savoir-faire

Suzy Spaulding

Savior-faire is a French term that literally translates to “know how to do”. In literature this phrase can be found applicable towards character attributes and actions. Someone who is savior-faire is someone that always knows what to say and what to do. Jane Austin writes a lot of savior-faire characters in her novels. For example, Catherine in Northanger Abbey would be a near antonym for savior-fair. She would not be a true antonym because though she is naïve and a little less cultured she is not completely socially inept. In a way Catherine reminds me of Lindsey Lohan’s character from the movie "Mean Girls". When Catherine first travels to Bathe she is like “the new girl at the lunch table”. Mrs. Allen would be the “plastic” girl that takes Catherine “under her wing”. In Catherine’s eyes Mrs. Allen would at first seem to have a bit of savior-faire, since she knows “the way of the world” around Bathe. In general many of the characters have an air of savior-faire. Henry Tilney for example would be thought of as savior-faire. He is dashing and witty, which are both characteristics associated with being savior-faire. To put it simply to be savior-fair is to be the cool charming popular girl/ guy at school that always knows just what to say, what to do, and what to wear. The non savior-fair kid at school wears sweatpants socks and Birkenstocks, has greasy spitball hair and always spills his lunch tray in front of the jock table along with saying really inappropriate comments at the most inopportune of times leaving an odd wake of awkward silence .