Ton (society)

Alternative term for English high society

Originally used in the context of upper class English society, ton meant the state of being fashionable,[1] a fashionable manner or style, or something for the moment in vogue. It could also (generally with the definite article: the ton) mean people of fashion, or fashionable society generally. A variant of the French bon-ton, a now-archaic expression designating good style or breeding, polite, fashionable or high society,[2] or the fashionable world, ton's first recorded use in English was according to the Oxford English Dictionary in 1769. In British English, the word is pronounced as in French /tɒ̃/, with American English favouring the Anglicised pronunciation /tɔn/ or /tɑn/.[3][4]

Ton was a requirement for admission into the English high society during the English Regency, defined as the ability to secure a "voucher" to Almack's. As written by Ellen Moers, "[w]ealth was no guarantee of admission ... Birth was no guarantee ... Beauty, talent, achievement, distinction—none of these meant anything unless qualified by that elusive term: ton". For example, in the early 1800s, a poor Irish poet, Thomas Moore was quickly accepted,[5] while the rich but vulgar nouveaux riches were being rejected, as were the three quarters of the nobility. At the time, the word ton was widely used in the fashionable publications with no precise definition, although the very use of the French word for tone suggests the difficulty of "performing it". Indeed, the superiority of Beau Brummell in all things of fashion, acknowledged across the Regency England, was too exquisite to copy: "his power over others derived from subtleties of manner so fine they cannot be reproduced".[6]

## Depictions

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The ton in Regency England is depicted in many of the Regency romances of Georgette Heyer, and in Julia Quinn's 2000–2006 Bridgerton novel series. The latter has been adapted as a streaming television series Bridgerton, the first season of which aired on Netflix in 2020.

In Heyer's Regency world, as constructed in her "Sylvester, or the Wicked Uncle", the ton is depicted as an entity that carefully builds and maintains the society.[7]

## See also

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* Brooks's
* Regency fashions
* White's

## References

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1. ^ "ton", Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, 1990, Miriam-Webster, p. 1241.
2. ^ "bon ton", Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, 1990, Merriam-Webster Incorporated, p. 167.
3. ^ "ton". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 11 June 2023. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
4. ^ "bon-ton". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 11 June 2023. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
5. ^ Moers 1978, pp. 44–45.
6. ^ Weatherup 2011, p. 15.
7. ^ Sherwood 2021, p. 79.

## Sources

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* Moers, Ellen (1978). The Dandy: Brummell to Beerbohm. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-0-8032-3052-1.
* Sherwood, Kim (25 February 2021). "Pride and prejudice: metafiction and the value of historical romance in Georgette Heyer". In Rayner, Samantha J.; Wilkins, Kim (eds.). Georgette Heyer, History and Historical Fiction (PDF). UCL Press. doi:10.14324/111.9781787357600. ISBN 978-1-78735-760-0. Retrieved 22 March 2025.
* Weatherup, Elle Reynolds (2011). Understanding Dandyism in Three Acts: a Comparison of the Revolutionary Performances of Beau Brummell, George Walker, and Zoot Suit Culture (PDF) (Doctor of Philosophy in Literature thesis). UCSD.

## Further reading

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* Kloester, Jennifer (2005). Georgette Heyer's Regency World. London, England: William Heinemann.
* Margetson, Stella (1971). Regency London. New York: Prawger Publishers, Incorporated.
* Murray, Venetia (1998). High Society: A social History of the Regency Period, 1788–1830. Viking.

## External links

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* Almack's Assembly Rooms