The Meaning of Headlines: 'gentlemen's agreement' - politics

The weekly newspaper, Georgian Journal, contained the following headline on the front page of their June 11-17, 2015, edition: ‘A Gentlemen’s Agreeement Without Gentlemen.’ It was referring to the current political situation of Georgian statesmen. But what does a ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ mean?

The article is about ex-Prime Minister of Georgia, Mr. Bidzina Ivanishvili, and whether he allegedly disclosed details of his gentlemen’s agreement with an International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s official.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines a gentleman’s or gentlemen’s agreement as ‘an arrangement or understanding, which is based upon the trust of both or all parties, rather than being legally binding.’ Wikipedia adds that it is ‘typically oral, though it may be written, or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or through mutually beneficial etiquette.’ It can also be an agreement through a handshake. Often people will say, mostly related to business, ‘Let’s shake on it.’ Hence it ‘relies on the honor of the parties for its fulfilment.’ 

The article does indeed state that ‘No partnership can work without trust between states or business partners – this is an unwritten code of behavior all over the globe. The terms of gentlemen’s agreements must be observed as accurately as those official contracts.’ So the article is emphasizing trust, confidentiality, code of behavior, moral code, and so on – and includes definitions of the type of gentlemen’s agreement.

The article says that if the ex-PM had disclosed details then trust has been broken, confidentiality has been broken, responsibility has been broken, and indeed, reputation has been broken.

The sub-heading of the article states: ‘In Search of a Scapegoat.’ What does a ‘scapegoat’ mean? A scapegoat, according to the Oxford English Dictionary is ‘a person who is blamed for the wrongdoings, mistakes, or faults of other, especially for reasons of expediency’ – a whipping boy, a fall guy, a patsy.

The article does suggest a person who has been ‘made a scapegoat’ – a governor of a bank. So in this article, there is much mention of gentlemen’s agreements, the importance of keeping a gentlemen’s agreement so as not to lose trust, reputation, and honor, and the even worse moral breakdown of scrupulously blaming someone else.

Scorecard for the Georgian Journal headline is 100% for grabbing attention, the inclusion of two vivid phrases that more than adequately impart the article’s message, and continually – emphatically even – stressing the phrases to assert that Georgian statesment have lost their honor and reputation in the eyes of the international community and investors alike.