Savoir-vivre #3 Woman – Man (sign language)

Savoir-vivre, that is, the rules of proper behavior, in this film, in male-female relationships.

Savoir-vivre in male-female relations

Savoir-vivre also regulates male-female relations. Not so much today as before the moral revolution in the 1960s and 1970s, but the old rules of good manners still have many supporters, as well as opponents. The female-male savoir-vivre regulates such issues as:

• Shake a hand or choose another way to greet.
• Entrance to the room.
• At the common table.
• Kissing on the hand.
• Paying at the restaurant.

We will touch upon these issues in this video…

Shake hands or choose another way to greet

Here, the woman always has priority. She decides whether she will give a newly met man a hand to shake, or simply nod his head in greeting or say “good morning”. The role of a man is to accept her choice and respond in the same way.

Entrance to the room

If there is already a man in the room and a woman is entering it, the man stands up and does not sit down until the woman is the first to take her seat. It has also been assumed that the gentlemen pass the ladies first at the door – meanwhile, the principles of good manners say otherwise. The man should open the door, but go through it first and hold it in front of the woman. Similarly with the entrance to the restaurant – the first man enters, because it used to be that he would “recognize” the area and when he decides there are no dangers, he will let the woman in. The same is the case with the car – the man should get out first and then open the door for the woman.

At the common table

The principles of savoir-vivre are also very complicated concerning the presence of a woman and a man at the same table. However, I will briefly tell you about them. The man should move the woman’s chair away and closer each time she gets up and sits down at the table, and gets up when she leaves the table. This rule does not work when a woman departs from her seat at an outdoor table.

Kissing on the hand

Kissing on the hand is not a man’s “duty” according to the principles of savoir-vivre. This tradition persists in few countries – however, most countries do not. Both gentlemen do not feel like kissing strangers on the hand, and they often perceive it as a violation of their private space. However, if he really cares about it, he should remember two things. This activity may only be performed indoors, not outdoors. It is the man who bends down to the woman’s hand, not pulling her towards him.

Paying at the restaurant

Paying in a restaurant is another embarrassing situation in male-female relationships. Gentlemen do not always want to cover the cost of the entire bill, since today women support themselves, and they don’t want to feel dependent on them. The good news is that savoir-vivre does not require a man to always pay the bill. So who is paying the bill? Inviting party. If the man is the inviting party, he pays the bill. If a woman invites him somewhere, then there, according to the rules of good manners, you are responsible for paying the costs. However, any innovation is allowed – the couple can agree to pay both of them, or one of them does – neither of these situations contradicts the principles of savoir-vivre.