Why do we use "they" as a singular pronoun? - Arika Okrent

We all have a sense that in English there is a correct and an incorrect way to say things; that there are rules to follow. It seems that if we want to be sure our English is correct, we should learn the rules and follow them. But it is not as simple as that. What are the rules? In 1950, your teacher may have told you to never to end a sentence with a preposition. These days this is no longer considered an error even in the most formal of writing.

Where do rules come from, and why do they change? When it comes to language, what is a mistake? There is a spectrum of rules in language some of which are far more hard and fast than others.On one end there are mistakes that a native speaker would never make. A bit further along the spectrum are things that are wrong, but somehow less wrong, things people many people in fact DO say, things that just sound informal . Further along the spectrum are things that may have once been considered wrong, but are now considered correct.

Where do rules come from, and what determines whether something is wrong or not? The rules at one end of the spectrum arise naturally and somewhat unconsciously from people using language with each other. They incorporate what they hear, what they read. They absorbhabits, and in those habits are patterns, which are the habits and patterns passed along to others. There is room for variation in how those patterns are passed along, and that leads to change over time.

On the other end of the spectrum are rules that arose purposely, by decision, on the basis of one person’s preference. “Don’t end with a preposition” can be traced to John Dryden who, in a critique of the faults of other writers calls out Ben Jonson for a preposition ending sentence.(1672) He doesn’t explain what’s wrong with it, however, and mentions that he himself had this bad habit. Decades later this complaint made its way into the earliest versions of guides to proper grammar (Lowth 1762) and as these guides proliferated in the 1th century, this rule, and otherswere repeated, taught, and violations marked with red pens.If a preference like this can get repeated and absorbed by enough language users it can become a general rule. At the sametime, if it fails to become a habit, or if the habit falls out of favor over time, it will cease being a rule.

Does this mean the language rules we learn in school are arbitrary and pointless? No! Formal situations call for formal language, casual, relaxed situations call for a different kind of language. Newspaper articles have a standard, song lyrics have a different standard. It’s important to learn the standards of the domains of your language usage. But they are a bit likedress codes or table manners. Not based in ultimate truth and logic, but in custom, habit, and history.