Basic Trope: A woman is not sure about whether she should change her surname upon marrying someone.
- Straight: When Alice Fenwick marries Bob Peterson, she's not sure if she should stay as Alice Fenwick or change her name to either Alice Peterson, Alice Fenwick Peterson, or Alice Fenwick-Peterson.
- Exaggerated: Alice is considering whether or not to change her name, Bob is wondering if he could change his name.
- Downplayed: Alice knows she will change her name, but wonders if she will have "Fenwick" as a middle name.
- Justified:
- Alice thinks both surnames sound good with her first name, and nobody is judging her, so she is left clueless.
- Alice's parents think Alice should not change her name, but Bob's parents think she should.
- Alice's mother Claire thinks Alice should change her name as she changed hers when she got married. Bob's father Don reckons Alice should not change her name as he doesn't like her and hates the idea of sharing a last name with her, Alice's father Edward, on the other hand, doesn't like Bob and says "No daughter of mine is a Peterson", and Bob's mother Freda is on the fence. This causes a lot of conflict and confusion for Alice.
- Inverted: After Alice divorces Bob she ponders whether she should stay as Alice Peterson or revert back to her maiden name of Fenwick.
- Gender Inverted: It's customary for men to take their spouses' names when they marry in this setting, so Bob Peterson can't decide whether he will become Bob Fenwick when he marries Alice Fenwick.
- Subverted: Alice Fenwick is an alias of wanted felon Alice Peterson, who is of course less than thrilled about changing back to her original name. Bob knows nothing about this and thinks that she's reluctant because she wants to keep her "original" name.
- Double Subverted: Alice Peterson is not her original name either.
- Parodied: ???
- Zig-Zagged: After marrying Bob, Alice is asked her surname several times. Sometimes she replies "Fenwick", sometimes "Peterson", and sometimes "I don't know".
- Averted: Alice either doesn't marry Bob or decides to change or not change her name right away.
- Enforced: ???
- Lampshaded: "I can't decide what my last name is...Alice Fenwick? Alice Peterson? Alice Fenwick-Peterson?"
- Invoked: Claire, Don, and Edward try to push Alice towards changing and not changing her name respectively.
- Exploited: ???
- Defied:
- Alice decides to change or not change her name no matter what.
- There's a law that prohibits changing one's surname upon marrying someone.
- Alice and Bob were born with the same last name.
- Discussed:Alice: So what do you think of the name Alice Peterson?
Bob: It sounds good.
Alice: So will we be Alice Fenwick and Bob Peterson or Alice and Bob Peterson?
Bob: I don't know. Both have a nice ring to them. We could be Alice and Bob Fenwick-Peterson, but that sounds like a tongue twister.
Alice: And "Fenwick" could be my middle name...I can't decide. Too many choices. - Conversed: "Will these characters eventually make up their mind about Alice's last name?"
- Implied: The frosting on the wedding cake reads "Bob Peterson and Alice ???"
- Played for Laughs: Cringe Comedy ensues after Alice and Bob are on their honeymoon and a waiter asks for Alice's surname.
Back to The Maiden Name Debate.
