- Argument1 of 2›
It is improper grammar to use singular "they/them"
It would be detrimental to learning to change the grammatical rules which are already in place, as students would then have to unlearn old grammar - it is more difficult to unlearn something than it is to learn something new. Therefore it is more logical to use a new set of gender-neutral pronouns.
The argument
The objection here is grammatical rather than about whether non-binary people should have pronouns of their own. "They/them" is plural and that is that: it is what the words are and what they have always done within the structure of the language. Repurposing them as singular is therefore not an extension of existing usage but a change to a fundamental part of the foundation of grammar, namely number agreement, which governs how verbs and pronouns relate across every sentence rather than sitting in one corner of the language that could be adjusted on its own. The cost of such a change, on this view, is confusion, and the confusion falls in a particular place. Grammarians everywhere would have to reconcile the new usage with rules that contradict it, but the harder case is the classroom. Students are in the middle of learning how number works, and are being taught that a plural pronoun takes a plural verb and refers to more than one. A rule presented as foundational and then suspended for one purpose does not read to a learner as a considered exception; it reads as the rule not being a rule. And if the teacher is confused, asked to enforce agreement generally while teaching an instance in which it does not hold, then how are the students supposed to learn? What this argument does not do is deny that non-binary people need pronouns. It accepts that they do and objects only to meeting that need by overloading a word already doing other work. A new set of gender-neutral pronouns avoids the problem entirely, since new words carry no established number to contradict, so nothing has to be unlearned and no existing rule is broken. Because it is improper grammar to use singular "they/them," we should use a new set of gender-neutral pronouns for non-binary persons.
Premises
Counter-arguments
Singular "they/them" is gaining acceptance within many scholarly circles and has already been in use for decades, and was previously in use centuries ago. It is actually the plural-only usage of the pronouns which has upset the grammatical balance. This is only an example of how language changes over time. Singular "they/them" is already a part of the natural evolution of the English language, and the change should be embraced, not stonewalled.
Rejecting the premises
[Rejecting P1] Singular "they/them" is becoming more and more accepted by society and grammarians.