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 ‘‘A Great Deal Is Affected, but Nothing on the Heart in It’’ Most wealthy visitors regarded the Virginia Springs as a place of pleasure and leisure, yet their very presence made the resorts places of intense ritual and competition. While visitors eased some rules of gender relations, they did not relax their general expectations for proper southern ladies and gentlemen. If anything, the demands of such roles became clearer. At the springs, elite society clarified the rules of genteel and fashionable appearance , behavior, and sentiment. These rules defined individual actions and simultaneously provided guidelines for group competition. Success or failure at knowing and following the rules often determined a guest’s status in springs society. The concentration of so many elite men and women in such a close setting intensified the competition for status—to be the prettiest or handsomest, the most fashionable or graceful, the most respected or popular . The exclusivity and homogeneity of the guests fueled this need for differentiation and acknowledgment. Lacking the inherent status of plantation or town environments that readily distinguished them from their neighbors and slaves, elite men and women found themselves forced to compete with members of their own group for a top place in the springs hierarchy. And the competition was fierce. One mistake in word, deed, or dress by a visitor could create a sudden loss of status, perhaps even a scandal. The demands of gentility and competition at the Virginia Springs required visitors to serve in various capacities at once. The guests participated in spa society as serious competitors, shrewd spectators, or stern judges. They relaxed and played while they competed and performed. They acted while they watched. They observed while being observed and judged those who judged them. Yet most of the women and men willingly played the game by displaying their mastery of the art of being a lady or gentleman. Their willingness to play this game—to follow the rules of polite society while jockeying for status—fostered an atmosphere at the springs that was both gregarious and competitive. While visitors rarely commented upon the tensions created by intense competition and status obsession within a leisurely, familial atmosphere, they clearly considered the Virginia Springs a perfect arena for social competition . A member of a prominent Virginia family, Philippa Barbour determined early that at the fashionable resorts ‘‘a great deal is affected, but 152 Ladies and Gentlemen o n d i s p l ay nothing on the heart in it,’’ as ‘‘each family of wealth endeavours to excel the other in regard to their personal appearance and splendour of their equipages.’’ This aspect of resort life followed a long tradition in gentry society. Throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, particularly in the South, when ladies and gentlemen gathered, they used contest, performance , and display to define and evaluate members within their own circle. Through their public display of manners, talents, and dress, women and men revealed the communally sanctioned hallmarks of membership in the southern gentry. The contest gave rank and reputation to the participants . This concern with public display reflected an emphasis on the physical form and outward signs of gentility in a society that rested upon the community for the bestowal of status, honor, and personal worth. This tradition reached its zenith at the Virginia Springs.1 Many visitors went to the springs primarily to participate in and witness the display and competition. Young men and women, the beaux and belles, especially enjoyed the ‘‘little follies’’ and ‘‘various artifices’’ of life at the Virginia Springs. They usually threw themselves into the whirl with verve, competing with each other for popularity and admiration while having a marvelous time. Martha Terrell envied her sister’s ‘‘natural gayety’’ and delight in ‘‘the confusion of the crowd.’’ Correspondingly, young singles received the most attention—and thus the most criticism or acclaim— as major players in the status contest. They also had the most at stake since their reputations might decide marriage partners and, for men, future business and political prospects. Walter Preston expressed his pleasure that his two sisters found ‘‘no difficulty in getting along as well as any.’’ More importantly, he predicted that ‘‘they will have sufficent confidence in themselves after a while to aim at and succeed in surpassing all who may undertake to compete with them.’’ He wanted them to leave the springs as winners.2 Simply by going to the Virginia Springs, men and women laid claim to a high level of status. A long...

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