ANNE ELLIOT: “My idea of good company, Mr. Elliot, is the company of clever, well-informed people, who have a great deal of conversation; that is what I call good company.”
MR. ELLIOT: “You are mistaken,” said he gently, “that is not good company; that is the best. Good company requires only birth, education, and manners, and with regard to education is not very nice.”—PERSUASION
While snobbery of rank should be avoided, everyone knows everyone else’s place in the social order. Information on such matters allows one to recognize the most interesting people and enjoyable company. If you are unsure of a particular person’s rank, consider the following questions.
• Who is his or her family? If he or she is related to nobility, then the person in question is most likely a person of breeding and gentility. But even if he or she is related to vulgar persons, it does not immediately follow that he or she is vulgar—the relation may have come through an unwise marriage in the family.
• Does he or she have a title? Do not expect to meet real aristocracy—that is, lords and ladies—for they mingle only with the very best gentry families. However, one might meet a baronet whose ancestor purchased the title from Charles II or someone who was knighted for making an address to the Crown. One might even meet the grandson of an earl, though one might have to break through barriers of pride and vanity, as well as one’s own prejudices, to truly know him.
• How long has his or her family lived in one place? If the family of the individual in question has been living on the same estate for many generations, they are certainly a member of the gentry; however, if the family has little gentility, it might be unpleasant to spend much time in their company. Some members of the family might determine to live and behave in a better way, and an acquaintance with these individuals can be pleasant if one is not overly troubled with the rest of the family.
• Does he or she own an estate or large house, or at least rent one? Many a fine fortune has been made in trade. This is acceptable once some of the fortune has been converted to land, or at least a good house, allowing the tradesmen to live and entertain properly.
• Does he or she work for a living? If he or she engages in an acceptable profession, such as the church, the military, or the law, employment is not necessarily a fault; after all, even in the best families, younger sons must be provided for. However, those working in trade or farming land not their own are not the type of people who can expect acceptance among the first families of a place, unless they are particularly genteel or the gentry are particularly liberal in their notions.
• Does he or she live and behave in a genteel manner? This is probably the most important consideration. Gentility and good breeding can overcome deficiencies of background, and a person might qualify as “good company” in every other respect, but no one wants to spend time with those who have unpleasant manners. Elegance of manner and person, education, and lifestyle can overcome a great deal and admit those who possess them to the very best company indeed.
• Is he or she rich? This is not as important as one might think. Money goes a long way, but breeding is more important. Impecunious gentlewomen of good background can be educated, interesting people, as can cash-poor landed gentlemen and younger sons with proper professions. One must be very rich indeed to overcome a suspect background.
FIELD GUIDE TO THE SOCIAL ORDER
Royalty: King George III, Queen Charlotte, and their numerous and dissolute progeny.
Aristocracy: Those entitled to sit in the House of Lords and their families, as well as untitled persons who are very rich, of very old families, or related to peers of the realm. They tend to confine themselves to Georgette Heyer novels and Regency romances, rarely venturing into Jane Austen’s settings.
Gentry: Old, established families with estates of all sizes. Nearly all of Jane Austen’s characters are drawn from this group. Genteel background is more important than fortune; working in certain professions—the law, the military, or the church—is permissible if one has the proper breeding. Those who have made a fortune in trade and purchased estates can be admitted to this group as long as they give up their shop or warehouse and live in a good sort of way.
Tradesmen and Yeoman Farmers: In many cases indistinguishable from the gentry, except that they work for a living. If they are very rich and genteel, they might mingle with the more enlightened of their betters, but for the most part they keep to themselves to avoid being considered vulgar social climbers.
The Great Unwashed: Laborers, servants, criminals; they rarely appear in Jane Austen’s novels except for expositional purposes.