---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Good breeding consists in having no…"
description: "\"Good breeding consists in having no particular mark of any profession, but a general elegance of manners.\" — Samuel Johnson"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/samuel-johnson-50_beauty_good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-part_934244.png"
---

#  Good breeding consists in having no particular mark of any…

![“Good breeding consists in having no particular mark of any profession, but a general elegance of manners.” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/samuel-johnson-50_beauty_good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-part_934244.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/samuel-johnson-50_beauty_good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-part_934244.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/samuel-johnson-50_beauty_good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-part_934244.png)

> “Good breeding consists in having no particular mark of any profession, but a general elegance of manners.”

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

True refinement is shown by universal courtesy, not by occupational symbols.

**In simple terms:** Politeness matters more than job titles.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate graceful manners.

Themes

etiquette class universality

Mood

refined thoughtful

Type

advice philosophical

When to use this quote

- business meetings
- social gatherings
- family dinners
- public speaking

Key Concepts

social grace humility

Questions to Reflect On

- How can one display elegance without pretension?
- What habits reflect true refinement?

A Different Perspective

May be seen as classist in modern meritocratic contexts.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Breeding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breeding/) [Elegance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elegance/) [Elegance Manners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elegance-manners-1545665/) [General Elegance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/general-elegance-1545664/) [Good breeding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-breeding/) [Manners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/manners/) [Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mark/) [Particular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/particular/) [Profession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profession/)

## Related quotes

> [A man's own good breeding ishis best security against other people's ill-manners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-s-own-good-breeding-ishis-best-security-against-other-people-s/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Real good-breeding is independent of the forms and refinements of what has assumed to itself the name of society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/real-good-breeding-is-independent-of-the-forms-and-refinements-of/)

[George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/)

> [Good manners come, as we say, from good breeding or rather are good breeding; and breeding is acquired by habitual action, in response to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/good-manners-come-as-we-say-from-good-breeding-or-rather-are-good/)

[John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/)

> [Good breeding and good nature do incline us rather to help and raise people up to ourselves, than to mortify and depress them, and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/good-breeding-and-good-nature-do-incline-us-rather-to-help-and-raise/)

[Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/)

> [Wisdom and virtue are by no means sufficient, without the supplemental laws of good-breeding, to secure freedom from degenerating into rudeness, or self esteem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/wisdom-and-virtue-are-by-no-means-sufficient-without-the-supplemental/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Defect in manners is usually the defect of fine perceptions. Elegance comes of no breeding, but of birth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/defect-in-manners-is-usually-the-defect-of-fine-perceptions-elegance/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [“She confused in her desire the sensualities of luxury with the delights of the heart, elegance of manners with delicacy of sentiment. Did not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/she-confused-in-her-desire-the-sensualities-of-luxury-with-the/)

[Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/)

> [“Ladies should also remember that gentlemen look more to the effect of a dress in setting off the figure and countenance of a lady…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hillgrove/ladies-should-also-remember-that-gentlemen-look-more-to-the-effect-of/)

[Thomas Hillgrove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hillgrove/)

> [The religion of England is part of good-breeding. When you see on the continent the well-dressed Englishman come into his ambassador's chapel and put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-religion-of-england-is-part-of-good-breeding-when-you-see-on-the/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [There are certainly numberless women of fashion who consider it perfectly natural to go miles down Fifth Avenue, or Madison Avenue, yet for whom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-romains/there-are-certainly-numberless-women-of-fashion-who-consider-it/)

[Jules Romains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-romains/)

> [It has been said that true religion will make a man a more thorough gentleman than all the courts in Europe. And it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kingsley/it-has-been-said-that-true-religion-will-make-a-man-a-more-thorough/)

[Charles Kingsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kingsley/)

> [Compliments of congratulation are always kindly taken, and cost nothing but pen, ink and paper. I consider them as draughts upon good breeding, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/compliments-of-congratulation-are-always-kindly-taken-and-cost/)

[Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/)

> [Good-breeding is not confined to externals, much less to any particular dress or attitude of the body; it is the art of pleasing, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-fielding/good-breeding-is-not-confined-to-externals-much-less-to-any/)

[Henry Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-fielding/)

> [There is no society or conversation to be kept up in the world without good-nature, or something which must bear its appearance and supply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/there-is-no-society-or-conversation-to-be-kept-up-in-the-world/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [There are few defects in our nature so glaring as not to be veiled from observation by politeness and good-breeding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanis-aw-i-leszczy-ski/there-are-few-defects-in-our-nature-so-glaring-as-not-to-be-veiled/)

[Stanisław I Leszczyński](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanis-aw-i-leszczy-ski/)

## More by Samuel Johnson

> [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [You can never be wise unless you love reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/you-can-never-be-wise-unless-you-love-reading/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [All theory is against free will; all experience is for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/all-theory-is-against-free-will-all-experience-is-for-it/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Had I learned to fiddle, I should have done nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/had-i-learned-to-fiddle-i-should-have-done-nothing-else/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [It is as foolish to make experiments upon the constancy of a friend, as upon the chastity of a wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-as-foolish-to-make-experiments-upon-the-constancy-of-a-friend/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Resolve not to be poor: whatever you have, spend less. Poverty is a great enemy to human happiness; it certainly destroys liberty, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/resolve-not-to-be-poor-whatever-you-have-spend-less-poverty-is-a/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The basis of all excellence is truth: he that professes love ought to feel its power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-basis-of-all-excellence-is-truth-he-that-professes-love-ought-to/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Words are daughters of earth but ideas are sons of heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/words-are-daughters-of-earth-but-ideas-are-sons-of-heaven/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [“The cherubim were never intended as an object of worship, because they were only the appendices to another thing. But a thing is then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-cherubim-were-never-intended-as-an-object-of-worship-because-they/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Nobody has the right to put another under such a difficulty that he must either hurt the person by telling the truth or hurt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/nobody-has-the-right-to-put-another-under-such-a-difficulty-that-he/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [That kind of life is most happy which affords us most opportunities of gaining our own self-esteem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/that-kind-of-life-is-most-happy-which-affords-us-most-opportunities/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The time will come to every human being when it must be known how well he can bear to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-time-will-come-to-every-human-being-when-it-must-be-known-how/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

[Explore all 1,998 Samuel Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

## More Beauty quotes

> [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/)

[Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/)

> [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/)

[John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/)

> [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/)

[Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/)

> [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/)

[Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/)

> [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/)

[Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/)

> [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/)

[George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/)

> [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/)

[Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/)

> [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/)

[Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/)

> [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/)

[Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/)

> [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/)

[Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/)

> [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/)

[Tumblr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tumblr/)

> [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/)

[William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/)

> [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/)

[Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/)

> [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/)

[Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/)

[Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Good breeding consists in having no particular mark of any profession, but a general elegance of manners.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Samuel Johnson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-particular-mark-of-any-profession/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Beauty"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-particular-mark-of-any-profession/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/samuel-johnson-50_beauty_good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-part_934244.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/samuel-johnson-50_beauty_good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-part_934244.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/samuel-johnson-50_beauty_good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-part_934244.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Good breeding consists in having no particular mark of any profession, but a general elegance of manners.” — Samuel Johnson",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Samuel Johnson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Good breeding consists in having no...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-particular-mark-of-any-profession/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/good-breeding-consists-in-having-no-particular-mark-of-any-profession/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
