Comments on: Southern Manners vs. Yankee Business Etiquette

By: Stephen Clay McGehee

Stephen Clay McGehee — Wed, 17 Jul 2013 20:22:04 +0000

Mrs. Hastings, thank you for stopping by and commenting! If you find some Southern etiquette books that are well done, I would deeply appreciate it if you would let me know about them. I’d like to include them here as a resource for aspiring Southern gentlemen and ladies.

By: Barbara Hastings

Barbara Hastings — Wed, 17 Jul 2013 20:10:08 +0000

Thank you for this site. I found it looking southern etiquette books. Let me introduce
myself. I was reared in the North. Growing up I always stated that I would NEVER live in the South. I married a military man and travelled to many different places. Eventually moving to Georgia and rearing our children there. Now my husband, youngest son and myself have moved to Canada. Needless to say I miss the South.
I was telling my husband that the South was being infiltrated with people who
first, do not appreciate the uniqueness of the southern manners and etiquette and
second, do not feel a need to pass the behaviors to their children. In a sense,
losing the part of a southern way of life. I am sorry for people who don’t seem to understand civility and want to ignore it by their behaviors.

By: Stephen Clay McGehee

Stephen Clay McGehee — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 14:51:03 +0000

Mark Curran, who has a web site dedicated to trashing the reputation of Robert E. Lee – and all of Southern heritage and culture, wrote a reply to this post. While I will not participate in his campaign against a great Southern gentleman, I will include enough of his reply to get his basic message across. If you want to get the full treatment, you can look up his site on blogspot. It is called Lee’s Papers. He does not permit any replies on his site.

The first sentence of his reply:
“The idea of the “Southern Gentleman” has fooled a lot of people for a long time.”

And the last sentence of his reply:
“Sorry, while Lee learned to outward manifestations of dress, and spouting a few scriptures, he was a brute.”

As I have written previously, I have no doubt that Robert E. Lee had days when he shook his head and wondered how he could have done such a thing. He was, after all, a sinful man just as every descendent of Adam is. The difference was, he understood that and did his best to overcome it and be a gentleman – and he was extremely successful at it.

Apparently, there is just something in human nature that wants to tear down anything that represents what is good and noble and just and honorable. Southern culture tries to subdue that tendency. Yankee culture apparently sees it as a virtue – if there are no heroes and noble role models, then “everyone is as wicked as we are.” That is basically where America is today as a society – the wicked and perverse and petty are worshiped, while those who strive to live in a righteous and noble manner are mocked and ridiculed and scorned.

Countering that trend is why we are here. As stated on the “About” page, our number one objective is to promote, encourage, and defend the code of the Southern Gentleman and Southern Lady as guidelines for daily living. Click on the “About” link for more on why we’re here.