Unpopular Science - 241110

A simple linguistic prediction, plus random unpopular news

My weekly rundown of some speculative and under-discussed topics, often unpopular, but are fair game for curious and open-minded personal scientists

Linguistics Challenge

My Prediction: Over the next 100 years, English will evolve to substitute “she” as the default third-person pronoun.

The use of “they” as a gender-neutral pronoun is becoming more accepted, despite its often awkward and ambiguous usage, especially in situations where distinguishing between singular and plural is crucial. This ambiguity can lead to confusion in complex sentences where clarity is essential, particularly when the subject’s number is important.

Most editors will say you’re sexist if you use “he” as a gender-neutral pronoun, especially when the subject is perceived as high-status. Consider these two sentences:

1. No aspiring Nobel prizewinner leaves his lab before 9pm.

2. No aspiring Nobel prizewinner leaves her lab before 9pm.

The first sentence might be flagged for revision in a popular magazine due to its perceived gender bias, while the second is less likely to raise concerns—in fact, the writer will likely be applauded. Using “she” in high-status contexts is increasingly seen as progressive and inclusive. Who wants to be seen as holding back progress or (shudder) being exclusionary?

But throwing out “she” everywhere brings its own problems, especially if a writer wants to be precise. Consider these sentences:

1. The doctor saved his nurse’s life with a transfusion of her own blood.

The pronouns here are critical for clarity. Without them, the sentence would lose its precise meaning, making it difficult to express such ideas concisely without relying on third-person singular pronouns.

Now consider:

1. The doctor saved the prisoner’s life with a transfusion of her own blood.

Here, the use of “her” is permissible because the gender of the prisoner is implied or understood based on context. In this case, the assumed gender dynamics don’t challenge the reader’s expectations.

Or take these sentences involving an unknown word that I just made up, “mismal,” where the actions clearly suggest the genders:

1. The sexual predator saved the doctor’s life with her mismal.

2. The doctor saved the sexual predator’s life with her mismal.

In these examples, “her” is used for both subjects, but we all know exactly who did what. Nobody is confused. If, by some statistically unlikely scenario, the situation broke our expectations, the writer would need to include more explanation anyway and all hope of a concise explanation is lost.

Broader Considerations:

Language evolution often reflects cultural shifts, and gender politics are undeniably shaping modern English. “She” is already the safe choice for writers looking to please the readers most likely to complain about word choices, so this seems like easy to predict trend.

Post Election Rundown

For the best science- and open-minded curious takes on the US Presidential election results, I recommend: