George Washington's Ten Rules Analysis

The late and great George Washington is one of America’s greatest heroes. He was not only a great leader, but a great person as well. It seems that every person in the United States knows everything about Washington, however one thing many do not know is his “ Rules Of Civility and Decent Behavior. ” This is a list composed by Washington himself of one hundred and ten rules that are used as etiquette today. Three of the rules that I can relate most to my life are : do not express joy in front of someone in pain, always submit your judgment to others in modesty, and lastly, while you are talking don’t point your finger at them. The first of my triplet of rules is rule 43, “ Do not express joy before one sick or in pain, for that contrary passion will aggravate his misery” (Washington 17). I think this is rule is broken by not only me, but by the vast majority of people. When someone is sad or not feeling well, I often go on and rant about the greatest event that happened to me that day. I never noticed how heartless this was until I was on the other end of it. When someone is melancholy, the last thing they want to hear about is how great your doing. This is common etiquette, that is very rarely used. …show more content…
Often times when I am in conversation with someone, I try not to sound arrogant and talk about my achievements or qualities. Although, I occasionally do bring myself into the topic. This has been a staple for civility for centuries however, people seem to break this rule daily. When I am talking to someone, I try to be as attentive and respectful as possible throughout the interaction. If you do not follow this decree Washington, set then it gives off a vibe that the other person is not as important as you. This is something I try to stay away