Dinner Parties in the Victorian Age

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Getting the dinner intricacies wrong met public disgrace. A proper Victorian dinner setting had a fork for the fish, one for meat, another for salad, and desert. One slightly smaller one for pastries. You started with utensils farthest from your plate worked inward. There might also be a oyster fork, a game fork, and an odd looking object used to dismembering asparagus. If you used the wrong implement people may never speak to you again. Knives had to be used correctly too. You would never cut a roll in half. Instead you would tear off a small bite, put a small amount of butter on your plate and butter the small bit. Soups had to be spooned away from you tilting the bowl slightly. Small sips, never slurped. If you dropped any on the table cloth your reputation was gone. The napkin was elegantly unfolded and placed in your lap just as you sat down. You never used it to blow your nose or you would be thought of as a peasant. If you needed to leave your seat it should be folded and placed on your chair. When you were finished you would place the napkin beside the plate, never on it. For dessert you would use both a fork and a spoon. You always start after the hostess and wait until everyone was finished before leaving the table.