You/thou

[David Ibbetson <ibbetson -at- IDIRECT -dot- COM>]

Tracey Bovington asks whether I write "Shouldst thou discover any errors in
thy new Widget, pray contact our Customer Service department forthwith?"

I would place the question mark outside the quotes. Otherwise, setting aside
Historical Novels as irrelevant, I have some difficulty in imagining a
customer that would prefer such a style. (I raised the question of modern
Quaker practice somewhere. I'd be grateful if somebody would tell me what
their modern practice is and, if they've dropped "thee" and "thou", when did
this happen?)

I'm not going to say touche<accent required>. If she objects to "thou" as
the singular of "you" she will, I suspect, accept that modern English
doesn't lack a plural for "you". "You" like "sheep" has the same form in the
singular and plural. The change didn't happen overnight.

References to "you all" suggest that some communities feel the lack of a
distinct plural form. Whether this will catch on generally, only time will tell.

David (more idiotic than usual) Ibbetson
                    Fantastic First Footing
                       Spiffing Saturnalia
                         Merry Christmas
                          Happy Hanukah
                             Yummy Yule
                                    1995

David Ibbetson                            Phone (416) 363-6692
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