Tea at Trianon: Good Manners are Good Business

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Good Manners are Good Business

I believe that manners are a concrete way of showing Love, and are to be used because God commands that we love our neighbor, for to do so gives Him glory. However, on the most basic mercenary level, it makes for more success in business to have some social skills. You would think that people would want to be polite if just for that reason.
http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2001/01/29/smallb3.html Share

6 comments:

Anonymous said...: The article makes some very good points. I think this epidemic of rudeness in business (and in life) is, in some ways, a reflection of our instant gratification/"penny wise, pound foolish" culture. Why bother being nice to somebody unless they're in a position to "do something" for you? (And, of course, people who have been stepped on are more likely to manifest the same behavior, so the cycle continues.) The irony, of course, is that it takes just as much time to be rude and nasty as it does to be polite and kind.

I type these words while reflecting on a job interview I recently had where the principals never bothered to get back to me -- at all! (And I assure you that I bathed before the interview, too.) It leaves a bad taste.; January 24, 2007 at 4:17:00 PM EST
elena maria vidal said...: I agree,Lylia, it sometimes takes less energy to be kind, and a concerted effort to be nasty.

Yes, it is rude and annoying when people do not respond to one's inquiries. I have had that experience, too, I guess we all have. I have experienced it with some mainstream Catholic bloggers, not ever responding to a personal email; it tells me they do not see me as 'important' enough to merit a response. It is true, I am not important, but you would think that in charity they would respond to everyone, even not so famous people. That said, one or two of the most prominent Catholic bloggers have responded very politely to my emails - which is very classy of them.; January 24, 2007 at 5:06:00 PM EST
Anonymous said...: You are more important that you realize, my dear! The other day on kingandwilson.com, no less a luminary than Peter Kurth himself said that he hoped you would join us there, and what a fascinating and delightful woman you are. (Your name had come up in connection with RealAnastasia's comparison of AA and Marie-Therese.)

I am always amazed and intrigued by how people can let us down/move us to tears with their kindness. And it's very unpredictable, isn't it?; January 24, 2007 at 7:16:00 PM EST
elena maria vidal said...: Oh,Lylia, that moves me to tears. I will have to join that forum. How kind of Peter! Peter Kurth got me through graduate school(his research, that is. I did my master's thesis on the Romanovs.); January 24, 2007 at 7:50:00 PM EST
Victoria said...: I would love to read your thesis sometime!

I love Peter and he's now a very regular member of kingandwilson.com. It's been such a great experience being on that forum -- I assure you that there is none of the unpleasantness we have encountered elsewhere. That he spoke so highly of you is indeed a wonderful compliment.; January 24, 2007 at 8:00:00 PM EST
elena maria vidal said...: Thanks, Vicky! You all have me blushing!!!; January 24, 2007 at 8:04:00 PM EST