An unimportant little note (but one day I might start collecting these under "things I learned"

[fpb]

If anyone other than a medical doctor, bishop, or minister signs (EDITED IN a book or an article as) "Dr." so and so, you may safely conclude that s/he is a jumped-up ignoramus, and probably a snake oil salesman. Of course, plenty of bishops and ministers - and the odd medical doctor - also qualify, but in their case that is independent of their being called "Dr.".

Comments

[kikei.livejournal.com]

oh dear, what happened? I guess because most of the people I work around sign themselves that way, it made me wonder...

[fpb.livejournal.com]

Nothing much. I have believed this for years, but what brought it back to the surface was reading an article by "Dr.Paul Kengor" in the conservative website townhall.com, where he managed to miss an open goal out of sheer ignorance. Perhaps I should have specified that I mean in articles and books on general media release.

[shezan.livejournal.com]

Would you say this applies in German as well?

[fpb.livejournal.com]

I am not familiar enough with German usage to answer. It certainly does not in Italian, because Italians prefer acquired titles. An Italian is only called "Signor" so and so if he cannot be called "Dottore/ Avvocato/ Professore/ Presidente/ Ingegnere/ Cavaliere" etc. etc. Inherited titles are out of fashion, but acquired ones are wildly popular.

[fpb.livejournal.com]

A slip. It still does not apply to what I was really speaking about, which is books and articles. Look at the British and American book market, and you will see that the use of "Dr" in the by-line is an absolutely reliable diagnostic of someone with unfounded pretensions. And I would say that the same is true in Italy, possibly even more strongly. I have never seen a book in Italian, not even about medicine, that uses any acquired title in the by-line. Very, very occasionally, you might have an inherited title, but that is only when the title is relevant to the matter in hand - eg, an heir of an ancient family writing on his ancestors.

[elegant-bonfire.livejournal.com]

I have never seen a book in Italian, not even about medicine, that uses any acquired title in the by-line.

Really? Over here medical/health books don't seem to be taken seriously unless the author is quite clearly a Dr.

[fpb.livejournal.com]

Well, of course the notes on the author will make it clear what their qualifications are. They are normally placed in the inside back cover.

[elegant-bonfire.livejournal.com]

The 'Dr.' is always in big ol' massive letters on the front cover here. ;)

[dustthouart.livejournal.com]

My mother's coauthor got a bigger font and higher placement on the cover of their non-fiction book, even though my mother was the primary writer and researcher of the book, because the coauthor could put "Ph.D" after her name. (She has a doctorate in physics.) This was at the urging of their publisher.

I agree with elegant_bonfire, this is a cultural thing. People won't even pick the book up otherwise.

[sun-stealer.livejournal.com]

The worst is when they call themselves doctors of nonexistent fields that use "english word"-ology.