Judith Martin Quotes
"You do not have to do everything disagreeable that you have a right to do."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Right)
"We are born charming, fresh and spontaneous and must be civilized before we are fit to participate in society."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Society)
"We already know that anonymous letters are despicable. In etiquette, as well as in law, hiring a hit man to do the job does not relieve you of responsibility."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Etiquette, Hiring, Job, Law, Letters, Man, Responsibility)
"There are three social classes in America: upper middle class, middle class, and lower middle class."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Class, Middle class)
"Parents should conduct their arguments in quiet, respectful tones, but in a foreign language. You'd be surprised what an inducement that is to the education of children."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Education, Arguments, Children, Language, Parents, Quiet)
"Most people who work at home find they do not have the benefit of receptionists who serve as personal guards."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Home, Work, People)
"It's far more impressive when others discover your good qualities without your help."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Help)
"Indeed, Miss Manners has come to believe that the basic political division in this country is not between liberals and conservatives but between those who believe that they should have a say in the love lives of strangers and those who do not."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Love, Country, Liberals, Manners, Strangers)
"If written directions alone would suffice, libraries wouldn't need to have the rest of the universities attached."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Libraries, Rest)
"Hypocrisy is not generally a social sin, but a virtue."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Virtue, Hypocrisy, Sin)
"Honesty has come to mean the privilege of insulting you to your face without expecting redress."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Honesty, Privilege)
"Chaperons don't enforce morality; they force immorality to be discreet."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Morality, Force)
"Chaperons, even in their days of glory, were almost never able to enforce morality; what they did was to force immorality to be discreet. This is no small contribution."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Morality, Force, Glory)
"Many people mistakenly think a new technology cancels out an old one."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Technology, People, Old)
"You glance at an e-mail. You give more attention to a real letter."
- Judith Martin
(Related: Attention)