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> No doubt some were annoyed by my own first foray into
> this "issue"... which is as it should be... but then I got to
> thinking a little more, and Marci's message prodded me
> in this direction. Why don't we all drop the "he" and "she"
> -- if, in fact, we ever need to deviate from "you" in our
> writing -- and make use of a mechanism that has
> existed in English as long as the "he" and "man"?
>
> I refer, of course, to the impersonal "one".
> One does this, and one does that, and one even
> has things done unto one, if one is not careful.
>
> Yes indeedy, in the interest of political correctness and
> gender equality, I think this is a fine solution with no
> drawbacks.
>
> Hmm. Is there any political ramification to reviving
> good ole "thee" and "thou" and "thy" and "thine"?
> If they were good enough for Will Shakespeare...
> I believe I *like* a sprinkling of "Wilt thou..." and
> "Thou mayest not..."
>
>
> Ok, so maybe I was attempting a little levity with
> the latter pronouns, but I'm more than half serious
> about "one". What say ye, gentlefolk?
>
> Cheers,
>
>
> Kevin McLauchlan
> kmclauchlan -at- chrysalis-its -dot- com (aka kevinmcl -at- netrover -dot- com)
> Techy writer, duffer skydiver, full-time unrepentant chocoholic
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Marci Abels [SMTP:maa5906 -at- CCP -dot- COM]
> Sent: Tuesday, April 27, 1999 7:47 AM
> Subject: Re: Political Correctness Re: Manmonth or Peoplemonth?
>
> Thank you Rebecca. It is, as far as I am concerned as a technical writer,
> an
> issue of reader perception. I'm not particularly offended by the use of a
> generic 'he' - though I do recall as a young girl finding it odd that I
> was
> included in a masculine reference. My problem with using the generic 'he'
> is
> that it does create a problem for some readers. If I can avoid that
> problem
> and still be clear, why would I want to do otherwise? In the question as
> it
> was cited, work hours seems to be more descriptive than man hours in the
> first place, so why argue against it?
>
> Marci Abels
> Technical Writer, Skyjack, Inc.
>
>
