Singular they: Difference between revisions
Traditional grammar, and therefore grammarians, have chosen gender of pronouns to match the sex (which is physical) of the person rather than the gender (which is psychological and a matter of self-identification). So 'sex' is more accurate here.
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(Traditional grammar, and therefore grammarians, have chosen gender of pronouns to match the sex (which is physical) of the person rather than the gender (which is psychological and a matter of self-identification). So 'sex' is more accurate here.) |
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== Grammatical concerns == | == Grammatical concerns == | ||
Grammarians question and debate the validity of also using this set as "singular they," a gender-neutral pronoun for an individual whose | Grammarians question and debate the validity of also using this set as "singular they," a gender-neutral pronoun for an individual whose sex isn't specified, because they feel unsatisfied by how it still works grammatically like a plural. (Similar to how we say "you are," even when referring to a singular "you.") However, "singular they" has been common usage in English for over a thousand years, as attested by many written documents. It was used so by Shakespeare, Jane Austen, the Oxford English Dictionary, Louis Carroll, C. S. Lewis, and others. Grammaticians only recently decided that it was ungrammatical to use in the singular, because it is still used with verbs as though it was a plural.<ref>Henry Churchyard, "Singular 'Their' in Jane Austen and Elsewhere." http://www.crossmyt.com/hc/linghebr/austheir.html</ref> Though the grammar may be questionable, it is still standard use today. | ||
Singular "they" gets a surprising number of complaints, considering people use it all the time for people whose gender is unknown. However, there are a lot of arguments that it's correct. [http://motivatedgrammar.wordpress.com/2009/09/10/singular-they-and-the-many-reasons-why-its-correct/ This article on Motivated Grammar] goes through a few reasons, including the fact that it's consistently been in use since Chaucer's time, around 1400. Most people are familiar with how singular "they" works, as plenty of people use it all the time without really thinking about it. | Singular "they" gets a surprising number of complaints, considering people use it all the time for people whose gender is unknown. However, there are a lot of arguments that it's correct. [http://motivatedgrammar.wordpress.com/2009/09/10/singular-they-and-the-many-reasons-why-its-correct/ This article on Motivated Grammar] goes through a few reasons, including the fact that it's consistently been in use since Chaucer's time, around 1400. Most people are familiar with how singular "they" works, as plenty of people use it all the time without really thinking about it. | ||