Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

My friend Jeff sent a link to this provocative essay by Theodore Dalrymple, who is one of my favorite writers. I believe it is possible to write in such a way as to be both elegant and nonsexist. I have striven (inflection: strive/strove/striven) for this in my own work. Remember: I went into probate court in Michigan in 1981 to change my name, on the ground that taking one's father's name but not one's mother's name is sexist. Just as sport is rule-governed physical striving, literature is rule-governed writing. The rule against sexism is one rule among many. Good writers conform to it, even if it means taking a little longer to express one's thoughts.