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How to refer to parents in a story

edited February 2014 in - Writing Problems
I'm writing a short story told in the first person. The narrator mainly refers to his parents as Ma and Da, but sometimes as mother and father. Does that matter, or should I be consistent and only use Ma/Da or mother/father?

Comments

  • I think we use different language in different situations. I always referred to my parents as Mum and Dad but if talking about them to others, especially to adults, would say my mother or my father. My own children do the same I notice although we never made a point of it so something absorbed from custom I suppose. Are you using them consistently within a context like that perhaps?
  • In dialogue the character is referring to them as Ma/Da, but as the narrator he sometimes uses that or mother/father.
  • I would tend to stick with Ma and Da with the exception of a change in tone where he is deliberately less familiar with them. In that case, you would need capital letters for Mother and Father as they are being used as names rather than my mother/my father.

  • I think you need to be consistent, especially in a short story. The character could call them Ma and Da when speaking to them and refer to them as his mother and father in the narrative, but mixing things up more than that might just seem messy and indecisive.
  • I would say if you call the parents Ma and Pa in dialogue then you should call them Ma and Pa throughout the story. Your readers will spot the inconsistency which might lead to confusion.
  • I agree with Phots Moll - dialogue and narrative can be different, but I would be wary beyond that.
  • Ma/Da compared to Mother/Father suggests two very different parents, class wise. But that may just be me of course.

    But whatever you do it must be consistent.
  • If your character speaks in the way suggested by Ma and Da, he would think in that way too. It suggests a regional or social voice that should be consistent throughout. The narrative voice here is that of the speaker. There may be circumstances in which he would change that voice - when speaking to a person of a different class or level, perhaps, if he uncomfortable with his own status in comparison; but otherwise I'd stick to the one form of address.
  • Agree with above - Ma and Da.
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