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Usenet Posted 23 years ago
Usage
Gender-specific nouns
In many languages (including my native language), all nouns are gender specific (normally male, female, or neutral). English is different, of course, but it seems that English speaking people long for that explicit relation in their language. I was taking a ride with my colleagues (all Americans) the other day, and we observed a butterfly near by. When it disappered, one of my colleagues said, "Oh, he is gone". When I asked the colleague about why he decided to use a "he" (not a "she") in reference to a butterfly, he couldn't explain. I then recalled from a book that there is a vague usage pattern in English that when you try to personalize an object, you should use your gender.
Here is my question: is there, in fact, a formal (or informal) grammatical rule or structure in English that prescribes the use of the speaker gender when the speaker refers to some non-human things whose gender is either unknown or not even applicable?
Thanks,
Eugene.
Here is my question: is there, in fact, a formal (or informal) grammatical rule or structure in English that prescribes the use of the speaker gender when the speaker refers to some non-human things whose gender is either unknown or not even applicable?
Thanks,
Eugene.
Top answer
[nq:1]In many languages (including my native language), all nouns are gender specific (normally male, female, or neutral). English is different, ... [/nq] Not that I'm aware of.
- [nq:1]In many languages (including my native language), all nouns are gender specific (normally male, female, or neutral).
- English is different, ...
- [/nq] Not that I'm aware of.
- Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars), but that's about as far as it goes.
- A butterfly is either male or female - if you can tell the difference then you use the appropriate pronoun, otherwise I would personally use "it".
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22 Answers
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[nq:1]In many languages (including my native language), all nouns are gender specific (normally male, female, or neutral). English is different, ... the speaker gender when the speaker refers to some non-human things whose gender is either unknown or not even applicable?[/nq]
Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars), but that's about as far as it goes. A
Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars), but that's about as far as it goes. A
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[nq:1]Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars),[/nq]
I wouldn't go that far, David. Some people do refer to them as though they were feminine, but most of us don't!
Paul
My Lake District walking site (updated 29th September 2003): http://paul
I wouldn't go that far, David. Some people do refer to them as though they were feminine, but most of us don't!
Paul
My Lake District walking site (updated 29th September 2003): http://paul
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[nq:1]In many languages (including my native language), all nouns are gender specific (normally male, female, or neutral). English is different, ... the speaker gender when the speaker refers to some non-human things whose gender is either unknown or not even applicable?[/nq]
No. Sorry. Not at all.
Best wishes Donna Richoux
No. Sorry. Not at all.
Best wishes Donna Richoux
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[nq:2]Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars),[/nq]
[nq:1]I wouldn't go that far, David. Some people do refer to them as though they were feminine, but most of us don't![/nq]
True. Some inanimate objects are referred to as "she" by some people (that is, the feminine pronoun doesn't sound odd as it would with most inanimate objects.
David
==
[nq:1]I wouldn't go that far, David. Some people do refer to them as though they were feminine, but most of us don't![/nq]
True. Some inanimate objects are referred to as "she" by some people (that is, the feminine pronoun doesn't sound odd as it would with most inanimate objects.
David
==
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Paul Rooney (Email Removed) wrote on 10 Nov 2003:
[nq:2]Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars),[/nq]
[nq:1]I wouldn't go that far, David. Some people do refer to them as though they were feminine, but most of us don't![/nq]
How do you know that "most of us don't"? You may not, but most of the people I know do. I don't know you, so you don't count.
[nq:2]Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars),[/nq]
[nq:1]I wouldn't go that far, David. Some people do refer to them as though they were feminine, but most of us don't![/nq]
How do you know that "most of us don't"? You may not, but most of the people I know do. I don't know you, so you don't count.
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[nq:1]Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine (ships, cars), but that's about as far as it goes. ... use "it". Some animals are easy of course (cows, mallard ducks, blackbirds), so these tend to have the right pronoun.[/nq]
I always refer to cats in feminine, unless I know that the cat I'm talking about is male. They strike me as being feminine, by default. Don't ask me why,
I always refer to cats in feminine, unless I know that the cat I'm talking about is male. They strike me as being feminine, by default. Don't ask me why,
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[nq:2]Not that I'm aware of. Some inanimate objects are feminine ... ducks, blackbirds), so these tend to have the right pronoun.[/nq]
[nq:1]I always refer to cats in feminine, unless I know that the cat I'm talking about is male. They strike me as being feminine, by default. Don't ask me why, because I don't know.[/nq]
For some reason, the UK advertising industry tends to refer to cats as
[nq:1]I always refer to cats in feminine, unless I know that the cat I'm talking about is male. They strike me as being feminine, by default. Don't ask me why, because I don't know.[/nq]
For some reason, the UK advertising industry tends to refer to cats as
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[nq:2]I always refer to cats in feminine, unless I know ... by default. Don't ask me why, because I don't know.[/nq]
[nq:1]For some reason, the UK advertising industry tends to refer to cats as feminine and dogs as masculine 'She'll enjoy ... So do vintage cars. Australians have a phrase 'She'll be right'. Lancastrians have a phrase 'Who's 'she'? The cat's mother?'[/nq]
That reaches a lot
[nq:1]For some reason, the UK advertising industry tends to refer to cats as feminine and dogs as masculine 'She'll enjoy ... So do vintage cars. Australians have a phrase 'She'll be right'. Lancastrians have a phrase 'Who's 'she'? The cat's mother?'[/nq]
That reaches a lot
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[nq:1]For some reason, the UK advertising industry tends to refer to cats as feminine and dogs as masculine 'She'll enjoy ... So do vintage cars. Australians have a phrase 'She'll be right'. Lancastrians have a phrase 'Who's 'she'? The cat's mother?'[/nq]
I don't see that your final example is linked to the phenomenon at all. Nor have I ever come across a satisfactory explanation for the "cat'
I don't see that your final example is linked to the phenomenon at all. Nor have I ever come across a satisfactory explanation for the "cat'
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[nq:1]That reaches a lot further south than Lancashire - it was perfectly common in my Midlands childhood.[/nq]
My grandmother (cockney) used to say it.
[nq:1]But it's a different issue - the retort is pointing out that it's rude to refer to somebody who is present by a third person pronoun.[/nq]
Yes, but for some reason it only appled to "she", not "he".
David
My grandmother (cockney) used to say it.
[nq:1]But it's a different issue - the retort is pointing out that it's rude to refer to somebody who is present by a third person pronoun.[/nq]
Yes, but for some reason it only appled to "she", not "he".
David
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