtful of other people and that they learn the consequences of their actions.
Manners easily and rapidly mature into morals.
Being polite, being respectful, having manners, and being a socialite – they’re key life skills that people take for granted. Being able to communicate with all people on all levels is what’s got me so far.
I like to give my kids the life I didn’t have – they go to an excellent school; they have nice clothes, money for shopping. I’m quite generous with them, but they have fantastic manners – they’re not spoilt.
I think it’s most important for children to understand the concept of respect and manners and also work ethic. I have a responsibility to those who came before me.
Donald Trump is a demagogue. Period. The fervor of his crowds recalls Nasser’s Egypt. His convictions are illiberal. His manners are disgusting. His temper is frightening.
My parents were very strict about manners and being polite to others. I brought my own children up that way, too.
God Almighty has set before me two great objects: the suppression of the slave trade and the reformation of manners.
The manners thing’s got worse. People think they can just text you if they’ve got bad news for you. It’s not on. And as for people taking pictures at gigs on their phones, that’s just weird.
There is so much bad manners and oafishness in large corporations.
The keynote of simple folk is bad manners, familiarity. They intrude on one’s private soul.
My grandmother used to teach me that it’s bad manners to invite yourself to somebody’s house.
Politeness is, you know, is a wonderful thing. Manners are in fact, really important thing. But remember, Jesus didn’t have many manners as we now know.
Friends and good manners will carry you where money won’t go.
I was raised by very traditional Southern parents with Southern manners. You don’t air your dirty laundry to people that aren’t your family or your friends. Why would I ever want to portray myself as anything other than together?
Being a parent does not give you an excuse for bad manners.
Good manners sometimes means simply putting up with other people’s bad manners.
That’s how a nation’s manners are going to be taught – from watching others’ behavior and learning from the effects of that behavior.
I don’t do plays without jokes anymore. I’ve retired from those plays. I think it’s bad manners to invite people to sit in the dark for two and a half hours and not tell them the joke.
The transition state of manners and language cannot be too often insisted upon: for this affected the process at both ends, giving the artist in fictitious life an uncertain model to copy and unstable materials to work in.
It is time to effect a revolution in female manners – time to restore to them their lost dignity. It is time to separate unchangeable morals from local manners.
The decline of manners, the cynical pursuit without shame or restraint of personal advantage and of money characterizes our times, not without exceptions, of course, but more than we ought to be comfortable with.
I want a gentleman. Someone with manners.
My family’s big on discipline, respect, manners, make sure that we respect our elders. So that’s kind of what the military is. You have to say, ‘Yes sir,’ ‘No ma’am,’ ‘Yes ma’am.’ All that stuff. That’s kind of the mold my dad has for my brothers and I.
You come before me this morning with clean hands and clean collars. I want you to have clean tongues, clean manners, clean morals and clean characters.
Teach love, generosity, good manners and some of that will drift from the classroom to the home and who knows, the children will be educating the parents.
Nowadays, manners are easy and life is hard.
Without going outside his race, and even among the better classes with their ‘white’ culture and conscious American manners, but still Negro enough to be different, there is sufficient matter to furnish a black artist with a lifetime of creative work.
Persian social manners are well known, and there is no other society that can compete with them.
I will not ever say that it’s good to start with too little preparation, because that’s patently not true. But I don’t rehearse the way a lot of directors do, to stage a scene in terms of manners and attitudes and lock them in.
Opinions alter, manners change, creeds rise and fall, but the moral laws are written on the table of eternity.
You can’t be truly rude until you understand good manners.
We’re a nation of latchkey children. Manners start at home, and no one is at home teaching manners so that children have respect for others.
Sitting down for dinner not only helps you learn, but also teaches you how to listen – which I feel is the most important skill to have. I remember as a kid going around the table listening to everyone’s day. It was hard to have the manners not to interrupt back then.
I’m big on manners. I’m big on politeness. I’m big on gratitude.
Let’s not confuse traditional behaviours with good manners. The definition of etiquette is gender neutral – it simply means we strive at all times to ensure a person in our company feels at ease.
I’m a big believer in manners and respect: that one should never do to another what you wouldn’t wish for yourself.
No person who is well bred, kind and modest is ever offensively plain; all real deformity means want for manners or of heart.
Flannery O’Connor is my creative hero. I think she’s the greatest American writer. Her book, ‘Mystery and Manners,’ is my creative bible.
