Re: "they" and a bit of hyperbole?

[Caryn Rizell <caryn -at- HPPTC95 -dot- ROSE -dot- HP -dot- COM>]

Thank you for the humor for today.  When I read the 'survey question'
I got a big chuckle!

I agree that 'they' is a bit annoying, and I try to avoid
it if at all possible.  But I also think that it might not
be a bad idea to bring back that usage since we do have to
find a way around sexist language.  (I particular disklike
'he' only, and have always found it 'profoundly disturbing'.  I
always felt left out when I read that.)

The survey (mentioned by Sue Stewart-I think) also makes me think
that we should be careful what we ask when we survey our users.  Were
they specifically asked about 'they'?  If so, they would
probably not like it.  Did the users point out the usage
of 'they' without being asked?  Then, that might be
something to deal with.


Caryn Rizell
caryn -at- hpptc95 -dot- rose -dot- hp -dot- com

 Now I write:

> "...profoundly disturbing..."? Your users were losing sleep over it,
> then? Come now, I doubt that anyone read a manual and said, "I liked it
> for the most part, but I found the use of "they" in the singular to be
> profoundly disturbing." Perhaps you asked them to fill out a survey:

>         Choose the response that best describes your opinion of the use of
>         "they" as a singular pronoun:

>         _____I love it  _____I don't mind it    ____I find it profoundly
>                                                         disturbing

> -----------------------------------------------------------------
> Matt Hicks, Tech. Writer, Unidata * I may not agree with what you
> Boulder, CO, (303)497-8676, ******* say, but I'll defend to the
> matt -at- unidata -dot- ucar -dot- edu ************* death my right to mock you.