TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re: gender in writing From:karen randolph <karen_randolph -at- HILLSPET -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 12 Dec 1995 09:32:57 CST
Beryl Doane writes:
<< One that I am comfortable with alternates by chapter. "He" and
"she" both refer to doctors, nurses, and babies. If the baby was "she"
in the first chapter, the baby is "he" in the second chapter. >>
Sorry, but this is exactly the type of writing that bothers me as a
reader. It is inconsistent! Is it a different baby or doctor or
nurse in each reference?
I, like Sue Gallagher, try to avoid he/she by using specific job
titles and "the" specific nouns (quite a neat trick). Pluralizing
works well too. (I can then legitimately use "they.")
And George Allaman, I agree with you that writing "you" does seem
familiar, but I do use the command form (without explicitly writing
the word "you"). i.e., Press the key. The dialog box appears.
Ignore the typographical error in the screen. The programmers did not
notice this error when they created the text. ;)
If absolutely necessary, I *occasionally* revert to passive voice
(UGH!) to avoid the "he/she" ...
And that's all I have to say about that! (promise...)
