Ceremonies are different in every country, but true politeness is everywhere the same.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
Especially these days where everything is so polite and so proper, I think that rites of passage are good.
If you behave normally, people treat you normally. It's only when you act as if you're someone special that they feel obliged to stand on ceremony.
For me, politeness is a sine qua non of civilization.
We must learn which ceremonies may be breached occasionally at our convenience and which ones may never be if we are to live pleasantly with our fellow man.
I don't have to participate in another culture's ceremonies in order to respect that culture.
True politeness consists in being easy one's self, and in making every one about one as easy as one can.
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?'
Politeness is the flower of humanity.
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.
Manners are the hypocrisy of a nation.