{"id":481,"date":"2008-07-27T20:09:29","date_gmt":"2008-07-28T01:09:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artofmanliness.com\/?p=481"},"modified":"2026-01-13T13:33:04","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T19:33:04","slug":"when-and-how-to-give-flowers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/people\/relationships\/when-and-how-to-give-flowers\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Give Flowers Like a Victorian Gentleman"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Victorian<\/p>\n

Women often complain that the men in their lives are not romantic enough. But men sometimes have trouble expressing their feelings, often resorting to cheesy Hallmark cards or pricey bejeweled baubles to do the job for them. But there is a far better way to be romantic and it doesn’t involve spending a fortune or even opening your mouth.<\/p>\n

In the days before courting consisted of hanging out<\/a> and getting drinks, courting was a formal and dignified endeavor. Symbols were used to express feelings and thoughts deemed too special for mere words. During the Victorian Era, a whole romantic language developed around the giving and receiving of flowers. Everything from the type and size of the flower to the way it was held or presented conveyed layers of meaning and communicated a gentleman’s feelings and intentions. Each bouquet contained a secret message for a lady to eagerly interpret and endlessly dissect.<\/p>\n

These days giving flowers has become a somewhat ho-hum clich\u00e9. Resurrecting this Victorian tradition will infuse the gesture with new life and romance and bring back some of the subtly, mystery, and fun of courtship. Your lady will swoon that you put far more thought into your selection of flowers than grabbing a bouquet out of the case at Walmart. You’ll come off as a real gentleman and a hopeless romantic. It can become a lasting tradition you’ll both enjoy. Seriously. Women eat this stuff up.<\/p>\n

Of course, even women nowadays have forgotten the meanings of flowers. So buy your lady a flower dictionary like this one<\/a>. And keep a copy for yourself \u2014 it’s important that you both use the same reference, as the meanings were never set in stone and can sometimes vary from book to book. Then, each time you present her with a bouquet, she can search the volume to find what secret messages you have embedded in the flowers.<\/p>\n

There are even bouquets that convey rejection or unrequited love, but having your soon-to-be former flame eagerly search through a book only to find out she’s been dumped is just plain cruel.<\/p>\n

Here’s a partial list of flowers’ meanings to help you get started. Follow them, and you’ll be reviving throngs of women with smelling salts as they swoon for you:<\/p>\n