Etiquette : reflections on contemporary comportment /

This title is the first in the publisher's "Contemporary Philosophy and Culture" series. This series theme has been gathering momentum following Open Court's "Popular Culture and Philosophy" series, represented by titles such as The Simpsons and Philosophy (CH, Sep'01, 39-0243). The editors surmise that etiquette deserves its own status and is not just ethics lite. "In all of its superficiality, etiquette has substance for theoretical purchase, too, a substance worth cultivating in its own right," they say. The 20 contributors to this collection show how this might be the case. One imagines the assignment letter: "Write an essay on the rules governing some aspect of modern life, and make it interesting." The scope is broad, with chapters dealing with etiquette for gays, body builders, hip-hop artists, cell phone users, adoptive parents, and aspects of contemporary life too diverse to list here. Scarcely any area of behavior escapes notice. Although more descriptive than prescriptive, and offering some deconstruction of the concept of etiquette (more Foucault than Derrida), the essays are great fun and, if nothing else, show the variety of rules for society's subcultures. An extensive index makes the book a useful resource. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers. D. Stewart emeritus, Ohio University