Our server costs ~$56 per month to run. Please consider donating or becoming a Patron to help keep the site running. Help us gain new members by following us on Twitter and liking our page on Facebook!
Current time: December 14, 2024, 3:55 am

Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
#11
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
I suppose it could have to do with the innate possessiveness associated with owning a member of the female sex as well as a certain fondness for the object and a desire to personify something that essentially is responsible for the safety and welfare of those riding it. I’m rather surprised at myself for falling into the idiom without questioning it. It’s obviously sexist but perhaps not overtly misogynistic.
Reply
#12
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
For some reason it seems to be fashionable to attribute any tradition involving the feminine pronoun to "objectification" of women.  I think it's carried too far.

I think ships were called "she" simply because by long tradition, women were generally not allowed aboard ships, and yet shipboard life were very arduous and perilous until recently, and the life and limb of the sailors depended on the ship faithfully and dutifully performing its role.   So sailor psychologically associated the ship at sea with a faithful wife on land, much as what was considered a good wife might make a man's life on land easier and less perilous, so a good ship might make a man's life at sea easier and less perilous.

Even if division of labor, power and reward between men and women were unfair by modern standards, wishing a ship would be faithful and dutiful like what was considered the good woman if not in itself objectification of women.
Reply
#13
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
(July 13, 2015 at 3:23 am)excitedpenguin Wrote:
(July 13, 2015 at 3:16 am)Atheist_BG Wrote: I stick to the grammatical rules.

You sound boring!
Grammar is there for us, not the other way around. You can overstep it if you like.

It's not about fashion but about education. Using the wrong grammatical forms only tells other people you're not well enough educated. Just like many people (mostly Americans) don't know the difference between the conditional moods "was" and "were". While many people say "if god was real" the correct form is "if god were real". I don't know about you but I don't like people thinking about me I've skipped classes, which I've never done (cuz English classes were my favorites at school and I never skipped even one).
[Image: OAsWbDZ.png]
Reply
#14
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
(July 13, 2015 at 1:34 pm)Atheist_BG Wrote:
(July 13, 2015 at 3:23 am)excitedpenguin Wrote: You sound boring!
Grammar is there for us, not the other way around. You can overstep it if you like.

It's not about fashion but about education. Using the wrong grammatical forms only tells other people you're not well enough educated. Just like many people (mostly Americans) don't know the difference between the conditional moods "was" and "were". While many people say "if god was real" the correct form is "if god were real". I don't know about you but I don't like people thinking about me I've skipped classes, which I've never done (cuz English classes were my favorite at school and I never skipped even one).

You're being pedantic, for no reason at all. You can't know it's mostly americans. Don't be such an asshole.
I know a great deal of people who know a lot more about their own language than you do about yours , I'm sure, that choose to speak incorrectly on occasion - there's a thing we do that is called being playful.
Reply
#15
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
(July 13, 2015 at 1:34 pm)Atheist_BG Wrote:
(July 13, 2015 at 3:23 am)excitedpenguin Wrote: You sound boring!
Grammar is there for us, not the other way around. You can overstep it if you like.

It's not about fashion but about education. Using the wrong grammatical forms only tells other people you're not well enough educated. Just like many people (mostly Americans) don't know the difference between the conditional moods "was" and "were". While many people say "if god was real" the correct form is "if god were real". I don't know about you but I don't like people thinking about me I've skipped classes, which I've never done (cuz English classes were my favorites at school and I never skipped even one).


If you are going to criticize people for incorrect grammar, you should make a better effort to use correct grammar yourself.  Your last sentence is a garbled mess.  It is much worse than someone using "was" when "were" would be correct.

"A wise man ... proportions his belief to the evidence."
— David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Section X, Part I.
Reply
#16
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
(July 13, 2015 at 1:40 pm)excitedpenguin Wrote: You can't know it's mostly americans. Don't be such an asshole.
I know a great deal of people who know a lot more about their own language than you do about yours , I'm sure, that choose to speak incorrectly on occasion - there's a thing we do that is called being playful.

Yes, I can because in the most of the time I talk to Americans one way or another - forums, e-mails, sometimes even voice calls on Skype.
I'm not asshole. Judging by another topic on AF, it's not me who's being an asshole. Our cute girl tried to help you but you proved to her you don't deserve to be helped, so think again who the asshole is.

Unlike America in Bulgaria personal ratings at school are not marked by letters but by numbers - 2 is the lowest and 6 is the highest. My rating about Bulgarian grammar is 5.92. Only me and another 2 percent of the entire nation have the same rating as mine. All other ratings are below 4.00. Only when you achieve such a rating you can talk about what I know or not know.

(July 13, 2015 at 1:45 pm)Pyrrho Wrote:
(July 13, 2015 at 1:34 pm)Atheist_BG Wrote: It's not about fashion but about education. Using the wrong grammatical forms only tells other people you're not well enough educated. Just like many people (mostly Americans) don't know the difference between the conditional moods "was" and "were". While many people say "if god was real" the correct form is "if god were real". I don't know about you but I don't like people thinking about me I've skipped classes, which I've never done (cuz English classes were my favorites at school and I never skipped even one).


If you are going to criticize people for incorrect grammar, you should make a better effort to use correct grammar yourself.  Your last sentence is a garbled mess.  It is much worse than someone using "was" when "were" would be correct.
When I'm tired I make mistakes.
[Image: OAsWbDZ.png]
Reply
#17
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
My sister named her car Joey and referred to it as a "he" if/when personifying it.

My mom and sister named my car Isabella, but I never refer to it by name. It's just my car. Tongue
Teenaged X-Files obsession + Bermuda Triangle episode + Self-led school research project = Atheist.
Reply
#18
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
Basically if you can get inside of it ..
Reply
#19
Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
It really depends on the personality of the vehicle. Some of my vehicles have been transgendered I believe.
Reply
#20
RE: Question to all Americans: why do you refer to vehicles and ships as "she"?
Well, ships because they end up full of seamen...

Playing Cluedo with my mum while I was at Uni:

"You did WHAT?  With WHO?  WHERE???"
Reply



Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
Shocked Americans and their nationalities? no one 10 722 July 22, 2024 at 1:06 pm
Last Post: zebo-the-fat
  Last night my 10-year old daughter said that she did not believe in God. Jehanne 22 3088 December 26, 2021 at 5:37 pm
Last Post: The Grand Nudger
Thumbs Up The downside of electric vehicles. onlinebiker 40 2729 August 17, 2021 at 9:01 am
Last Post: onlinebiker
  She's a Killer. onlinebiker 60 5026 January 4, 2021 at 2:32 pm
Last Post: arewethereyet
  Question about all these questions popping up. no one 6 872 September 22, 2020 at 12:26 am
Last Post: arewethereyet
  Lucky-Assed Americans: What Will You Do with Your $1200? Rhondazvous 22 3645 May 2, 2020 at 6:03 pm
Last Post: onlinebiker
  How Americans view the British Cod 81 8846 December 26, 2018 at 10:40 am
Last Post: Fireball
  She came back for your cable...... Brian37 11 1629 August 16, 2018 at 3:46 pm
Last Post: Brian37
  Unless she changed her username... Silver 7 1138 March 1, 2018 at 11:54 am
Last Post: Losty
  Just because She's Topless chimp3 162 21217 January 8, 2018 at 10:24 pm
Last Post: Haipule



Users browsing this thread: 5 Guest(s)