Modern Gallantry by Charles Lamb (Questions & Answers)

 

Modern Gallantry

by Charles Lamb

(Questions & Answers)

 

1.               Do you think Lamb agrees to the point that the nineteenth century people have become more gallant than their predecessors?

-    No, because he thinks that true respect to the female sex is not given to them irrespective of relation, colour, age, money, beauty or rank.

 

2.               Name some of the practices which are discourteous to ladies?

-    Whipping females in the public, hissing off the stages of the actresses, coarse servitude done by the ladies are some of the practices which prevailed in the nineteenth century and were considered bad for them.

 

3.               What category of females was revered by the men of fashion in the Nineteenth century?

-    Lamb says that only rich, beautiful, young and well - ranked ladies were given respect by the fashionable men who claimed for gallantry in the 19th Century.

 

4.               Give famous examples of gallantry as cited by Charles Lamb.

-    The writer gives the examples of true gallantry shown by Prius Chevalier, Sir Tristan & Sir Caldiero. They have become the symbols of gallantry.

 

5.               Who was Joseph Paice?

-    He was merchant by profession and one of the directors of the South Sea Company. He wanted to marry Susan Winstanley. Joseph Paice is considered a model of gallantry.

 

6.               What are the writer’s ideas about coarse servitude?

-    Coarse servitude is rough, monotonous and hard work of the domestic world. Most of this drudgery and rough work is done by women. This, according to the writer, is not the case of gallantry in modern times.

 

7.               Narrate the story of Susan Winstanley affair.

-    Sir Joseph Paice wanted to marry Susan Winstanley. She was young, smart, rich and aristocratic. On one occasion Joseph Paice paid high compliments in her praise but the lady rebuked him mildly. Susan had overheard him rating a young woman who had not brought home his cravats (part of dress material) to the appointed time. This made clear in the mind of Susan that Joseph was courteous to her because she had youth, beauty, wealth and rank. Otherwise, he was not respectful to female sex in general. She taught a good lesson to Joseph by not marrying him. Thus, Joseph remained a bachelor; and revered and upheld womanhood in every form.

 

8.               What should a woman demand from her lover in courtship?

-    A woman should demand from her lover first - respect for her as a woman, and next to that - to be respected by him above all other women.

 

9.               What does the writer mean by foundation and main structure?

-    The writer, by foundations and main structure, means female as a female and not as a wife, or a mistress or a sister. These are additional ornaments to decorate the main structure.

 

10.        What should be the first lesson of a woman?

-    Her first lesson must be - to revere her sex, pay respect to her as she is a female.

 

11.        Why doesn’t the writer agree to the notion of modern gallantry?

-    The writer doesn’t agree to the notion of modern gallantry, because he can see the practice of whipping females in public, woman being hissed off a stage, a fish wife or the apple women being helpless, a woman being in distress in theatres, coarse servitude being done by women. Women are differentiated on the basis of relation, age, beauty, colour, wealth and rank.

 

12.        What does the writer wish?

-    The writer wishes that all women should have the same thoughts about gallantry as those of Susan Winstanley. They should not accept any anomaly in the behaviour of their male partners on the basis of beauty, age, colour, wealth or rank.

 

13.        Comment on the style of the essay.

-    The writer has written this essay in a style different from the style of his other essays. There are no autobiographical details or arousing of pathos, satire or humour. The essay has been written in a didactic way. First, he has catalogued a number of practices prevailing in the Nineteenth century, which are against the thought of gallantry or civilized behaviour. The use of future time at the beginning of many paragraphs shows that the writer is not yet ready to accept, that we have become more civilized as far as gallantry (respect to female as female) is concerned. He has appropriately given the example of courtship of Joseph Paice and Susan Winstanley to prove his point of view. The last paragraph becomes aphoristic, terse and didactic in a direct manner. At the end he has used a strong metaphor for basic female character. It is compared to a foundation and main structure and rest of the things or demands by women as additions to the main thing.