Sorry it's taken me a little while to respond to this thread; I was out of town. How Dr. Angelou should be referred to in her bio article has actually been an issue in the past. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Maya_Angelou/Archive_1#Honorifics. Of course, this was early in the article's development, and it's obvious that I was still learning the basics and that I had missed the mark. In the time since, though, you'll notice that it followed WP policy more closely, and as is standard, she's referred to as her last name throughout.
The link above does explain, though, why honorifics are so important to Angelou. I agree with whiteghost below; since Angelou's degrees are honorary, they're not what makes her notable, so it isn't in the lead. I also think that her honorary degrees, while not being "academic", are legitimate because much of her career is academic-based and literary. Many of the other articles about her discuss her self-education and literary influences. I also think that the reason Angelou and those around her insist so strongly that people call her "Dr." is a reaction against the extreme racism and sexism she's experienced in her life. She deserves respect, and deserves insisting that people treat her with respect. It needs to be clarified and demanded because what's behind people insisting on calling her "Maya" and even "Ms." is subtle racism and sexism, even if they're not aware of it. It verges on over-reaction, but anyone who knows Angelou's struggles and how she's fought against racism and sexism should understand it. These days, when young people simply aren't taught to respect their elders, it's nice to have a model of an elderly woman who insists on treating others with respect and insisting that people treat her with respect. Christine User:Figureskatingfan On Sat, Aug 4, 2012 at 4:33 PM, whiteghost .ink <whiteghost....@gmail.com>wrote: > While Angelou apparently has adopted the use of the "doctor", "*It is not > customary, however, for recipients of an honorary doctorate to adopt the > prefix 'Dr'* " and "many universities, however, request that an honorary > graduate refrain from such practice". See <http://goog_748452647>Honorary > degrees > <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honorary_degrees#practical%20use>#practical > use. > > As an extra point, sometimes honorary degrees (although not in this case) > have been given to people whose accomplishments are in fields other than > intellectual, as a means of trying to derive prestige for the institution > from its association with the person. For example, Cathy > Freeman<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathy_Freeman>was given one. Freeman is > an amazing athlete but she is no intellectual. I > remember one offended quietly hardworking academic, on learning of this > award, asking for an honorary Olympic medal, so long as it wasn't in > synchonised swimming. Thankfully, it seems that here at least, honorary > doctorates are given these days for for intellectual achievement. > > Even a professional academic such as Marie > Curie<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie_Curie>does not have her degree in > the lead. Perhaps she should, but as with most > real academics, the doctorate is the foundation, that is, the beginning, > not the end of their achievements. The case of Agnes and Margaret > Smith<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnes_and_Margaret_Smith>is instructive. > They were world famous scholars, many of whose honorary > degrees were granted by German universities at a time when their own > university (Cambridge) did not award degrees to women. > > The place for earned degrees may be in the lead, but generally, honorary > ones should be in the text under Awards. > > Whiteghost.ink > > > > On 5 August 2012 07:29, Emily Monroe <emilymonro...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> I think the standard way to name a human subject of a Wikipedia article >> is by their bolded full name at the first mention (so *Dr. Maya [middle >> name(s)] Angelou*) and then by their last name (Angelou) by then on >> . >> From, >> Emily >> >> >> >> On Sat, Aug 4, 2012 at 4:24 PM, Valerie Aurora <vale...@adainitiative.org >> > wrote: >> >>> On Sat, Aug 4, 2012 at 2:17 PM, Pete Forsyth <petefors...@gmail.com> >>> wrote: >>> > On Aug 1, 2012 11:09 AM, "Sarah Stierch" <sarah.stie...@gmail.com> >>> wrote: >>> >> Miss Angelou >>> > >>> > Sorry to be a nitpicker, but while in high school I had the privilege >>> of >>> > meeting DOCTOR Angelou (through a Facing History and Ourselves >>> program), and >>> > it was impressed on us early and often (and effectively, it seems) >>> before >>> > that meeting that DOCTOR Angelou's name is DOCTOR Angelou, not Maya, >>> Miss >>> > Angelou, etc :) >>> >>> I forget to use women's titles sometimes too, but if I remember, I >>> take positive pleasure in calling women with PhD's "Dr." - especially >>> in areas where people don't often use their titles. :) >>> >>> -VAL >>> >>> -- >>> Increasing the participation of women in open technology and culture >>> http://adainitiative.org >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Gendergap mailing list >>> Gendergap@lists.wikimedia.org >>> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/gendergap >>> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Gendergap mailing list >> Gendergap@lists.wikimedia.org >> https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/gendergap >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > Gendergap mailing list > Gendergap@lists.wikimedia.org > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/gendergap > >
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