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Polite Conversation

by Jonathan Swift, Lynne Truss
$12.90
Compare to estimated retail price: S$22.00  

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Polite Conversation
Polite Conversation
Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.
Just Arrived

Polite Conversation

by Jonathan Swift, Lynne Truss
$12.90
Compare to estimated retail price: S$22.00  

The item you've got your eye on is secondhand. You probably already know that, but just in case!

The estimated retail price shown next to any listed item represents the first-hand prices we've seen elsewhere, or the estimated original retail price of a comparable item of the same quality, construction and material offered elsewhere in new condition.

Condition guide

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ISBN: 9781843911470
Authors: Jonathan Swift, Lynne Truss
Publisher: Hesperus Press
Date of Publication: 2007-05-01
Format: Paperback
Related Collections: Sociology, History, Philosophy
Related Topics: Education, Theory, Classics, Social Issues, Social Justice, European History
Goodreads rating: 3.81
(rated by 36 readers)

Description

A companion piece to the popular Directions to Servants, Polite Conversation is a witty, brilliantly conceived treatise on manners and small talk from the master of English satire. Beginning with an "expert" introduction to the perils of ill-educated discourse, Swift seeks to offer a remedy for conversational disasters. His aim: to ensure one is always equipped with the correct response, no matter the situation, and the means with which to stoke up conversation when it lapses into awkward silence. To prove his theses, he then proffers three mock dialogues, citing the drawing room as the most suitable place to display the art of elegant and polite conversation. The result is a hilarious and deeply ironic analysis that is as relevant today as when it was first conceived. Irish clergyman and satirist Jonathan Swift (1667–1745) is best remembered for his philosophical parody Gulliver's Travels.
 
Note: While we do our best to ensure the accuracy of cover images, ISBNs may at times be reused for different editions of the same title which may hence appear as a different cover.