he/she/they

Patrick Dunn <tb0pwd1@...> spake:
> On Mon, 25 Dec 2000, abrigon wrote:
> > Maybe a way to define a neutral gender, other than to use the
> > normally masculine He. Maybe a new word needs to be used?
> >
> > Anyone know the rules of how a lingo shifts? Or other ideas.
> >
> > He=masculine
> > She=Feminine
> > Je=Neutral
>
> It's already happened, despite my best efforts to tstop it among my
> students:
>
> he= masculine
> she= feminine
> they= neutral
>
> Everyone should take their books.
I ran across a large page advocating 'singular their', with stuff and
examples from Shakespeare ("There's not a man I meet but doth salute me, /
As if I were their well-acquainted friend.") to the King James Bible ("Let
nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let
each esteem other better than themselves.")

 http://www.crossmyt.com/hc/linghebr/austheir.html

(An article on that site asks how one would improve "Mary saw everyone
before John noticed them," but I think that's an awkward sentence to begin
with...)

    *Muke!