W. H. Auden Quotes

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

Politeness is the chief sign of culture.

The society of women is the element of good manners.

A well-bred youth neither speakes of himselfe, nor being spoken to is silent.

Manners are like zero in arithmetic. They may not be much in themselves, but they are capable of adding a great deal of value to everything else.

Manners are the basic building blocks of civil society.

Civilized men are more discourteous than savages because they know they can be impolite without having their skulls split.

Politeness, however, acts the lady's maid to our thoughts; and they are washed, dressed, curled, rouged, and perfumed, before they are presented to the public.

I believe in courtesy. It is the way we avoid hurting people's feelings. She thought that maybe, just maybe, western civilization was in decline because people did not take time to take tea at four o'clock.

The knowledge of courtesy and good manners is a very necessary study. It is like grace and beauty, that which begets liking and an inclination to love one another at the first sight.

Curtsey while you're thinking what to say. It saves time.

A well-bred man is always sociable and complaisant.

A party is a slightly artificial event where one learns the rudiments of human behavior at its most admirable: speaking when spoken to, looking somebody in the eye, shaking hands and being friendly under duress.

There is no policy like politeness; and a good manner is the best thing in the world either to get a good name, or to supply the want of it.

to be civilized is to be incapable of giving unnecessary offense, it is to have some quality of consideration for all who cross our path.

Manners are made up of trivialities of deportment which can be easily learned if one does not happen to know them.

I'm making a list I'm making a list of things I must say For politeness, And goodness and kindness and gentleness Sweetness and rightness: Hello Pardon me How are you? Excuse me Bless you May I? Thank you Goodbye If you know some that I've forgot, Please stick them in you eye!

In the ordinary course of things, how many succeed in society merely by virtue of their manners, while others, however meritorious, fail through lack of them? After all, it's only barbarians who wear uncut precious stones.

Politeness does not always inspire goodness, equity, complaisance, and gratitude; it gives at least the appearance of these qualities, and makes man appear outwardly, as he should be within.

Manners are a way of getting what you want without appearing to be an absolute swine.

Wit sometimes enables us to act rudely with impunity.

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

By the by, if the English race had done nothing else, yet if they left the world the notion of a gentleman, they would have done a great service to mankind.

In truth, politeness is artificial good humor, it covers the natural want of it, and ends by rendering habitual a substitute nearly equivalent to the real virtue.

My family trained me to be polite to people I had just met, and that included strangers. You speak when you're spoken to. You look people in the eye when they address you and when you address them back.