ansok@spp3.UUCP (Gary Ansok) (03/17/86)
As long as we're talking about non-sexist language, are there any suggestions on how to open a letter to someone whose gender you don't know? I became curious while sending out resumes and finding many ads said to respond to "J. Smith" or suchlike. What should the salutation be like for this? I usually used "Dear Mr. Smith" but felt really strange. Actually most of these people turned out to be women but I decided that 1) the masculine supposedly doubles as the unspecified and 2) a woman was less likely to be offended by Mr. than a man by Ms. (Not impossible, but less likely). Which do you folks prefer: Dear Mr. Smith: Dear Ms. Smith: Dear Mr./Ms. Smith: Dear J. Smith: Dear Smith: Dear Sir: Dear Madam: Dear Sir or Madam: Gary Ansok I am proud to be a man human huperson huperchild earthling!
kwh@bentley.UUCP (KW Heuer) (03/18/86)
In article <286@spp3.UUCP> spp3!ansok (Gary Ansok) writes: >As long as we're talking about non-sexist language, are there any >suggestions on how to open a letter to someone whose gender you >don't know? ... Which do you folks prefer: [ condensed into an egrep expression for brevity. --kwh ] >Dear (((Mr\.|Ms\.|Mr\./Ms\.|J\.) )? Smith|Sir|Madam|Sir or Madam): I usually use "J. Smith" or "Sir/Madam". I predict that in the relatively near future, the title "Sir" will be considered neuter, like "Master". (A previous posting noted that "Mistress of Arts" is a forgotten degree.) Or possibly, following the contraction of "Miss/Mrs." into "Ms.", there will a contraction of "Mr./Ms." into "M." or something. ("M." is a bad choice because it looks like an initial, and conflicts with the French title; "Comrade" is a nice neutral word but will never be accepted in the USA.)
jcp@osiris.UUCP (Jody Patilla) (03/19/86)
> As long as we're talking about non-sexist language, are there any > suggestions on how to open a letter to someone whose gender you > don't know? I became curious while sending out resumes and finding > Dear Mr. Smith: > Dear Ms. Smith: etc..... After working in an office where everyone from the director down to the lowliest clerk (me) was female and getting all our mail addressed to "Dear Sir" (pretty damned irritating after awhile) I have taken to addressing all my correspondence of this nature to "Dear Gentlefolk". (and what is this nonsense about women being less offended about being called "Mr." than men about being called "Ms." ? Now that *is* a ridiculously sexist attitude !) -- jcpatilla ..{seismo,allegra}!umcp-cs!aplcen!osiris!jcp "Makes your bread dance and your cakes sing doo-dah !"
bill@utastro.UUCP (William H. Jefferys) (03/20/86)
In article <715@osiris.UUCP>, jcp@osiris.UUCP (Jody Patilla) writes: > After working in an office where everyone from the director down > to the lowliest clerk (me) was female and getting all our mail addressed > to "Dear Sir" (pretty damned irritating after awhile) I have taken to > addressing all my correspondence of this nature to "Dear Gentlefolk". > ...Which reminds me that the late George Abell, when he headed the Department of Astronomy at UCLA, designated himself "Chaircritter". -- Glend. I can call spirits from the vasty deep. Hot. Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come when you do call for them? -- Henry IV Pt. I, III, i, 53 Bill Jefferys 8-% Astronomy Dept, University of Texas, Austin TX 78712 (USnail) {allegra,ihnp4}!{ut-sally,noao}!utastro!bill (UUCP) bill@astro.UTEXAS.EDU. (Internet)
wombat@ccvaxa.UUCP (03/21/86)
I've always like opening letters with Gentle Being, Can't remember where I first saw it. No one has ever complained to me that they didn't like it. "When you are about to die, a wombat is better than no company at all." Roger Zelazny, *Doorways in the Sand* Wombat ihnp4!uiucdcs!ccvaxa!wombat
barb@proper.UUCP (Barbara Petersen) (03/22/86)
In article <715@osiris.UUCP>, jcp@osiris.UUCP (Jody Patilla) writes: > After working in an office where everyone from the director down > to the lowliest clerk (me) was female and getting all our mail addressed > to "Dear Sir" (pretty damned irritating after awhile) I have taken to > addressing all my correspondence of this nature to "Dear Gentlefolk". In a similar vein, I often use "Gentlepersons". -- | Barbara Petersen | "Oh, I dunno.... {amdahl, qantel, dual}!proper!barb | ....call it a hunch." |
jpexg@mit-hermes.ARPA (John Purbrick) (03/23/86)
> > As long as we're talking about non-sexist language, are there any > > suggestions on how to open a letter to someone whose gender you > > don't know? I became curious while sending out resumes and finding > > > Dear Mr. Smith: > > Dear Ms. Smith: [Open the letter by putting your finger under the flap and tearing across....] How about "To whom it may concern"? But that implies that you don't know a last name. Same goes for the form favored in Britain: "Dear Sir or Madam," ("will you read my book, it took me years to write, etc") If you have a context that you know them in, you could use that. The organization that I go canoeing with often addresses its members as "Dear Paddlers". Thus "Dear Applicant", "Dear Students", etc??? Best stick with "Dear Mr/Ms Smith". If you want to shock them, say "Dear Ms/Mr Smith" instead.
nather@utastro.UUCP (03/24/86)
In article <1400007@ccvaxa>, wombat@ccvaxa.UUCP writes: > > I've always like opening letters with > > Gentle Being, > > Can't remember where I first saw it. No one has ever complained to me that > they didn't like it. I don't like it. It's an oxymoron, Earthman. -- Ed Nather Astronomy Dept, U of Texas @ Austin {allegra,ihnp4}!{noao,ut-sally}!utastro!nather nather@astro.UTEXAS.EDU
jsq@im4u.UUCP (John Quarterman) (03/25/86)
Two I've seen used a lot are "Folks" and "Greetings".
