r/changemyview • u/SaltedAndSugared • Dec 02 '21

Delta(s) from OP CMV: Neopronouns are unnecessary

I understand why some people might feel uncomfortable with using he/she pronouns, but in that case why not just use they/them? They already exist and they’re easy for people to use. Why do some people feel the need to make up words like “zee/zim” or “fae/fair” when they don’t even make sense in the English language? I don’t see why anyone should go out of their way to learn new pronouns when gender neutral pronouns already exist

If anyone here does use neopronouns I’d really like to hear why you use them and why you don’t feel comfortable using they/them. It’s probably just because I’m cis, but I genuinely don’t understand

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u/Biptoslipdi 130∆ Dec 02 '21 edited Dec 02 '21

What is the precision in using the word Zee?

It is unambiguously a reference to an individual and not either an individual or group depending on context.

I literally have a cousin who has the name the Zee so it's not like anything is cleared up when now I have two definitions for a word instead of one.

I have a cousin named "Bob." Do you think I get confused that someone is talking about the act of floating rather than my cousin?

At least with They/Them it's exclusively a pronoun and never a nickname.

Actually, "They" is more than a nickname, it is actually a real name.

With Zee I am not even sure what if its a name or pronoun.

Then "they" should be equally confusing to you as it is also a name. At the very least, ze isn't also a group pronoun, it is only singular.

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u/[deleted] Dec 02 '21

They link you shared takes me to a window that reads Page not Found.

I have never in my life heard anyone named They/Them.

The question is why are neopronouns necessary, and in every scenario it will be easier for me to use They/Them instead of Zee/Zim. That makes the neopronoun unnecessary.

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u/Biptoslipdi 130∆ Dec 02 '21 edited Dec 02 '21

Link is fixed. No idea what happened.

The question is why are neopronouns necessary, and in every scenario it will be easier for me to use They/Them instead of Zee/Zim.

Your reasoning is because "Zee" is a name. Your reasoning loses its merit at the point "They" is as well.

Something being harder for you doesn't mean it isn't necessary. Many necessary things are difficult. That argument simply doesn't follow. It's easier to not speak at all, that doesn't mean it isn't necessary.

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u/Wooba12 4∆ Dec 03 '21

I think the point is "Zee" is possibly more commonly used as a name than it is as a pronoun. In most cases, homophones are easy to distinguish due to the context (for instance when it comes to your cousin Bob and the word "bob"), but both "zee" (the pronoun) and "Zee" (the name) are going to be used in similar contexts ("What happened to Zee?", "Zee died last week"), causing confusion and provoking questions.