Bo102010 comments on Sayeth the Girl - Less Wrong

47 Post author: Alicorn 19 July 2009 10:24PM

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Comment author: Bo102010 20 July 2009 12:18:09AM 6 points [-]

Upvoted because as aspiring rationalists we are presumably intelligent, and should act as though we are enlightened.

See Hofstadter's article in Metamagical Themas on using gendered pronouns (preview here). I was sympathetic to its conclusions before I read it, but it gives good ideas to consider.

Comment author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 20 July 2009 01:48:51AM 5 points [-]

Yup, that was when I decided to grit my teeth and use non-gendered language no matter what it did to prosody. Once I transitioned from "ve" to "they" it grew on me surprisingly fast, and no longer takes a conscious effort; male-specific language now seems jarring.

Comment author: SoullessAutomaton 20 July 2009 02:28:19AM 5 points [-]

"They" has long been in use for that purpose anyhow. Singular "they" being incorrect is a relatively modern, and quickly fading, notion.

Comment author: Bo102010 20 July 2009 02:48:47AM 2 points [-]

Hofstadter (and Dawkins) were both influential to my thoughts on non-gendered language, but XKCD best sums up my thoughts on "they" vs. awkward substitutes.

Comment author: kpreid 20 July 2009 02:16:59AM *  -1 points [-]

Not that "they" isn't the current best option for practical writing, but had you ever tried Spivak?

ETA: The notability I claim for Spivak is that it does not add sounds not present in the standard English pronouns (such as z and v).

Comment author: Peter_Twieg 20 July 2009 02:31:13AM -2 points [-]

I believe the favored gender-neutral third-person subject pronoun du jour is "zie."

ie. "Zie bought hir shoes at Walmart."

Comment author: RobinZ 20 July 2009 02:57:27PM 0 points [-]

Another contribution via Hofstadter was mentioned recently on Less Wrong: A Person Paper on Purity in Language. Be sure to read the postscript, even if you don't finish the main body.

Comment author: SoullessAutomaton 20 July 2009 12:32:45AM 0 points [-]

Thank you for mentioning this. Given the number of GEB fans around here, Hofstadter's thoughts on the matter may be of interest.

Comment author: Alicorn 20 July 2009 01:45:17AM -1 points [-]

This is fascinating and insightful. Thank you very much for the link.

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