Tips for Treating Titles of People

Tips for Treating Titles of People Tips for Treating Titles of People Tips for Treating Titles of People By Mark Nichol Civil titles (Mr., Mrs., and Ms.) have become largely archaic and superfluous in written communication, and Dr. is usually unnecessary, too and, in the case of someone who earned a doctorate, is often seen as a disingenuous affectation. (When necessary, follow the person’s name with PhD instead). A doctor with a medical degree is better identified by a brief reference to his or her specialty or the specific medical degree earned (â€Å"cardiologist Thomas Johnson† or â€Å"Thomas Johnson, MD†). Even in fiction, civil titles are of questionable value except in dialogue or in a narrative reference for example, when conversationally referring to the town general practitioner in a novel with a rural setting. People with professional titles by virtue of affiliation with politics, education, religion, the military, and such may be identified as such on first reference (â€Å"President Linda Thompson,† â€Å"Professor John O’Brien,† â€Å"Reverend Andrew Morris,† â€Å"Captain Jane Long†), but, as with civil titles, there’s no reason to subsequently use the title before the name, unless, like the rural doctor, the person is a character being mentioned or hailed in a story. Most titles have an abbreviated form, but though these are commonly used in journalistic contexts, they’re generally unnecessary (except, perhaps, when space is at a minimum, such as in a table with narrow columns). Military abbreviations consist of all capital letters, but references in civilian contexts need not follow suit. In the case of members of legislative bodies, it is sometimes necessary to identify the level of office, such as when mentioning politicians from various countries or comparing state and federal governance. In such cases, Senator James Smith should be referred to as â€Å"US senator James Smith†; note how senator is lowercased because it is now part of the epithet â€Å"US senator† and is not an official title. This transformation is also applicable when referring to, for example, â€Å"state senator Mary Jones† or â€Å"California senator Mary Jones,† even though, under different circumstances, she would be identified simply as â€Å"Senator Mary Jones.† This style variation should be used consistently in a given publication but need not be maintained in every issue of a periodical or every update to a Web site, unless it’s necessary to do so to perpetuate the distinction. Ultimately, when deciding whether to precede names with titles, let common sense be your guide; it is a courtesy to include them on first reference, but it is superfluous do so in every instance. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Grammar Test 17 Patterns of Sentence StructureTreatment of Words That Include â€Å"Self†