[stan_rogers]

While we're at it, it would be "Sir Arthur" in short form, though it's really nor proper to use the honorific at all after a knight is deceased -- the knighthood is strictly a lifetime honour, and dies with the knight. In the case of people like Arthur Conan Doyle, it makes biographical sketches awkward, since he was a Knight Bachelor, not a knight of an order of chivalry, so there isn't a "real" postnominal you can use in a list of awards and decorations ("Kt" is usually used these days, but it's easily confused with "KT", indicating a Knight of the Order of the Thistle, when set in traditional small caps); one needs to either break the rules or use something like "in life he was styled...".

[icambron]

I believe the safest and least weird thing to do is simply not call anyone by the ridiculous honorific "Sir" or generally maintain the distinction between knights of any order and the rest of us.

[kbenson]

Do you consider doctor (MD or PhD) to be similarly ridiculous, or do you make a distinction?

[icambron]

Also ridiculous. That some institution granted you a degree doesn't compel the rest of us to call you by a special name. When I ask medical doctors about that (my wife is one, for example), their main reason for supporting the "Dr" title is that it creates a sort of formal separation between the patient and the doctor which keeps things professional, similar to how we had to call our elementary teachers "Mr" or "Ms". I don't buy that argument; for example, why wouldn't that apply equally to nurses? To me, it's seems like a trick for lending them an artificial air of authority.

I know a lot of people with PhDs, but I can't think of any who want to be called "Doctor", because that's exceedingly silly. I know it works a bit differently outside of the US.

[scoot]

I found it amusing to learn that, in some parts of the world, surgeons are conferred the title of Mr, Miss, Mrs or Ms as preferential to Dr, as if above the petty nonsense of using "Dr" as a social differentiator.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surgeon#Titles

And now we are wildly off-topic!

[derleth]

Also because surgeons were manual laborers, and therefore not accorded the same respect as gentleman physicians.

[mcguire]

A fact that you can gain no end of entertainment from, if you keep reminding your surgeon friends of it.

[kbenson]

I tend to agree. I think agreeing within a group to differentiate based on honorifics can be useful if the group is homogenous enough in nature, but for a society in general it just creates arbitrary distinctions.

[snogglethorpe]

> I know a lot of people with PhDs, but I can't think of any who want to be called "Doctor", because that's exceedingly silly. I know it works a bit differently outside of the US.

Yes, I've noticed a very strong correlation between country and insistence on using a title conferred by a PhD. Americans do in general seem fairly relaxed about it.

[prewett]

Americans see everyone as equal in status (in theory); in paragraph two of our first document, we say that it is, in fact, self-evident that all men are created equal. Since we are all equal, titles don't really serve much purpose, as the whole point of titles is to distinguish yourself.

[dragonwriter]

"are created equal" means a very different thing than "are equal".

Even Americans who really do believe that all people are created equal (which any discussion thread on any major forum -- including HN -- on gender or race issues, among other topics, will reveal is far from all Americans) rarely believe that all people are equal.

[rational_indian]

>we say that it is, in fact, self-evident that all men are created equal.

How is this self evident?

[Turing_Machine]

The social rule I was taught (in the U.S.) is that if you have a PhD in whangabangology, it's okay to call yourself "Dr. Blah" or "Joe Blah, PhD" in a professional context (writing a paper on whangabangology, or teaching it, or giving a professional talk, or appearing at an official university function), but not in a social context (making a restaurant reservation, say, or being introduced to someone at a party).

Professional usage varies a lot by institution. Where I went to grad school, undergraduates usually use "Doctor" or "Professor" when addressing a member of the faculty, but graduate students usually call the professors that they actually know by their given names. I understand that's not the case everywhere; at some schools even grad students who have worked with a professor for years are still expected to address them by title. I have heard (but have not personal knowledge one way or the other) that the University of Chicago is one of these.

[pavpanchekha]

Thank you for this detailed and informative post. I'm unable to edit my comment now, but I hope I'll be reminded of your caution in the future.