Our Rare Books, Our SMC: An Exhibit of Items Held at Saint Mary's College

Good Form for Women (1907)

The book Good Form for Women: A Guide to Conduct and Dress on All Occasions is an etiquette book that was published in 1907. The fact that so many etiquette books were published during this time period for women clearly demonstrates how important manners and etiquette were in society at that time and illustrates why they were an essential part of women’s education. It is also notable, however, that multiple female authors of etiquette books chose to remain anonymous or to use pseudonyms. Good Form for Women, for example, is credited to Mrs. Charles Harcourt, but this name was a pseudonym for a woman named Margaret O. Forbes-Lindsay. Good Form for Women was part of a small, two-book series called The Blue Book Series, referring to the characteristic blue cover. The other book in the series is titled The Blue Book of Etiquette for Women: A Guide to Conduct and Dress on All Occasions. It was also published in 1907. 

Good Form for Women has many sections discussing manners for different occasions, such as: Introductions, Invitations, Cards and Calling, Dress—Its Ethics, Dress—Practical Hints, Correspondence and Reading, Conversation, Dinners, Balls, Table Etiquette, Receptions, Luncheons, and Suppers. Though these topics may seem unimportant or overly fastidious to modern audiences, the instruction provided in this book was very useful in its time. It is also still relevant in the modern day because the sentiments of behaving properly and treating others with respect are still beneficial. 

In the beginning of the book, Harcourt states that the Century Dictionary’s definition of “Good Form” is “conformity to the conventionalities and usages of society” (1). In her view, this definition meant that “Good Form” described “propriety” or “fitness of action and of condition” (1). She states that “there is a right and a wrong way of doing everything,” and her book was meant to instruct women on how to do things the right way (1). To her, having “Good Form” meant having a healthy mind and body and being in the right “condition of all states of being” (1). Educating women in proper etiquette was thus seen as very important since it determined the correctness of her very state of being.

The author writes with a sense of humor that shows how etiquette book authors were not grouchy people who merely wanted to find fault in others and chide them. They had a genuine interest in helping people and improving society, and they did so with a bit of playfulness. She declares, for example, that “many a milkmaid, with homely exterior, possesses more of the essentials of a lady than does Mrs. Flam Boyant, with surface polish and innate ill-nature” (3). This comment shows that the author’s idea of good breeding had nothing to do with money or social class, but rather behavior and character. She mocks people who enjoy showing off their wealth but who have no real good nature or admirable qualities. By writing this book, Harcourt may have hoped to make education on etiquette more widely available to women of any social class.

In the section “Correspondence and Reading,” Harcourt gives advice on what literature women should read. She begins the section by highlighting the vital importance of a young woman choosing and reading the right books. She says that reading the right literature will affect a woman’s “future happiness” and her “mental and moral development” (100). Harcourt argues that parents should supervise the books their daughters read and not let them have too much freedom with literature. She laments how girls think that books written by esteemed authors, such as Charles Dickens and Sir Walter Scott, are slow and dry. She says that girls are wasting their time reading materials such as society journals and French novels. Harcourt further believes that reading such things makes girls lose their “bloom of freshness” and their “natural modesty” (101). She argues that it gives them a love of sensation that leaves their minds “empty and dissatisfied” (101).

However, she does allow that sometimes “strong and highly spiced literature is what your condition needs” (101). She makes reference to Stanley Weyman, Anthony Hope, and Arthur Conan Doyle as examples of authors who write such sensational literature. Weyman was an early writer of historical romance fiction; Hope was known for adventure novels; and Doyle wrote many stories in multiple genres, including his most famous Sherlock Holmes detective series. The author of Good Form for Women says that these books can be sparingly indulged in, but young women should “combine sanity with sensation” (101).

Overall, Harcourt argues that young women should strike a balance between reading what she thought of as superficial, sensational books and reading classic literature from “standard authors” that would benefit their minds. I think that this is worthwhile advice that is still applicable today, especially with our expanded access to many new types of media. It is fine to indulge in fun things, but this should not cause people to neglect serious education and responsibilities. Importantly, though, it is very possible that Harcourt had a biased view of who should be considered a “standard author” and what books are classics that should be read to benefit the mind. 

It is interesting that educational advice on the best types of literature and authors to read in order to benefit one’s mind was included in an etiquette book. This inclusion shows that instruction on good etiquette was meant to be part of an overall system of education to ensure the good character of young women and the health of their minds and bodies. A lot of the advice offered in this book is timeless and still useful in the modern day since it focuses on achieving good qualities of heart and mind that result in good behavior and ways of living. Because of this, The Blue Book of Etiquette for Women was republished in 2016 by Leopold Classic Library and is available for women today.

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