Page 58 of The Cheapside Runners
“It is unfortunate, but in our society, we are expected to walk a fine line. Too demure and we are cold, too enthusiastic and we are mercenary or fast, butthat does not mean we are powerless. That is what we will learn today.”
“How?” Jane asked plaintively.
“By achieving balance… by thinking strategically and acting tactically. It is unfortunate that society, courtship, friendships have to be thought out carefully, but it only seems confusing because you are unaccustomed to the idea. If you learn the skills, they will become second nature over time. If you return home and do nothing, you will at least know how to defend yourself, and if you decide to be more thoughtful, you will at least have some idea of how to go about it.”
They all seemed nearly overwhelmed, and they had been at it for some time, so Mrs Black suggested a break for a half-hour and some tea.
~~~~~
“Now on to the topic at hand. We will speak about manners, propriety, and deportment, but in a thoughtful way… mostly because memorising rules is the worst way to learn—not to mention unbelievably tedious.”
“Why do we have to learn a lot of stuffy old rules?” Lydia asked petulantly.
“You do not,” Mrs Black replied calmly.
For a moment, several of the ladies looked relieved, but thena cloud of doubt descended, and they wondered what trick she had up her sleeve. They had no doubt there was one.
“I suppose you may as well put us out of our misery,” Mary said.
“I said you do not need to learn these rules. You could easily forget the lessons from yesterday, or the lessons about how to read the intentions of those around us, or anything else I have to teach you. You can forget the entire lot and take your chances. I have already been paid, and your guardians cannot claw that back, even if you learn nothing.”
They all stared at the hard look she was giving them. “Do not feel you arespecial, Miss Green. There is a Miss Green in every class. Some learn and succeed in life. Some do not learn and take their chances. That is your right, but if you want a good chance to live a comfortable life, I urge you to knuckle down and learn it.It is far simpler than you can imagine.”
She stared around threateningly, then relented a bit and softened up. She picked up a small stack of coins from a side table and continued, “I will teach you everything you need to know about deportment and manners, and I will do it with just five coins.”
All the ladies were thoroughly confused, but at least they were paying attention.
Miss Amber finally asked, “How?”
Mrs Black took that as general agreement that they would try, which was all she hoped for at this stage of the game.
“How many of you have heard the old phrase,love and hate are two sides of the same coin?”
Most raised their hand timidly.
“Anyone care to guess what it means?”
Jane surprised Elizabeth by being the first to answer. “I suppose they are opposites but related.”
“How so?”
“They are both some sort of… passion, I suppose.”
“That is correct. They are the extreme ends of another similar coin, like versus dislike. We will use these other five coins to learn what you need to know about manners.”
“That seems overly simplistic,” Miss Violet added.
“I do not mean that there are only five rules. Far from it. Depending on the level of society you eventually occupy, there may be hundreds in the end—but they allderivefrom these five coins. Shall we begin?”
They all nodded, far more enthusiastic than they had been a few minutes earlier.
“Miss Amber… while this will seem self-serving, let us just for the moment remain entirely in practical terms. What is thepracticalbenefit of being kind? Disregard morality, religion, manners, customs… everything.Only practical terms.”
“Kind to who?”
“Anybody… friends, relatives, strangers, you name it.”
She thought a minute and finally replied timidly, “Because they are more likely to be kind in return.”
