The little red writing book - Brandon Royal 2007

Keep your writing gender neutral
Style

Principle #16: Avoid using the masculine generic to refer to both genders.

The masculine generic refers to the sole use of the pronoun “he” or “him” when referring to situations involving both genders. Avoid using “he” when referring to either a he or a she; likewise, avoid using “him” when referring to either a him or a her. Be sensitive in acknowledging both sexes. Because 50 percent of any general readership is likely female, it is not only politically astute but fair-minded to avoid using the masculine generic.

Consider the following sentences from a female perspective.

ORIGINAL

Today’s chief executive must be extremely well rounded. He must be not only corporate and civic minded but also environmentally focused and entrepreneurially spirited.

There are essentially two ways to remedy this. Replace “he” with “he or she,” or recast the sentence in the plural, using “they” or “them.”

BETTER

Today’s chief executive must be extremely well rounded. He or she must be not only corporate and civic minded but also environmentally focused and entrepreneurially spirited.

EQUALLY PROPER

Today’s chief executives must be extremely well rounded. They must be not only corporate and civic minded but also environmentally focused and entrepreneurially spirited.

A final way to address the problem, especially when writing longer documents, is to alternate between the use of “he” and “she.” The disadvantage in this approach, however, is that the arbitrary, alternate use of these two pronouns may annoy the reader and cause confusion.

We must also watch for and replace words that represent the masculine generic. Here is a partial list:

It is sometimes necessary to replace the feminine generic: