by Christos Zabounis

Let us begin with an objection. When the men’s clothing house Charles Tyrwhitt decided to publish a manual for the modern gentleman, it added a controversial subtitle to the above title: “Gentlemen are not born, they are made.” For heaven’s sake! The self-made founder, Nicholas Wheeler, may look upon the world from on high after his resounding success, but even his provocation has its limits. It was in 1986, while still a student, that he founded his company, specializing in shirts, with the motto “I can make a shirt better than anyone else.” Yet the heritage of each of his customers cannot be erased in such an audacious manner. First and foremost, lineage cannot be bought, no matter how well-crafted his products may be. One discerns it from crucial details, such as manner of speech and behavior. Reading through his book, one notices all those rules repeated with religious devotion in every savoir vivre guide. The difference lies in the absolute approach, lacking the necessary “curves” that make life easier. Take the matter of the beard, for example, which he treats “aggressively,” citing its outright prohibition by the Russian Emperor Peter the Great in 1698, which provoked strong reactions from the Orthodox Church. Eventually a compromise was reached, resulting in the infamous beard tax that his unfortunate subjects had to pay for the privilege of wearing a beard. Shave properly is his advice, and for those who insist on not doing so, he recommends a “scientific” grooming. There is, however, one mitigating factor: if the author intended to provoke, he certainly succeeded.

Photos Courtesy of Ebory books