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Post by leonwingstein on Nov 4, 2011 9:37:01 GMT -5
I am in an American History class which requires a very large amount of writing in the forms of essays and, well, more essays. My teacher is a bit of a stickler when grading, and I sort of admire her attention to grammar in her grading.
One thing I do not like, though, is her refusal to believe that "they" can be used as a nongendered singular pronoun.
For example:
According to my teacher, this would be incorrect. She, like I said before, does not believe in the singular "they". Her preferred version of this same sentence would be:
This bothers me quite a bit. I am a big supporter of this, but I was wondering if anyone else had opinions, or similar problems.
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Post by onlyaworkingtitle on Nov 4, 2011 14:48:24 GMT -5
I am in an American History class which requires a very large amount of writing in the forms of essays and, well, more essays. My teacher is a bit of a stickler when grading, and I sort of admire her attention to grammar in her grading. One thing I do not like, though, is her refusal to believe that "they" can be used as a nongendered singular pronoun. For example: According to my teacher, this would be incorrect. She, like I said before, does not believe in the singular "they". Her preferred version of this same sentence would be: This bothers me quite a bit. I am a big supporter of this, but I was wondering if anyone else had opinions, or similar problems. [/u] The first example you gave is wrong -- using both "one" and "they" in a single sentence is inconsistent and unclear -- but your teacher's version isn't the only correct one; it's just the most formal. The four singular gender-neutral pronouns are: 1. "One" is the most formal gender-neutral pronoun, proper in essays, public speaking, and any other case in which full formality is appropriate: It is, however, quite awkward in a casual setting, however correct it might be, and will feel a bit odd on one's tongue. 2. "He/She" is the most awkward, though semi-formal, and should never be spoken aloud: It is proper in essays only, and even then I've had professors ask to avoid it. Similarly, it's fairly common to switch between "he" and "she" in writing that applies to both (instructive or self-help writing, for example). To expand on the sentence we've been using: This method can be confusing, though, and I highly recommend avoiding it unless the writer is, in fact, in the self-help business. 3. If the speaker knowingly* believes in using "they/their" as a singular gender-neutral pronoun, they can say: This is very informal, and shouldn't be used in an essay. Prescriptive grammarians will call it outright incorrect, as "they" is technically the plural pronoun, and shouldn't be used singularly; descriptive grammarians will say that the word has been used this way for centuries, and that prescriptives need to get the stick out of their asses. Pick a side and stick to it; there's plenty of ammo to defend each side. 4. Personally, as I've said before in this thread, I'm a big fan of the new-agey "ze/hir" gender-neutral pronouns, made by combining "he-she" and "his-her(s)": These can be used in any setting -- provided your audience knows them -- and are the most politically correct, by far the best option when discussing LGBTQ issues (for which they were invented). I recommend discussing these pronouns with a transgender friend or classmate; the conversation might be very enlightening, as transgender people often don't identify with one gender or the other in the binary way which society prescribes. Rather than being referred to by the wrong pronoun, by an overly formal one, or as a plural, many that I've known have requested the use of ze/hir, so even if a speaker doesn't choose to use it in hir everyday speech, it is beneficial to work it into hir vocabulary so that it comes naturally. Most importantly, be consistent[/u]. So long as whatever the speaker says agrees with everything else the speaker says, the speaker sounds like the speaker knows the implications behind the speaker's grammatical decisions. Similarly, in fiction-writing, the writer should be aware of which gender-neutral pronoun a character would be likely to use in dialogue -- in most cases, the character would probably use "they," but a transgender character might use "ze," and a politician speaking to his or her public would use "one." It's all part of character building, which I won't go further into here because I've already written a ridiculous amount in response. *When I say that the speaker should only knowingly use "they/their" as a singular gender-neutral pronoun, I mean that the speaker should not be using it simply out of ignorance because it is the one most commonly heard in casual conversation; the speaker should be using it because the speaker is aware of the alternatives and of their varying degrees of formality, and has chosen to use "they/their" because the speaker considers it the most appropriate within the context of the work in question. |
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Post by leonwingstein on Nov 4, 2011 15:08:25 GMT -5
Wow... that was thurough. And let me tell you, it really helps me quite a bit. I think that the Ze/Hir idea is a very good one, but I am absolutely sure that my teacher will not accept that. I will use that in my personal writing, but definitely not in my essays.
I suppose I will just have to go with the clunky he/she she wants me to... And although "they" is awfully informal as a genderless singular pronoun, I still prefer it over the other options.
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Post by Dodger Thirteen on Nov 30, 2011 19:04:54 GMT -5
Bridging off of this, my professor actually discussed this on Monday. He told us that, for his class, to just use "him" or "her," not a singular "they." Other professors might have other preferences. However, he also stated that for publication, to always use a singular "they."
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