I will bite: what is the purpose of this mailing list? We have had debates before about what this list should be and the consensus has been topics relevant to the code4lib community. This means that conversations can go beyond specifically library technologies and can touch into related issues. To me, learning the nuances of changing grammars around gender identity is relevant to our systems, especially when it comes to grammar checking as in this thread.
Also, references for singular they:
* A brief history of singular ‘they’: https://public.oed.com/blog/a-brief-history-of-singular-they/
* APA Style: Singular "They": https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/grammar/singular-they
Katherine “Kate” Deibel, PhD
Library Accessibility Specialist
Twitter: https://twitter.com/metageeky
GitHub: https://github.com/metageeky
-----Original Message-----
From: Code for Libraries <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of McDonald, Stephen
Sent: Tuesday, June 7, 2022 5:40 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] Grammar Checker - sites
Interesting. I have not come across that. That would be another situation where a grammar auto-correct would not work. Always sanity-check auto-correction.
But I guess we are straying a bit from the purpose of the list.
Steve McDonald
[log in to unmask]
-----Original Message-----
From: Code for Libraries <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Katherine Deibel
Sent: Tuesday, June 7, 2022 5:22 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] Grammar Checker - sites
Not everyone. There are people who recognize that "they" can be used in the singular case as it was previously in the history of the English language.
"They is a librarian" is a grammatically correct sentence.
Katherine “Kate” Deibel, PhD
Library Accessibility Specialist
Twitter: https://twitter.com/metageeky
GitHub: https://github.com/metageeky
-----Original Message-----
From: Code for Libraries <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Emily H.
Sent: Tuesday, June 7, 2022 5:06 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [CODE4LIB] Grammar Checker - sites
>
> I misspoke a bit about individuals who use "they" pronouns. The
> pronouns for them would always be plural. The verb gets more
> complicated. If the subject is a plural pronoun, the verb would also
> be plural, but if the subject is a name, title, or phrase referencing
> an individual, the verb would be singular.
I'm not sure if I'm misunderstanding you, but this has not been my experience with individuals who use "they" pronouns - the verb is conjugated to agree with plural "they," even when the subject is singular.
e.g.
My friend Johanna is non-binary and uses "they" pronouns. They are vegan.
They enjoy foraging for mushrooms and wild plants.
On Tue, Jun 7, 2022 at 3:43 PM McDonald, Stephen <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> I misspoke a bit about individuals who use "they" pronouns. The
> pronouns for them would always be plural. The verb gets more
> complicated. If the subject is a plural pronoun, the verb would also
> be plural, but if the subject is a name, title, or phrase referencing
> an individual, the verb would be singular. So you can get a mix of
> singular verb and plural pronoun in those cases, which a grammar checker is not going to get right.
>
> The moral of the story, though, is that auto-grammar correctors will
> not be perfect, so don't trust them completely.
>
> Steve McDonald
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Code for Libraries <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of
> charles meyer
> Sent: Tuesday, June 7, 2022 4:04 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [CODE4LIB] Grammar Checker - sites
>
> Hi my esteemed listmates,
>
> I was wondering which sites others use to check for grammar?
>
> Grammar Girl and Grammar.com don't seem to allow you to type in a
> phrase to check on its grammar.
>
> Ex. The community is invited to share their thoughts...
>
> Is that the correct matching of singular/plural nouns with pronouns?
>
> Thank you?
>
> Charles.
>
> Charles Meyer
> Charlotte County Public Library
> Port Charlotte, FL
>
|