Discussion on how to name children
Text 1: “Why millennials are choosing strange baby names”
Part 3 of your exam question asks you to take your starting point in one of the texts and discuss what parents should consider before naming their child.
In her article, Tiffanie Wen suggests that parents should take into consideration that a strange baby name could lead them to legal difficulties: “(…) rarely do they expect the decision to end up in a court. Over the last few years, however, judges across the world had to intervene and challenge parents’ choices (…)” (ll. 2-7).
The idea is further developed in the article, as the writer gives several examples of countries in which baby names must first be government-approved: “In Iceland for example, parents must choose a name from an approved government list. In Germany, names must be approved and indicate gender.” (ll. 72-75).
In this way, the writer shows that parents should inform themselves about the laws in their countries to avoid legal issues because of their children’s names. Consider also that these legal issues can have negative consequences on the emotional well-being of the parents, of the children, and of the family as a whole.
Parents should also pay attention to a name’s importance – the article quotes Jane Pilcher, a sociologist, who explains that our names hold significant meaning for our identity: “ ‘Names are at the core of our identity (…) They are also part of our social cultural identity. They mark who we are in gender terms, ethnic terms and other ways.’ ” (ll. 14-19).
By quoting researcher David Figlio, the article also argues that parents should consider whether giving unusual names to their children might affect them socially: “We should give our kids names that we love but be aware people in society are going to treat them differently based on it.” (ll. 80-83). From this point of view, you could also discuss how having an unusual name could specifically influence one’s life.
The article also brings into discussion the issue of gender when choosing baby names:
There is also a growing tendency to pick names that blur gender boundaries and in 2005, David Figlio, the director of the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University analysed pairs of sisters to determine how this might influence their chosen area of study. (ll. 55-61)
Here, it is...
