a question of names

[BeccaPrice]

The names in Pilgrim's Progress are more than just archetype names, they're moral names intended to get across the role the character plays in the extended metaphor that is the book.

In fairy tales, the names tend to be neutral, or at most descriptive, like Beauty and the Beast, or Prince Charming. Fairy tales may teach a lesson, but it's much more discrete than PP is (which in my opinion hits you over the head, and points to the moral written in 108 pt type with flashing lights around it), and the moral may be ambiguous. The characters in fairy tales invite you to identify with them (and this identification may be gender-neutral, as in the youngest son who identifies with Cinderella, in a "you may be mean to me now, but you'll get yours someday" kind of thing.)

[gmw]

It's one of the places where I think children's fiction gets an unfair advantage over the rest of us. (I'm not trying to imply you get it all easy .) You see it too in stories like Harry Potter, where the names presented in the first book (while the story was still quite young in character and nature), we get names that lead us to impressions of the characters, also the various school houses, the magic words, and various other features of the story. They were fun then, just part of reading a kid's tale, and by the time the stories grew up we were all used to them and didn't really notice that many of them were, in some respects, a little childish given the more mature context at the end. (I still marvel at how smoothly she managed the transition.)

[BeccaPrice]

The world is full of adults who were given "cute" names when they were infants. It's one thing to have a cute toddler named (and these are real names of people I went to school with once) Holly Berry or her brother Christmas Berry. It's another thing to have to put those names on a professional resume or CV.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

Or at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I think you're trying to find an excuse so you don't need to think up names

For me, names are important. If a name is stupid (IMHO), then it can completely wreck the entire story for me. You're not going to name the immortal, greatest wizard of all time "Peter Herring" when writing a fantasy story set in a medieval time. I think I'll instantly burn your book. Or worse.

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

The world is full of adults who were given "cute" names when they were infants. It's one thing to have a cute toddler named (and these are real names of people I went to school with once) Holly Berry or her brother Christmas Berry. It's another thing to have to put those names on a professional resume or CV.

One strange thing I'm seeing in many languages seems to be the irresistible urge to give people a first name that is almost the same as their last name as soon as the opportunity presents itself. Like so:

"Peter Peters"
"Jan Jansen"
"Ivan Ivanov"
"Thomas Thomason"

And so on... I think it's stupid.

Doing something like this is even stupiderderder.



Calling your son "Jack", when your last name is "Goff"? Then you're not funny. You're an idiot.

[BeccaPrice]

That's why the original post on this was called Rationalizing After the Fact.

*if* I follow up on one of my beta reader's suggestion, and try to make Heart of Rock a novel (or even a novelette), I'll have to come up with names (and how do you name a gargoyle without succumbing to something stupid like Rocky?).

I just found Bettelheim's comments interesting. And a good excuse.

[Katsunami]

Call him Gargul, or Gaargl

[BeccaPrice]

sounds too much like gargle, and I'll have you know my gargoyle king is a very well spoken king indeed. for a chunk of rock.

[Katsunami]

Oh man. And I thought to be funny, thinking about a Gargoyle speaking with a bubbly voice...

Types of stone

Maybe you can adapt something such as those into a name. That's what I would do.

"King Alabaster" actually sounds good to me (and appropriate), or something such as "King Felspar" if you want something less well known

[BeccaPrice]

What's that kind of rock that has mica chips in it, anyone know? (I hope it's not Gneiss - King Gneiss would just be too twee.)

[Katsunami]

Google says:

http://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/~oesis/micro/

Many choices.

[BeccaPrice]

I could see King Greywacke.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

"Hansel and Gretel,"

Hansel? Hansel? Hansel?
—Bugs Bunny

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

That's why the original post on this was called Rationalizing After the Fact.

*if* I follow up on one of my beta reader's suggestion, and try to make Heart of Rock a novel (or even a novelette), I'll have to come up with names (and how do you name a gargoyle without succumbing to something stupid like Rocky?).

I just found Bettelheim's comments interesting. And a good excuse.

Jean Luc, Worf, Riker, Troi.

Try these fantasy name generators.

http://rinkworks.com/namegen/
http://www.dragonsmark.com/names.php

[VydorScope]

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

Or at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

What's that kind of rock that has mica chips in it, anyone know? (I hope it's not Gneiss - King Gneiss would just be too twee.)

I think you are thinking of Schist. When I was in middle school and we studied geology for science class some of my classmates had a field day with the word as it sounds quite close to another word.

Schist is a medium-grade metamorphic rock with medium to large grains of mica flakes in a preferred orientation (nearby mica flakes are roughly parallel)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schist