Egad, I started a debate.
So I asked a simple question over at theladiesloos this morning, and it's gotten over 100 comments. Egad. Anyway, as most of you aren't on TLL, and I really should have made it a poll, I figured I'd find out what you all thought.
Poll
(Excellent song, btw. Highly recommend the video if you haven't seen it.)
As Andrew's age-mates are getting older, they're starting to call the adults by various names. I've noticed that a lot of them seem to be going with first names for the adults. I'm not sure if this is a symptom of being two years old and not having that great of a vocabulary, or if it's the adults who are spearheading it. I do know that in the case of one of Andrew's best friends, she calls me Sharon, and her mother, when she refers to me to her daughter, calls me Sharon as well. (Not Miss Sharon, not Mrs. Sharon, not Mrs. LastName, not even Auntie Sharon. Just Sharon.) Obviously I don't mind when the mother calls me by my first name, but for some reason, when I hear the little girl say it without anything in front, it grates. Just a little, and I know she's young and still learning, but all the same. I haven't said anything, because...well, what can you say? I think it comes down to parenting style, frankly, and I've decided to let it slide.
Me, I was raised to call adults by some honorific, whether that was Mr/Mrs/Miss or Aunt/Uncle. I can honestly say that I don't remember calling any adult by their first name without an honorific, ever. In fact, I distinctly remember when I was around 14 being asked by one of my babysitting families to call the adults by their first name. I couldn't do it. I literally could not do it without huge warning bells going off in my head. I think it took a few more years before I could call adults by the first name - and I think it wasn't until I was involved in community theatre when that change took place, and I was working with these adults as a colleague.
So I've been putting a lot of thought lately into Andrew, and what we're going to raise him to do in regards to talking to adults. It would seem at first glance at the 100+ comments at TLL that I'm in the vast minority on thinking children should use honorifics with adults. But I also think this is a cultural divide, as most of the ladies in TLL are British, and last I checked, most of you guys are American (with some notable Canadians, Brits, and Australians mixed in, with the odd-but-perfectly-lovely German here or there), so I'm curious how this poll will go.
(It should be noted that wherever it goes - I'm still very firmly in the "Miss/Mr/Mrs" camp, be it with first or last name. He's got a few Aunties who aren't actually related, but no one ever got in trouble for being excessively polite, is my theory, and if you're going to be insulted at being called Mr/Mrs/Miss, then you're probably going to be insulted no matter what he does.)
Poll
(Excellent song, btw. Highly recommend the video if you haven't seen it.)
As Andrew's age-mates are getting older, they're starting to call the adults by various names. I've noticed that a lot of them seem to be going with first names for the adults. I'm not sure if this is a symptom of being two years old and not having that great of a vocabulary, or if it's the adults who are spearheading it. I do know that in the case of one of Andrew's best friends, she calls me Sharon, and her mother, when she refers to me to her daughter, calls me Sharon as well. (Not Miss Sharon, not Mrs. Sharon, not Mrs. LastName, not even Auntie Sharon. Just Sharon.) Obviously I don't mind when the mother calls me by my first name, but for some reason, when I hear the little girl say it without anything in front, it grates. Just a little, and I know she's young and still learning, but all the same. I haven't said anything, because...well, what can you say? I think it comes down to parenting style, frankly, and I've decided to let it slide.
Me, I was raised to call adults by some honorific, whether that was Mr/Mrs/Miss or Aunt/Uncle. I can honestly say that I don't remember calling any adult by their first name without an honorific, ever. In fact, I distinctly remember when I was around 14 being asked by one of my babysitting families to call the adults by their first name. I couldn't do it. I literally could not do it without huge warning bells going off in my head. I think it took a few more years before I could call adults by the first name - and I think it wasn't until I was involved in community theatre when that change took place, and I was working with these adults as a colleague.
So I've been putting a lot of thought lately into Andrew, and what we're going to raise him to do in regards to talking to adults. It would seem at first glance at the 100+ comments at TLL that I'm in the vast minority on thinking children should use honorifics with adults. But I also think this is a cultural divide, as most of the ladies in TLL are British, and last I checked, most of you guys are American (with some notable Canadians, Brits, and Australians mixed in, with the odd-but-perfectly-lovely German here or there), so I'm curious how this poll will go.
(It should be noted that wherever it goes - I'm still very firmly in the "Miss/Mr/Mrs" camp, be it with first or last name. He's got a few Aunties who aren't actually related, but no one ever got in trouble for being excessively polite, is my theory, and if you're going to be insulted at being called Mr/Mrs/Miss, then you're probably going to be insulted no matter what he does.)