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+--- Thread: Serious question - why is the far right obsessed with gender definitions? (/showthread.php?tid=276698)
Re: Serious question - why is the far right obsessed with gender definitions? - DeusxMac - 05-02-2023
$tevie wrote:
But I think that using "they" for singular has been quite common when gender was unknown or else all-encompassing.
for example: Someone left a note in my mailbox. They said they have my package that was delivered earlier.
If a person wants to use the pool, they have to sign a waiver.
I saw someone walking by and they were wearing a fedora.
etc.
A very good point, but there are still some singular/plural problems; the numerical information to be communicated is encumbered.
One person is. Many are.
One person has. Many have.
This discussion has prompted me to do a little research. Apparently, unique gender-neutral pronouns aren’t new.
“Old English had grammatical gender, and thus commonly used "it" for people, even where they were clearly male or female…”
“Historically, there were two gender-neutral pronouns native to English dialects, ou and (h)a.”
“In 1789, William H. Marshall records the existence of a dialectal English epicene pronoun, singular "ou": "'Ou will' expresses either he will, she will, or it will." Marshall traces "ou" to Middle English epicene "a", used by the 14th century English writer John of Trevisa, and both the OED and Wright's English Dialect Dictionary confirm the use of "a" for he, she, it, they, and even I.”
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender-neutral_pronoun
Re: Serious question - why is the far right obsessed with gender definitions? - sekker - 05-02-2023
$tevie wrote:
But I think that using "they" for singular has been quite common when gender was unknown or else all-encompassing.
for example: Someone left a note in my mailbox. They said they have my package that was delivered earlier.
If a person wants to use the pool, they have to sign a waiver.
I saw someone walking by and they were wearing a fedora.
etc.
Still confusing nonetheless.
Re: Serious question - why is the far right obsessed with gender definitions? - mattkime - 05-02-2023
sekker wrote:
[quote=$tevie]
But I think that using "they" for singular has been quite common when gender was unknown or else all-encompassing.
for example: Someone left a note in my mailbox. They said they have my package that was delivered earlier.
If a person wants to use the pool, they have to sign a waiver.
I saw someone walking by and they were wearing a fedora.
etc.
Still confusing nonetheless.
Its definitely possible to create ambiguity.