On Fri, 9 Nov 2007, Doug Henwood wrote:
>>> Well, according to Paul Fussell, two first names = very downscale. Two
>>> last names = very upscale.
>>
>> Yes, but wasn't he refering two actual first names, like Mary Anne or
>> Bobby Ray, that were followed by a last name?
>
> No, it was having a surname that's mostly a first name, e.g. Ron Paul.
> Cf. Kingman Brewster.
Oh the other direction (the two last names) I have no argument with. But can you think of other clear examples of downscale people with two first names in this manner? If Ron Paul were the only one, I'm not sure that would make the case. The only other one I can think of off hand is Jenny Craig, and she doesn't strike me as very downscale either. In fact they both strike me as kind of middle scale.
It seems odd. Having two last names is a result of a naming convention, a class tradition. Similarly having two first names in the sense of Betty Anne. They both seem the clear result of standards of propriety that your parents had inculcated into them and literally christened you with. But having a last name that's a common first name seems more like the work of chance in dim recesses of history.
Michael