Plural Etiquette

This isn’t specifically targeted at anyone in particular, so don’t feel as though you’re being implicated. You’re not. These are just some preferences we have as a system when dealing with people who know about us as a group. This does not apply to when we are playing singlet.  I would put this in Plurality Walkthrough, but as these preferences are specific to us, I’ll justleave this in the articles section.

Direct address

In direct correspondence where the speaker at front is clear, please address us directly rather than refer to us in the third person. This can be represented by an announcement of who is fronting (‘this is Kerry’), a set nickname or marked text in chat, a signature on an e-mail - or portions of an e-mail - or vocal cues when speaking face-to-face or on the phone. We understand if we’re fronting in chat or in person and are switching quickly, but it’s better to use the second person and a name if the e-mail or post is signed. For example, ‘Richard, you would like _____’ instead of ‘Richard would like _____’ when you know that Richard is at front. The etiquette isn’t much different from when you’re dealing with separate-bodied people, especially when we make it clear who’s fronting. When we’re referred to in third person when we’ve given (at least to us) sufficient front cues, it feels as though communication to us is being funnelled through an imaginary ‘main person’.

It’s fine to refer to us in third person if you don’t know who’s fronting right now. Sometimes we get rather ‘switchy’, some of us more than others. If you don’t know who’s fronting, you can always ask. We won’t be offended. 

Separate entities

We’re an association of separate people who share a body, not an organism making up a ‘whole individual’. Systems like that do exist (including my own ‘median’ sub-system), but as a whole, we’re not like that. Because of that, we’d like to be treated as separate entities most of the time.

Besides the obvious things like plural pronouns, we do not share the same interests, ideas, politics or opinions. If you’re not sure what an individual thinks, ask him. Our activities at the front are usually separate. For example, I couldn’t care less about Harry Potter, but Hess and Darwin love it. Richard is a Tory; Hess is more of a Liberal Democrat. Maz doesn’t watch Doctor Who, but Hess, Darwin and I can’t get enough of it. Darwin is the one who finds magic (both actual pagan magic and fictional magic) fascinating.  I don’t find science terribly interesting. We do not agree on everything.

We have different intelligence levels, intelligence types, attention spans and philosophies. I’m a relatively concrete thinker, but people like Richard and Carmen are more abstract. We don’t react the same way to the same situation, and most of us see the world in fundamentally different ways. Sometimes we do have a consensus, especially on important matters. If we all agree on something, that is when someone speaks for the group and says ‘We’. For example, this entry is backed by everyone here, which is where all the ‘we’s’ come from. If I say ‘I’, I mean I, Kerry, not anyone else. I speak for myself when I say ‘I’.

In short, we’re vastly different people who happen to share a close space.

With all this being said, we’re not going to bite your heads off if you make a mistake. People aren’t perfect, and we certainly aren’t. We’ve made a few ourselves, although we try to avoid offending others. If you have any questions, ask us.