The ridiculous comment about the author's name, coupled with Ms. Trunk's diatribe about the overweight author, really give me pause.

They're just ignorant, and they make me question all of the other advice she gives (and which I cannot necessarily judge the veracity of, e.g., career trends, etc.)

Smarten up, Penelope.

If your mother is Polish and your father is Italian and you were born and brought up in America, what ethnicity are you? Your last name might sound Italian but in my view your ethnicity is as much Polish as Italian. And your nationality (which is different but no less important) is American.

In your case, you are Jewish on both sides, but for most people it is not so clear cut. In a multicultural society like America most people will have many ethnicities in their background.

I don't believe the subject of pronunciation is necessarily linked to ethnicity. Names like Wong and Chan and Lee are pretty easy to pronounce.

I never said my gender identity was solely linked to my father. I have plenty of female relatives on his side who inspire me and who help shape my gender identity. But that is really beside the point of this thread. I consider my Jewish identity to be my ethnic identity and by using my last name proudly, I am not only connecting with my father, but also connecting with the many generations of Ukranian Jews on both sides of my family.

And yet, there is one undeniable truth behind your insistence that names should be casually thrown aside in order to succeed – mainstream society is much more comfortable with names they can pronounce. In college I remember seeing studies that hiring managers when given a choice between people with the exact same education and experience on their resumes tend to choose to invite people in for interviews who have names they can pronounce, rather than those who are "too ethnic."

For me, this does not mean we should all take on easy to pronounce names. Rather, we should work harder to expand our fellow citizens acceptance of Otherness.

As an Angeleno, I was inspired by the mayor's decision earlier in his life to combine his last name with his wife's surname to create Villaraigosa. Now that his marriage is devolving amid rumors of him engaging in extramarital affairs, I wonder what will happen to the last name. But I'm also reminded that there is absolutely no reason to strip away one's ethnicity in order to succeed.

Keep in mind that there are always exceptions when dealing with humans. We can all find stories of someone who drank, drugged, and lived a generally unsafe life style who lived to a ripe old age. Exceptions do not nullify good practices.

I find a lot of your writing interesting. But I'm not searching for ways to fit into the white Christian mainstream. I'm looking for tools to help me better play the game of work and help me be a better writer. I'll take what's useful from your site and dismiss your social commentary for what it is – monocultural blather.

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Hi, CJ.
Thank you for your comment. I hear you. Did you see my response to comments above? I agree with you that we do not need to whitewash the world. However it's not as black and white as you make it. And now that I've had a couple of days to think, I am feeling more adamant about my initial position: Last names in this country come from men. It's centuries of dumping the ethnic last name of the woman in favor of the ethnic last name of the man. We have no idea if Anita Bruzzese is Italian. Most women with a non-hyphenated last name have the name of their father or their husband. It is a large leap to think that a woman's last name reflects her true ethnicity — or her mother's for that matter.

So if we are going to jump up and down about the importance of ethnicity then last names is probably the last place to start. They are the result of ignoring the ethnicity of women for centuries.

Penelope

Your posts are VERY interesting so I know that you must be equally intersting. I would love to know more about you and how you came to blog as the Brazen Careerist!

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Hi, Darlene. Thank you for the nice comment! You can read my bio here:

http://www.penelopetrunk.com/aboutme.html

And here's another popular post about who I am:

http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2007/03/05/my-name-is-not-really-penelope/

–Penelope

Who knows how much effect is made initially by a hard to pronounce name? Once familiar a name becomes part of a persona, just like the letters IBM or AT&T have become part of their corporate identity. I see no racist bias in your comment, just an observation.

Of course I named Bastiat Free University, and I now have to provide a pronunciation guide (bästyä´). That has caused some initial stumbles, but may latter be of no effect or even a benefit.