Please and Thank you

In modern culture, it is hard to see how a simple word or two at the end of a sentence can make much of a difference to either what it is you are saying or asking and the attitudes of the people within the conversation. These few simple words are the basis of manners. I went to a school which one of its many mottoes were "maners makyth man" and I was brought up on the phrase "those who want, never get" I still believe these sayings to be true but it is easy to see how they are not shared by many in modern times. How often are we rude and abrasive to our fellow man? How often do we describe our want or lust for something, instead of asking politely for it? I would bet most if not all of us are guilty of this. As you read, I am sure you are saying that you have indeed had these moments, but you also show good manners at times, for instance, holding doors open and the like. However how many times have you actually been happy to hold that door open? or been more concerned with your own progress down a hall. I put it too you that when you do hold that door open, more often than not it is merely social convention to do so rather than manners.

It is a sad realisation that manners have taken a back seat in what was once a proud moral country, whose aspirations for any person was to be a gentleman, a man of high a steam and wealth, both in knowledge and pocket, has been turned to a country of hand-outs and greed.

This article is written not to tell people how to live their lives, but simply stating my view, which is. Although please and thank you, are polite, they are generally used due to adhere to social convention. I believe for a person to be deemed to have manners, it is their actions which speak louder. To be polite one must be happy to hold open the door, say please and thank you as second nature. A person who is said to have manners is someone who looks at their surroundings and treats the objects and people with grace and kindness, an unwavering attention of genuine interest. That is a true measure of manners.