Reminds of the old joke of 1848. The ruler of Baden (Germany) ordered all demagogues to be arrested . A troop guided by a corporal was on its way. And they saw, at the entry of an estate Dr .. Pädagoge and arrrested the man. He protested, saying he was not a Demagoge but a Pädagoge However, the Corporal looked at the shield and concluded Gog isch Gog, feschtnää and ever since, the saying is Gog isch Gog
A friend of mine (whom I used to help with his homework when he was a student at ETHZ back in the mid '80s) is now a department head at a university in Germany, and has a bunch of titles that I can't remember.
I still call him by his first name.
Tom
I agree with his stance, no problem, but the argument is just bad. A title and a profession are two different concepts. No impressed for a Nobel prize.
Well, Feynman was a very down-to-earth guy. For him being a scientist was a job & a skill set just like any other. Either you can hack it or you can't. If you can't hack it, you don't deserve the (job) title. I agree, for me being a Dr. of chemistry is just a label saying that I can do chemistry research, just like being a chartered accountant says you can do accountancy. What are Feynman & I missing here ?
So Dr Jam, now that you reslise EVERYONE on Englishforum has a Dr or Prof before their name, do you still feel special?!?! Lol. Granted half of them are probably university of Phoenix, but still.
Don't worry, not quite everyone. I don't have Dr or Prof.
Just call me Lord Sir. Cheesey.
I hardly ever use my Doctorate title, perhaps when booking airline tickets and feeling a bit pompous, but rarely on any other occasion apart with work-related matters, of course.
WIKIPEDIA Which could, I suppose, be one reason I have no problem with being plain old Mrs.Longbyt. Mind you, I didn't actually 'revert' to being 'Mrs', but who's to know that?
Reading this thread and feeling dumb as a bag of spanners...
I will never put in my mail box but use it sometimes so people are nicer (respectable) with me. I have my own pride and I do not like when treated as a catalogue wife from southeast asia.
Or a mail order bride from Eastern Europe. I get ya.. I think I have been fed "the Czech is in the mail" jokes too many times, too.
Some people will treat you like you said no matter what you put on your door. Hence me havin nutin' but a name and little kid giant art creations. Keeps things simples and anti academic.
I remember ym first official letter addressed to Mrs . . Me, I was chuffed enough with that lol
I actually find the whole Frau Dr ... or Mrs Dr ... thing a bit sexist. Same for addressing letters to Mrs and then the husband's name. I don't want anyone sending me a letter addressed to "Mr Mini Cheese" and I don't think my missus bloody well wants one addressed to "Mrs Sir Maximus Cheese" either
My advice to the OP: don't put it on your mailbox.
Justification: I have both an MD and a PhD. I only occasionally use these titles in my professional life, usually when convincing US colleagues they need to do what I tell them to . I never use the titles in my private life other than jokingly ("go to bed, doctor's orders"). Usually, when Swiss colleagues/friends find out I am a "Dr med" with "Habilitation", they will commend me for not flagging this and for keeping a low profile.
Let us know how it goes when you're asked to deliver a baby on a plane. OH never uses his Dr. (PhD) title when traveling just to be safe.