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From: arnold@ucsfcgl.UUCP (Ken Arnold%CGL)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Re: Re: sexist language/bad attitudes
Message-ID: <496@ucsfcgl.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 9-May-85 00:38:14 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucsfcgl.496
Posted: Thu May  9 00:38:14 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 11-May-85 01:13:09 EDT
References: <846@druxo.UUCP> <674@wlcrjs.UUCP> <299@mhuxr.UUCP> <1039@utcsri.UUCP> <250@sbcs.UUCP> <309@h-sc1.UUCP> <2382@mit-hermes.ARPA>
Reply-To: arnold@ucsfcgl.UUCP (PUT YOUR NAME HERE)
Organization: UCSF Computer Graphics Lab
Lines: 22
Summary: 

In article <2382@mit-hermes.ARPA> jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA (John Purbrick) writes:
>> I postulate the following theory:  The use of the word 'he' as the gender
>> neutral pronoun came into use because the male was considered more 'typical'
>> of the species, not to mention more important.
>> 	marie desjardins
>Too true. The "standard" or "default" sex is male, and we tend to assume that
>the protagonist in any situation is male, even if it's impossible:

Not always.  Imagine

	When a secretary answers the phone, he should ...
				or
	After a nurse gaves the shot, he should ...

where the sex of the person being described is unknown.  If you are like
everyone I've ever tried this out on, these will sound funny.  In fact,
the default gender is assumed to male unless the expected gender for
the description is female.  This must make it pretty hard for male nurses
and scretaries.  Almost as hard, in fact, as it probably is for female
truck drivers, fire fighters, police officers, ...

		Ken Arnold