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What's Your Pronoun?

Beyond He and She
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
What's Your Pronoun? by Dennis Baron explores the historical and linguistic journey of gender-neutral pronouns in English. It delves into the social and cultural implications of language evolution, examining debates surrounding pronouns and identity. The book provides a rich history of attempts to coin pronouns that fit various needs and highlights the ongoing conversation about language and gender in society.
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Format: Hardback
$4999
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're intrigued by the rich history and evolution of gender-neutral pronouns, highlighting the intersection of language, identity, and society. Written by Dennis Baron, it expertly delves into how pronouns have influenced culture and politics, offering insights for anyone interested in linguistics and social evolution.

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Contextualising one of the most pressing cultural questions of our generation, Dennis Baron reveals the untold story of how we got from he and she to zie and hir and singular they.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Like trigger warnings and gender-neutral bathrooms, pronouns are sparking a national debate, prompting new policies in schools, workplaces, and even prisons about what pronouns to use. Colleges ask students to declare their pronouns along with their majors; corporate conferences print name tags with space to add pronouns; email signatures sport pronouns along with names and titles.

Far more than a by-product of the culture wars, gender-neutral pronouns are, however, nothing new. Pioneering linguist Dennis Baron puts them in historical context, noting that Shakespeare used singular-they. Women invoked the generic use of he to assert the right to vote, while those opposed to women's rights invoked the same word to assert that he did not include she. Furthermore, people have been coining new gender pronouns, not just hir and zie, for centuries.

Based on Baron's own empirical research, What's Your Pronoun? chronicles the story of the role pronouns have playedβ€”and continue to playβ€”in establishing both our rights and our identities. It is an essential work in understanding how twenty-first-century culture has evolved.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Dennis Baron's book provides an engaging and comprehensive look into the historical and linguistic journey of the quest for a gender-neutral pronoun in English. Reviewers praise its lively and accessible style, highlighting the book’s ability to combine scholarly insights with cultural history and its timely relevance to contemporary debates on gender identity and language.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781631496042

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 21 February 2020

Country: United States

Imprint: Liveright Publishing Corporation

Illustration: 20 black-and-white illustrations

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 28.0mm

Width: 147.0mm

Height: 216.0mm

Weight: 411g

Pages: 304

About the Author

Dennis Baron professor emeritus of English and linguistics at the University of Illinois, has long been a national commentator on language issues, from the Washington Post to NPR and CNN. A recent Guggenheim Fellow, he lives in Champaign, Illinois.

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