No, I still don't have much of anything to say. But I thought I might join in and give my experiences on the topic of the day:
I was brought up saying Mr. Smith and Mrs. Jones to all but a few of my parents closest friends. By high school, that stayed the same, except that several Jewish classmates' parents strongly encouraged us to call them by their first names. (Is that a cultural thing?) Never could get myself to address college professors by a given name, either -- or at least not without a title, of the Dr. Ruth, Dr. Laura, Dr. Phil variety. When discussing them, I'd either use the full name (Diana Eck) or, like the Kid Sister, just use the last name (Travers, Peterson, etc.) In certain segments of town, and in my YMCA summer camp in the country, I noticed the alternate form of Miss Josephine, Mr. James. And that doesn't seem to be dying out, either: at the resale shop where I'm volunteering this summer, the high school girls refer to all the old-lady staff as Miss Louise, Miss Jane, Miss Isobel. I love it!
Like I said, I don't have much to say....
I say Mr. and Mrs. to 'Americans,' Aunty and Uncle to Indians. I never really picked up the UVA habit of calling my profs "Mr." instead of "Professor." (Jefferson allegedly didn't believe in special titles, and thought both students and faculty should be addressed as "Mr.") I have a genuinely difficult time addressing people in my parents' age group by their first names, no matter how many times they encourage me to do so and complain that being addressed by a title makes them feel old. (Well, if you're as old as my parents, in my view you ARE old and will be treated as such.)
Posted by: PG | July 06, 2005 at 09:25 PM