American mannerism

Nowadays there is less formality so people are often called by their first names except in the case of someone who is much older. In fact some people don't like to be called Sir or Madam as it is an indication that they are getting old.

bendover
I just wanted to know if British people were more formal or not!

Actually, I believe they tend to be more courteous conscience when speaking to them. I've dealt with some professionals in the US here that had their nose so far in the air they could sniff the ozone. My comment was that I also believe most people of class know how to act when they have to.

Someone who might want to sell you something will be happy to get on first name terms because that implies a degree of familiarity and trust. You may be suspicious of that. On the other hand, my old college periodically gets students to ring ex-students to sound them out about giving money to, say, a fund for hard-up students but also to chat about our experiences (both of us) of being students. I'm happy with this because I have positive memories of the place and also because the whole thing is quite open: no-one is hiding the fact that they'll raise the subject of money. First-name terms for this seem right to me because there is a degree of trust and commonality involved and titles like Mr and Ms would be uncomfortably formal.

I would also dislike use of such titles in the workplace between colleagues. I always regarded a boss as another human being who for the good working of the organisation, had authority over me and not as someone I should regard as superior. I'd be just as uncomfortable if someone junior to me called me "Mr".

I'm generally happy with first-name terms. The exception is where a title usefully informs you of a function: Sergeant Davis, Doctor Thompson (a medical doctor or an academic in an academic setting), Councillor Shah.

My neighbors have two girls in their teens who still call me Mr. Pat. I don't say anything because that's the way their mom (single parent) wants it and that's the way they were brought up. I was brought up where I was to call my older cousins (I was pre-teen and in my teen years), Aunt and Uncle. It was a show of respect, and at a young age I actually didn't know the family relation at the time anyway. When I did I simply continued calling them that.

We all know when it's the right thing to do.

In the stories where many are school oriented yes you must have the Mr Smith or Miss Smith as the teacher/headmistress and the pupil addressed by Christian/First name - that's a measure of respect, after all surely you wouldn't expect to call your Mum Betty or whatever. In real life and social encounters I will still call an older Gentleman Sir and Lady Ma'am because that was the way I was brought up and it is a courteous form of address - and I'm 63. By the by at school all the boys were addressed by surname by teachers and by fellow pupils, it was only outside school that it changed to first names. But then at this school you did NOT walk through the streets eating or with hands in pockets or with your jacket undone unless you wanted a trip to the prefects court for 'bringing the School into disrepute' Anyone out there know that 948AD is a significant date?

Um, Danish invasion?

Just a guess there.

I know there is something about the Slowing Rotation of the Earth prior to this date in regards to non-telescopic devices. There are a number of things associated with 984AD. Goodgulf's the Vikings invading England is one of them.

How about Merrily?

The same goes for most European languages (tu/vous in French, du/Sie in German, etc), English being one of the few exceptions. We used to have 'thou', but that's pretty well vanished except in Biblical quotes and some local dialects.

I agree, it does make subtitling very awkward - finding a viable translation for the common French expression 'On se tutoie?' is almost impossible. We also lose some subtleties - the moment when two people in a film switch from the formal to the informal can tell us a lot about what's going on between them.