Do you show more respect for women if you use in writing "(s)he" instead of "he/she"?

Question

That ocurred to me and I wonder if I am right. Because "he/she" puts men in first place while "(s)he" puts women first.

Answer 1

I don't think the order of the implied pronoun is important. I would use "he or she" the first time you would use the pronoun, then vary between he and she throughout the rest of the document. It shows the reader that you are including both genders, yet is far more readable.

Answer 2

Ah, but when one writes "(s)he" it is still in favor of the male because the "s" that makes the word feminine is still in parenthesis, thus indicating that the female is still an afterthought.

I actually find that either writing "he/she" or "(s)he" indicates respect for women. Most words that indicate female still have the male in them. (Such as female and woman.) To make the impression that an unknown individual may not be male is showing respect for women. It really is too bad that our language has evolved to look at females as secondary to men in the first place, but we can only work with what we've been given.

Answer 3

What a wonderful idea! I don't feel offended either way. I think it's great when women are recognized AT ALL in writings to reflect the other gender that makes up the human race! :O))
And I think it's wonderful that your kind of sensitivity allows for the question in the first place.

Answer 4

This isn't so much an etiquette question as it is an English language one. Creating a clumsy sentence won't show more respect for women, but thoughtful writing might. :) "He" is appropriately (and rather generically) used to generally describe a "person" where gender is not an issue. The term is related to "man" as a species. Ex: Man is the only animal who cooks his food. He has done so for many thousands of years.

Answer 5

Under traditional rules of English grammar, the use of "he" in such circumstances was considered generic and was deemed to include any females who might be present. The use of "she" was appropriate only if the group was exclusively female (e.g. the Daughters of the American Revolution).

Of course, today, we have to be more "politically correct" than that. The use of "(s)he" seems awkward to me.

If we have reached the point that "he or she" is offensive, you could always write "she or he" or "her or his" instead, or mix it up within the same written material.

Answer 6

I don't think it really matters who you put first in this context. I think it's great that some people even go that far to include the "she" part, acknowledging that a woman could be involved.

Answer 7

god!!! Im a girl and I dont care what goes first... infact I think its easier to write just 'he' its understood that it applies to both...Feminists bother about the most trivial issues... Chivilary cna be expressed in more useful and relevant ways... next time ur in a train give the elderly lady ur seat...

Answer 8

Not necessarily. Different businesses and writing formats will have different recommendations about which pronoun you should use in this situation. Find one that is appropriate to your writing situation and use it.

Answer 9

Respect is in the heart. It really shouldn't be politicized. I always write "s/he" when applicable, simply because it's shorter, more efficient.

Answer 10

Better to use totally generic terms if you are that concerned about insulting someone. (They, their,)

IE: "The role of the district attorney is to prosecute criminals. He must work closely with the police in his role and he must ensure chain of evidence is followed."

Change it to.

"The role of district attorneys is to prosecute criminals. They must work closely with the police in their roles and they must ensure chain of evidence is followed."

I personally use whatever gender is more common in a particular field. Military personnel = male.... Nurse = female.
This is similar to other languages using masculine and feminine gender in talking about objects.

If someone has a problem with it, that is their problem not mine.