23 October 2009

Mrs., Ms. or Miss: Addressing Modern Women

Mrs., Ms. or Miss: Addressing Modern Women

This is an interesting article about women's names and identities. A few of my Facebook friends have commented on it. I personally use Ms. but am not offended by Miss or Mrs., and I didn't change my last name back to my maiden name when I got divorced.

I think that the author makes a point when she points out that our maiden names are actually our father's names, so either way we didn't really "choose" them. I love the idea of people choosing their own last names when they get married, but that's not always popular with extended families. What do you think?

1 comment:

libraryliz said...

I did change my name when I got married, although not without a lot of deliberation and discussion--I felt like I had earned my degree with my maiden name, and it reflected my heritage and I wasn't too keen on letting go of it. But in the end I did take my husband's name, mostly because he really wanted me to, but also because we both felt that once we had kids it would be less confusing for everyone. Interestingly, my husband's last name is kind of a farce, because his father didn't know exactly who his own father was (v. long story), so the name is kind of out of nowhere to both my husband and me!