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> This document was mostly written almost a decade ago, and by someone who I think went to a prestigious institution. So the "rules of style" back then aren't w
by JadeNB 8y ago
> This document was mostly written almost a decade ago, and by someone who I think went to a prestigious institution. So the "rules of style" back then aren't what they are today.
What does the second half of the first sentence have to do with the second sentence?
- waddlesplash 8y agoThat prestigious institutions up until the past few years used male pronouns to refer to generic individuals as being "proper English", which this document ostensibly is, and this explains the document's use of them?
- mixmastamyk 8y agoYes, replacing "he/she" with "they" was discouraged because it is plural. Since then gender issues have come to the forefront and this drawback has been deemed less important. "They" is now recommended by most folks, but wasn't the case 12 years ago. Times change.