I suppose the former is mostly appropriate when you
actually know most of the people you're addressing.
--
John Quarterman, UUCP: {gatech,harvard,ihnp4,pyramid,seismo}!ut-sally!im4u!jsq
ARPA Internet and CSNET: jsq@im4u.UTEXAS.EDU, jsq@sally.UTEXAS.EDUweemba@brahms.BERKELEY.EDU (Matthew P. Wiener) (03/25/86)
When I write to entities, I like to be as friendly as possible. So my salutations are of the form: Dear International Business Machines, Incorporated: Dear University of California, Berkeley campus: etc. Except sometimes I'm not very happy with them: Dear Company: Dear Bank: etc. That'll show them. ucbvax!brahms!weemba Matthew P Wiener/UCB Math Dept/Berkeley CA 94720
toml@oliveb.UUCP (Tom Long) (03/25/86)
I use "Ladies and Gentlemen" when I write to people I don't know. Tom Long
nather@utastro.UUCP (03/25/86)
In article <825@im4u.UUCP>, jsq@im4u.UUCP (John Quarterman) writes: > Two I've seen used a lot are "Folks" and "Greetings". > I suppose the former is mostly appropriate when you > actually know most of the people you're addressing. The latter was made infamous (and, I suspect, still unusable) just prior to U.S. entry into WWII as the salutation on all draft notices ... -- Ed Nather Astronomy Dept, U of Texas @ Austin {allegra,ihnp4}!{noao,ut-sally}!utastro!nather nather@astro.UTEXAS.EDU
jeanette@randvax.UUCP (Jeanette Haritan) (03/26/86)
> >I usually use "J. Smith" or "Sir/Madam". I predict that in the relatively >near future, the title "Sir" will be considered neuter, like "Master". (A >previous posting noted that "Mistress of Arts" is a forgotten degree.) > >Or possibly, following the contraction of "Miss/Mrs." into "Ms.", there will >a contraction of "Mr./Ms." into "M." or something. ("M." is a bad choice >because it looks like an initial, and conflicts with the French title; >"Comrade" is a nice neutral word but will never be accepted in the USA.) I believe the above choices are the only proper ways. What is inappropriate (as a *self-proclaimed* expert 8*} ) is "Dear Gentlemen". I'M NOT A GENTLEMAN...geeze! Also inappropriate is "To Whom it May Concern". Another good choice is "Hey You" 8*} . -- **** **** ****** ****** * * * * * * * * * jeannette * * * * * ** ** *** *** ***** *** *
jeanette@randvax.UUCP (Jeanette Haritan) (03/26/86)
In article <128@proper.UUCP> barb@proper.UUCP (Barbara Petersen) writes: > >In article <715@osiris.UUCP>, jcp@osiris.UUCP (Jody Patilla) writes: >> After working in an office where everyone from the director down >> to the lowliest clerk (me) was female and getting all our mail addressed >> to "Dear Sir" (pretty damned irritating after awhile) I have taken to >> addressing all my correspondence of this nature to "Dear Gentlefolk". > >In a similar vein, I often use "Gentlepersons". > I remember an incident where I typed a letter to an unknown gender. My previous boss had written "Dear Sir". Instead, I typed "Dear Gentleperson", whereupon my boss scratched the salutation and re-wrote "Dear Gentlemen". Because he signed my paychecks I carried the battle no further, however, from that point on, he left the salutation line blank, allowing me to do as I pleased (softie that he was 8*} ). -- **** **** ****** ****** * * * * * * * * * jeannette * * * * * ** ** *** *** ***** *** *
arnold@ucsfcgl.UUCP (Ken Arnold%CGL) (03/27/86)
In article <825@im4u.UUCP> John Quarterman writes: >Two I've seen used a lot are "Folks" and "Greetings". >I suppose the former is mostly appropriate when you >actually know most of the people you're addressing. I suspect that there are a reasonably large number of people who would not appreciate getting letters that start off: Greetings; Might even give them a heart attack. At least during the Vietnam era, letters from the draft board telling you you'd been chosen used this salutation. Even *thinking* about it gives me the shivers. Ken Arnold
purves@muddcs.UUCP (03/29/86)
Several interesting suggestions have been made as to salutations
directed at unknown parties. This is a problem I have often
faced. My solution is one that I regard as simple and, well,
ELEGANT: if I don't know who/what I am writing to, I simply
don't use any salutation at all! It seems to me that this is
unlikely to offend, whereas some of the "alternative" salutations
that have been offered here DO offend some people--myself included.
Note that very few contributions to the net (or to e-mail in general)
begin with salutations...
--
Bill Purves (714) 621-8021
Depts. of Biology and Computer Science {cepu,ihnp4,ucbvax}!ucla-cs!purves
Harvey Mudd College purves@LOCUS.UCLA.EDU
Claremont, CA 91711
"Those Who Are Ignorant of Biology Are Destined to Repeat It"