Gender-Neutral Language
The man or
woman who feels it a slight upon his or her dignity upon writing
or reading a piece which deigns to use one or the other of the
human species (i.e. he or she) as a representative of both,
should perhaps consider replacing the offending pronoun with
‘it’. Indeed! A simple solution, but this may not quite be the
way to gain a reader’s support. The subject of gender-neutral
language, itself a politically correct phrase, is one fraught
with an eternal difficulty which refuses to be ignored: the
difficulty of appeasing the human ego.
Once a writer
has both acknowledged and accepted this simple fact, covering a
topic which includes both sexes immediately becomes a simpler,
and neater, task. A number of methods are currently used to try
and address the issue.
An unwritten
rule-of thumb (rooted in the beginnings of English language
according to William Strunk, Jr.) is generally to use the pronoun
he to represent both genders. More and more so in today’s
society however, discretion is essential when using this method.
It can cause offense, and if for example, your readers are
primarily female it will obviously be better to use the pronoun
she and presume that the occasional male reader will
presume it to be a generic term.
A good habit
before using this method is to query your publisher’s preference
before finalizing your text. Although not generally of major
concern, there are some publishers which have specific
preferences. For example, the publisher of a current national
parenting magazine prefers the paragraphs in their features to
alternate between he and she if a baby or child is
being referred to. They obviously feel that this maintains a
balance, it’s politically correct, and does away with the untidy
and clumsy practice of referring to both (as in the opening line
of this article!).
Another
simple method to help your text to flow smoothly is to simply
replace the gender pronoun altogether. There is generally a title
to be found for almost any subject that you may be referring to
(and as the writer, you have the privilege of even inventing you
own!). The attorney, the child, the chef, the clerk – the list is
endless. Using a ‘title’ will maintain neutrality and give your
text a professional finish. Care must be taken though, as overuse
of this method can result in a very clinical or stilted effect
which may not suit the purpose of what you are trying to achieve.
Also bear in mind that this method is to avoid the clumsiness
involved with the use of he and/or she and
excessive use of the same title may lead to the same result,
i.e., a cumbersome sentence.
The third
method you can apply is to simply try and avoid the use of gender
pronouns altogether. Consider using a plural instead of a
singular, for e.g. “A doctor needs to care for his
patients,” can be replaced with “Doctor’s need to care for
their patients.” In certain instances you may be able to
avoid referring specifically to gender at all, for e.g. “The
doctor needs to care for patients.” Although it may seem a rather
laborious task at first, constant application of these methods
will soon make using gender-neutral language a writing habit, and
a worthwhile one at that.
The ultimate
aim is to produce writing that somehow reads smoothly and sounds
professional, although not too clinical, while still satisfying
the ego of your reader, be he or she a him or her. Oops!
