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Re: My column on Claire
I love Claire. I will have to disagree about "blue collar" Americans thinking it's stuck up. I think it's more of a generational thing than an income thing. I was born in the era of Jessica, Brittany, Jennifer, etc. My name is Diana Renée and I can promise you, my named me that because that's what they liked rather than what was popular or "related" to their income. I was NOT named after Princess Diana, as many people have assumed over the years. I was named for my mom's best friend (Diane) who passed away in a car wreck in the mid 1960s. My mom doesn't even remember when or where she heard Renée for the first time. She just liked it.
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These correlations don't happen because people consciously realize how their tastes are shaped by their social class, education, generation, ethnic group, etc. You develop your taste in names unconsciously by being raised in a certain time and place. The fact that your mother liked Renee as a middle name didn't develop out of thin air. No one really "just" likes something -- one's tastes are developed from one's life experiences. :)
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