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ESL forum >
Grammar and Linguistics > it he or she?
it he or she?
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mistick
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it he or she?
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Hi everybody!!
There is a question my colleagues and I have been recently discussing without finding the answer.
In our textbooks we always teach � Who�s the boy? this Girl? - IT�s Brad / Jade. One of my colleagues says it�s possible to answer � He�s Brad / She�s Jade.� but it sounds strange to me and I consider it as being wrong but now ...........; I�m not sure anymore so what do you think? teach?
Thank you for answering because I�m a bit mixed up now. 
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17 Dec 2008
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Logos
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Using �it� to describe a person is perfectly acceptable in English in the context where you are not sure if the gender of the person you are referring to is male or female. It avoids an awkward response of He or She is...
In this context Brad is known to both speakers and if you were to reply He�s Brad, then this would be if the person asking did not know Brad, and both of them could see him. I think the �it� is referring more to the situation, the fact of Brad being at the door, rather than question of identity.
I may be wrong with this and am quite open to anyone giving a much more learned and academic opinion.
Another conundrum that sometimes comes up in this context is as follows. Is there anything wrong with this sentence: "I will give the prize to ONE student in the class. They will receive it tomorrow."
How can we use �they� when only ONE student is mentioned. Simply because you do not know if the student is male or female (this is in a mixed class of course!!)
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17 Dec 2008
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Zora
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No, you are quite right Logos. 
And to mix the pot a bit more: we can also use "he or she" with animals when we know if it�s a female or a male.
Example:
My cat Penny, she�s a great mouser...
The bull is in a frenzy. He�s going to hurt somebody.
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17 Dec 2008
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atsitab
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I knew that we could use "he" or "she" with animals, but I thought it was only for pets, because we give them a name and treat them as persons (that�s what I�ve learnt), but I might be wrong. |
17 Dec 2008
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Zora
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Well, I�d say that any animal that has a "gender" you can use it with.
Example:
The lioness is very protective of "her" cubs. "She" teaches them how to hunt.
The female elephant is not as heavy as the male. She is usually a lighter grey too.
Both are perfectly acceptable, the second one as you are stating its "gender" can later be continued on using he or she.
When we are first learning, it�s just easier to use the rule "it" - for animals, things and places. |
17 Dec 2008
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Vickiii
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I believe the use of �it� and �they� as described above has arisen as a response to the women�s movement and political correctness.
In a lot of English speaking countries it is no longer acceptable to call a mixed gender group �he� or �men�. therefore it and they are more commonly used to ensure that no one takes offense.
It is interesting teaching this point in a country where mixed groups are referred to as �male� in the native tongue, and the political correctness has not really become a popular concept - although women work in professional jobs and even run the country!
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17 Dec 2008
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atsitab
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Thank you! It�s great to have so many people willing to help us when we have some doubts. Thank you!
Merry Christmas!
Ana |
17 Dec 2008
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Apryll12
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In my language (Hungarian) we don�t even have sex distinction for the third person singular. We use the same pronoun for both sexes. When I teach he and she it is not too difficult though to make students understand the use of these pronouns. But when it comes to it referring to people... well it�s quite hard. My personal view on this is the same as logos�, that it can be used when not the gender of the person is in focus, rather the situation. Let me give you another example: In telephone converstaions when you introduce yourself you say: It�s John Brown. and not I�m John Brown., which can seem quite impersonal. But in this situation it can be interpreted as It is John Brown who is calling. Just like in cleft-sentences. Don�t you agree? |
17 Dec 2008
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goodnesses
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Hi, all.
I think that the matter is much more simple.
When we use "he/she" followed by the verb to "be" we usually wait for a state of being and not really the identity.
-He/She is tall.
-He/She was a bright student.
Answering the question "Who�s that/the boy/the woman...?" refers to the identity not to the state of being.
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17 Dec 2008
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mistick
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Thank you for your help but some of you didn�t really the question, it has nothing to do with animals but just with how to answer the question : Who�s this boy? this girl? It�s ............... or He�s / she�s according to the gender?
Thanks to Logos and goodnesses.  |
18 Dec 2008
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Zora
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Yes, it was answered AND agreed with. We were just pointing out another case and clarifying it for another person.
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18 Dec 2008
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