Letitia Baldrige Quotes

Etiquette means behaving yourself a little better than is absolutely essential.

There's no chivalry in culture any more. Sometimes you meet someone who everyone says is polite and you're like, 'Wow,' but then it's like, 'Hang on, isn't everyone supposed to be polite?'

There used to be an art form called the 'comedy of manners.' Why aren't comedies of manners made now in this country? The answer is simple. We no longer have manners to speak of.

Good manners can render even virtue tolerable.

In England, we have such good manners that if someone says something impolite, the police will get involved.

To succeed in the world it is not enough to be stupid, you must also be well-mannered.

Manners are the hypocrisy of a nation.

I find it upsetting to see the erosion of manners. It's very scary. Where are the 'pleases' and 'thank yous?'

People don't know how to behave in public anymore.

I think the thing I miss most in our age is our manners. It sounds so old-fashioned in a way. But even bad people had good manners in the old days, and manners hold a community together, and manners hold a family together; in a way, they hold the world together.

In a day when, if you insulted a man it might cost you your life, you were probably more civil.

To Americans, English manners are far more frightening than none at all.

Grownups have to say 'please,' too.

Nothing is less important than which fork you use. Etiquette is the science of living. It embraces everything. It is ethics. It is honor.

For me, politeness is a sine qua non of civilization.

You can't be truly rude until you understand good manners.

Manners are love in a cool climate.

The Japanese have perfected good manners and made them indistinguishable from rudeness.

You can get through life with bad manners, but it's easier with good manners.

When people talk about political correctness, the only element of any value is good manners.

Formalized rules of manners were so great because they left no room for basic human haplessness. They allowed us to circumvent our natural boorish tendency to disregard the feelings of others.

There's a civility that has always been a part of me.

It's one of these things that I've been struck by for so long about America. You know, this amazing politeness of American life that's not at all class specific. It's not like people get more polite as ascend the hierarchy of society. Just incredible good manners. It's always been something that I've noticed.

Politeness is the chief sign of culture.

Good manners are made up of petty sacrifices.