1. MrNomas

    MrNomas New Member

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    Capitalize The

    Discussion in 'Word Mechanics' started by MrNomas, Oct 10, 2011.

    In my superhero-themed story, there are a number of characters/groups with names that start with The. The Gothic. The Bulwark. My thought is that the The is part of their name (like The Wall Street Journal) and should always be capitalized. Some of my beta readers agree, others don't. Any insight?
     
  2. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    if 'the' is part of the name, of course it needs to be capitalized...
     
  3. TheWritingWriter

    TheWritingWriter New Member

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    Yes, indeed you do capitalize the 'the' in the name of your superhero. It's just one of those things where when you see it over & over you just begin to second guess yourself.
     
  4. Raki

    Raki New Member

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    As others have said, if it's part of the name then you do capitalize it. However, if it's just an article, then you lowercase it. An example that comes to mind is The Incredible Hulk. Without "The Incredible," it's just the Hulk and not The Hulk. Just as it would be the United States and not The United States. The lowercase article is sometimes optional, but not always.
     
  5. lostinwebspace

    lostinwebspace Active Member

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    Here are some instances (in the middle of sentences):

    The Academy Awards or the Academy Awards
    The X-Men or the X-Men
    The Matrix or the Matrix

    I've heard contradictory info on this.
     
  6. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    for an actual title, such as 'the matrix' the 'the' must be included and capitalized...
     

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