Grammar Issue Over Titles in SW

[Lord Ar-Pharazon]

I have a question. Multiple users on this site, who I both trust and greatly appreciate, have recently expressed contrary information on a particular Star Wars grammatical issue. I'm not trying to be passive aggressive with this, but since multiple reliable grammar people are telling me different things, I wanted to bring it up. Or maybe I am being passive-aggressive.

 

When is the word Padawan capitalized? I know that formally, it's capitalized, or when used as a title, or when one is being addressed. I get that. So, what about the rest of the time?

 

I've been writing my AOS fanfic by capitalizing Padawan every time I use it, but honestly, it doesn't seem right. It feels awkward and counterintuitive capitalizing it when I say ”œGo play with the other Padawans”

[Tiana Calthye]

Note that said Sith always capitalize Darth.

 

I just always capitalize Padawan. If I refer in general to a group of apprentice Jedi, I will call them apprentices. I suppose you could say a group of padawans but I feel that as an in world title, it should be capitalized and when it comes to in-world invented words, I prefer to see them capitalized as a general rule. Don't worry, you'd run into the same problem with an LotR fic... would you capitalize Maiar or not? How about Istari? What if it was a group of Istari?

 

IN SHORT... treat Jedi titles as you would capitalizing mother or father. I will always tell you to capitalize Padawan, though, simply because I feel Padawan should only ever be used in a situation where it's a title, and otherwise, apprentice should be used. As Master and Knight are not made up words, go ahead and use them. You could substitute journeyman for Knight, though. And yes, Yoda would've been Knight Yoda before. But watch the movies... how often do they run around calling each other by their titles? Mostly it's just masters who get Mastered; otherwise it's just "hey, Quiggy!"

 

Side note... it does seem that Master Whatever seems to be pretty general for most Jedi rather than just used as a title for Jedi Masters. I'm pretty sure I recall Obi-Wan being called Master Kenobi prior to being Mastered, or whatever you call it. It could just be that Master is their version of Mister.

 

But you know what? It's fiction, you make your own calls.

 

I suppose you could call them councilors?

[Jidai Geki]

I've noticed that "Master Jedi" is used as a sort of honorific for any Jedi, regardless of their rank, but "Jedi Master" refers ONLY to an actual master.

 

As Tiana points out, it works much like 'mother' and 'father'. If it's being used as a title, it should be capitalised. Otherwise it's not. With 'padawan', however, I've heard it not used as a title, as in, for instance "the padawans are training".

[Amidala Skywalker]

Yeah, I would never capitalize 'padawan', 'knight', or 'master' if it's not being used as a title or term of address.

 

"But, Master, aren't Jedi supposed to..."

"Are you Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker?"

"Come here, Padawan."

"I was telling my padawan the other day blah blah blah."

"Are you ready to take a new padawan?"

 

Having read a lot of PT novels, that is how they treat it in the books. And I agree that "master Jedi" is just a general term to address Jedi as, regardless of their actual rank in the Order--most of the time because a normal person wouldn't be able to tell necessarily.