De civilitate morum puerilium libellus

Method of bending the knee

I do not know what is becoming. Similarly, regarding the bending of the knees, one thing is appropriate for some and inappropriate for others. Some bend both knees equally, and among them, some do so with an upright body, while others do so with the body somewhat inclined. There are those who, considering this womanish, similarly keep the body erect, first bending the right knee, then the left, which among the British is considered a point of praise in youths. The French, with a modulated turning of the body, bend only the right knee. In those matters where variation is not at odds with honesty, it shall be free to use either native customs or to comply with foreign ones, since there are those who are more taken by foreign manners.

Gait.

The gait should be neither mincing nor hurried, for the former is the mark of the soft and effeminate, the latter of the frantic. Nor should it be unsteady, which is disapproved by Fabius Quintilian. For let us leave the awkward, half-lame gait to glorious soldiers and to those who consider it a great ornament to wear feathers in their caps. Although, we have seen bishops who please themselves with this gesture. For one who is sitting to play with his feet is a mark of the foolish, just as gesturing with the hands is a sign of a mind that is not entirely sound.