There are some things we love about the 1950s—midcentury furniture design and the period’s full-skirted, ladylike fashions, for example. Things we appreciate a little bit less? The comically cringe-worthy dating culture and the way women were instructed to behave in order to attract a partner. Yes, in this case, “old-fashioned” is an epic understatement for just how ridiculous the advice in ladies journals of the time was. Read on for some 100% authentic “wisdom” women of the period were treated to, and breath a sigh of relief that times, they are a-changin’.
But one of the most surprising discoveries from taking a nostalgic look at the 1950s involves the strict “rules” of courtship. Back then, rules like “never drop your silverware on a first date” weren’t seen as overly strict — they were just the norm.