Anstandsbücher, Etiquette Books and Traités de Savoir-Vivre 1870–1930: Guides for Conduct as Political Media?
Final Report Abstract
From 1870 to 1930, etiquette books in Germany, France and Great Britain were political media. Despite a surprising deficiency of bibliographies and massive problems of supply, 204 issues of 106 contemporary publications have been analysed. They displayed an unexpected complexity in terms of content and turned out to be guidebooks for several different segments of political cultures: For Catholics and Protestants, in conservative and liberal circles, on regional and interregional basis as well as also separated by generation or profession, and at the same time with a defensive or self-confident position against others. These very specific audiences were supported in attaining self-assurance and stabilisation throughout rapidly changing times by 60% of the etiquette books. Further 15% addressed readers with broadly accepted political attitudes, only refusing extreme positions. 25% proved to be non-political, mostly such from France, where an overall dominating laical-republican wing didn’t need additional support by this media, in contrast to its catholic counterpart. In Germany and Great Britain, political power opposition was more prevalent, and therefore non-political conduct books were rare. Incisive caesuras – the First World war in Germany and Great Britain, in France surprisingly the separation of church and state in 1905/06 – are noticeable but didn‘t change these relations in principle. However, a slight trend towards audiences with an ideologically broader orientation can be ascertained, mainly concerning Germany, where the distresses of Weimar times raised a need for stronger social coherence. Despite national peculiarities, it turns out as a central characteristic of manner books that they supported smaller, conservative socio-cultures threatened by drifts of modernisation by attaining coherence and self-assertion. At the same time specifiic manner books could serve bigger, liberal resp. „progressive“ segments of political cultures as guides through changing times. The specific intentions of creators and receivers could not be analysed intensively by research in archives due to several restraints. Nevertheless, remarkable results concerning their aims and expectations could be deduced in combination with current research literature: In Germany, publishers and authors designed their conduct books mainly based on confessional and party-political commitments. In France, the creators were ambivalent about ideological loyalty and economic suggestions. In Britain, the latter dominated, and several publishing houses released etiquette books following completely different alignments. So, the specific characteristics of national publishing sectors are reflected by this genre as well. Obviously, political guidebooks were in demand everywhere: The German audience preferred long-established publications and demanded customised new editions, the British apparently wanted new, ideologically compatible replacements for the older ones, while the French here again took up a middle position. Apparently, political etiquette books were purposefully offered and bought. Hence, this genre of mass media can be classified as a supplement to genuine ideological literature for different „milieus“, as another „column“ besides the press. The view of political media around 1900 and its socio-political function is thus enhanced by manner books giving access to an essential and so far quite unknown aspect.
