Tag: language

Representative Tlaib is redefining for us what Muslim Women can do – and we’re freaking out

(Updated Monday, Jan. 7, approx. 10 pm PDT) I am not a fan of public cursing. Not to say that I never do it, but I think it is often overused. I do use it in my plays where I believe it illuminates the world of my characters. Some of my plays have extensive cursing, … Continue reading Representative Tlaib is redefining for us what Muslim Women can do – and we’re freaking out →

My Non-Gendered Pronoun Proposal

Chinese gets by just fine with no gendered pronouns; why can't English? And we can fill some holes in our pronoun system while we're at it. I've been thinking about this since I posted I am They as You are They and now I think I've got a workable solution. PersonSingularPlural not including listenerPlural including … Continue reading My Non-Gendered Pronoun Proposal →

I am They as You are They

My use of "they" over "he" or "she" has greatly increased over these last few years. I use "they" when I don't know the gender of the person or when the gender of the person is irrelevant. Further, by "know the gender," I used to mean my perception of a person's gender and now I … Continue reading I am They as You are They →

The Treachery of Captchas

Apologies to René Magritte. And apologies to Randall Munroe if xkcd got here first with this joke. Of course, if Magritte were in charge of this, the correct action would be to click Skip. There are no images of pipes; there are only images of drawings of pipes. Nothing would happen, of course; this is an drawing of … Continue reading The Treachery of Captchas →

Depending on the politeness of strangers

Occasionally during feedback sessions for a new play reading, somebody will say that something in the script "took me out of out of the play," that is that something in the play reminded them they were in an audience watching a play. This evening, something happened in real life that threw me into the world … Continue reading Depending on the politeness of strangers →

Politeness in dialog

In The Economist is an article on politeness in English (subscription apparently now required) and in other languages around the globe. This is - well not quite timely; I've been working on the first draft of this play for over three years - of interest to me in the alternate history play I've been working … Continue reading Politeness in dialog →