Talk:Singular they/Archive 2006-03

message: First off, I am aware that at one time, we had "thou" for singular and "you" for plural, but I am not convinced that is the reason "you" takes the same verb form as a plural.  After all, "I" takes the same form as the plural as well (for every verb except "am") and "I" was never a plural.  Plus, even when "you" was primarily used as a plural, it was also the polite or more formal pronoun for either singular or plural second person, so "you"'s transition to singular does not really parallel singular they that closely.  I'm sure we could find a better example, but it may mean looking outside of English. CyborgTosser (Only half the battle) 20:59, 3 May 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: It's true that English doesn't generally make a simple singular-plural distinction in its verbs, but singular you definitely took/takes the forms that plural you took/takes, not the forms that singular thou took. That said, I don't think there's anything to say that singular they takes a "plural" verb form; rather, it takes the same verb form as plural they. Ruakh 23:20, 3 May 2005 (UTC)
thread_title: You

message: Hi Ruakh, 
You blanket reverted my recent edits. Could we discuss what you believe is POV? A lot of the changes I made were cleaning up the wording, eliminating some redundancy, adding appropriate links, highlighting, etc, and had nothing to do with particular claims. 
Thanks, kwami 20:31, 1 October 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: Hmm, I seem to have misread the diff. I thought you deleted a huge section and added a new one, but that's just because Wikipedia's best-guess-diffs aren't perfect. My apologies; I should have read more closely before reverting. I'll undo my revert (though I do plan to make some changes to what you wrote). Again, my apologies. Ruakh 00:18, 2 October 2005 (UTC)
thread_title:  edit 

message: Perhaps one of this article’s maintainers would like to add these appropriately. (Taken from ).
:There’s not a man I meet but doth salute me
:As if I were their well-acquainted friend
:– Shakespeare, Comedy of Errors, Act 4, Scene III.
:Now leaden slumber with life's strength doth fight;
:And every one to rest themselves betake,
:Save thieves, and cares, and troubled minds, that wake.
:– Shakespeare, The Rape of Lucrece.
porges 04:59, 6 January 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: We already have one quote from Shakespeare, and I'm not sure that adding two more would really contribute anything; but if you disagree, of course you should be bold and add them yourself. Personally, I think the Shakespeare quote we already have is one of the best, since it emphasizes the point that singular they can be used even when the referent's sex is known. (Dr. Pullum makes the case that this is the case in the first of your quotes as well, but I feel that "a mother" is more obviously exclusively female than "a man" is male, if that makes any sense.) Ruakh 06:35, 6 January 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  More shakespeare ("they" with singular antecedent). 

message: Has anyone else noticed a nacient tendency to make the reflexive LOOK singular?  
:Traditional:  Someone has made a fool of themselves.
:Possibly developing: Someone has made a fool of themself.
Is it original research to mention this, or do we have to find it in a grammar book first?  I'll bet in 30 years it's standard!  --Doric Loon 22:01, 8 January 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Unless I'm missing your point, that information has been in the article for more than three years now . . . ? Ruakh 04:40, 11 January 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Reflexive

message: Let the record show that I consider this sort of thing to be completely revolting. 209.128.158.230 21:30, 29 January 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Disgusting

message: This article says something about being overly politically correct. What's wrong with too much political correctness?? Georgia guy 01:07, 16 February 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Politically correct