Is it considered faulty language to use Spivak pronouns in an essay?
High school level essay to be exact, but I'd like to also know if Spivak pronouns could be used in papers or publications. Should I just eliminate this option all together, never think about it again and rephrase everything using the one pronoun (as suggested in other question's answers)?
Edit: I'm not native English speaker
Always think of what is best for the particular piece you are writing. Spivak pronouns are not widely accepted, used, or …
10y ago
Ask your teacher. I had one who didn't mind, and the others suggested ways to write around the problem (variously, use t …
10y ago
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/11100. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
2 answers
Always think of what is best for the particular piece you are writing. Spivak pronouns are not widely accepted, used, or even recognized. Therefore they will be distracting. Unless the distracting nature of the pronouns somehow supports the argument you are making, don't use them. As other answers have illustrated, you have more options. I personally recommend feminine pronouns no matter your identity. That choice will convey an awareness of linguistic and academic gender bias clear enough without being distracting. Mixing pronouns should only be done with care, because done poorly it can be very distracting as well.
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/11129. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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Ask your teacher. I had one who didn't mind, and the others suggested ways to write around the problem (variously, use the "universal he," use the "universal she," alternate he and she, recast the sentence as plural).
Each teacher will have different preferences. It doesn't hurt to ask upfront.
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