In German I could speak at someone with the words, “Entschuldigen Sie, bitte”, which means, “excuse me, please”, but uses about the most formal and fancy form of address I can think of. The second word is the formal version of the 2nd person pronoun “you”. It is a form which English once had, back before the transition from Middle English to Early Modern English. Shakespeare uses both forms to underscore changes in character hierarchy, or to point out the silliness inherent in a situation using mock respect(from the clown characters). In English you used to be able to use “ye” or “thou” when talking to another person. “Ye” was the respectful form, with “thou” picking up the less respectful slack.
Nowadays, English doesn’t have different 2nd person pronouns. We work with context in order to convey more or less respect. Well, mostly. There are still titles being thrown around in order to pay one’s vocal respects to some person or other. “Good morning, Ms. Grumsh”, might be heard from a 7th-Grade class when their teacher enters the room. I am a student, so the people I most commonly speak with are other students. Titles are used ironically, to show the addressee that they and I are both part of the same in-group. When I speak with other German-speaking students, we stick with the less formal 2nd person pronoun “du”, because we don’t have to worry about someone feeling snubbed if we pick the ‘wrong’ form of address.
Walking down the street in Freiburg, Germanland, I feel bemused and sometimes befuddled when the formal form is tossed at me. I don’t feel like I am worthy of such honor, especially because it feels forced and artificial. What I prefer is respect(if I deserve it) in the form of body language, sincere words, and general context of actions. This is a bit narrow-minded, ’cause I hereby declared anyone speaking to me with the fancier form of address as insincere. That is very unlikely. I guess I just want people to be respectful, and not merely speak respectful-like. Otherwise subordinates(students, employees, younger people) are forced to stick to some script. They have to use the respectful words and forms, even if they don’t mean it. Isn’t that like lying? So do people in positions of authority want their subordinates to pretend at being respectful? Meh, I wouldn’t want that. Competence and respect don’t have to be some cookie-cutter “thou shalt speak thusly” equation, where certain words automatically result in a sincere display of respect.
Titles and 2nd person pronouns seem to be losing their value. English has already lost one fancy form of address, and titles seem to be a forced method of ensuring a stable hierarchy in the workplace, or something like that. German’s formal 2nd person pronoun is also less important, especially in younger generations. Might the shift in pronouns leave German with only one 2nd person pronoun? What about in other languages with fancy variable pronouns? Spanish has it with “Usted”, I think. Might titles go the same way as variable 2nd person pronouns? I certainly hope so.
Respect is important, and feels great to give someone, and feels swell to receive. But not the insincere kind. The forced, lying-through-your-face kind. And this is where my train of thought runs out of steam.
Peace,
-William
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