5.

Nouns – The
Grammatical Categories of
Gender and Case

Mgr. Juraj Datko, PhD.;

Summer 2020/2021
THE GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF GENDER

- Old English grammatical gender = is reflected in agreement patterns on

other elements = e.g. if a noun belongs to masculine gender, then related verb,
adjective, numeral, or demonstrative pronoun may be modified to reflect this,
having “masculine gender” agreement.

- Modern English natural gender = is based on sex as a biological distinction

between male beings (masculine), female beings (feminine), or inanimate things
and animals (neuter). (add 5 examples for each gender!)
HOW IS GENDER EXPRESSED?
1.) by gender-forming suffixes: -ess = prince - princess, actor - actress, ... (add 5
other examples!); -ette = usher - usherette, farmer - farmerette, ... (add 4 other
examples!); -ine = hero - heroine; -trix = aviator - aviatrix, executor - executrix,
mediator - mediatrix, ... (add 2 other examples!); -e = fiancé - fiancée, ... (add 2
other examples!)

2.) lexically:
a.) by different words = boy - girl, husband - wife, sir - madam, ... (add 5 other
examples!)
- nouns with a generic term + a pair: horse - stallion / mare, sheep - ram / ewe,
turkey - gobbler / hen, monarch - king / queen, ... (add 5 other examples!)
b.) by pronouns = wolf - she-wolf, goat - she-goat, ... (add 2 other examples!)
c.) by words indicating the gender = male reader - female reader, male author -
female author, ...
COMMON GENDER

A gender applied to a noun that can be either masculine or feminine,

depending on the gender of the being it is applied to.
- personal and possesive pronouns tell us whether the reference is to male or
female = The student went into the dining hall with his friend.
- examples: singer, journalist, neighbour, teacher, ... (add 5 other examples!)

- BUT: if the reference to a pet (or an object) is affectionate, the pronouns “he” or
“she” are used (not “it”).
M = dog, horse, canary, ...
F = cat, parrot, fish, car, ship, aircraft, ...
METAPHORICAL GENDER

The personification of sexless objects and abstract concepts is used for poetic
effect or to show strong emotional involvement.
Masculine gender: names of winds, rivers, mountains, and *small tools
*knives = “I’ll tell you what I found—one of our old hay knives. I got him out and
cleaned him up and put a new handle on him”. (Somerset Rural Life Museum)

- Although “he” is used less frequently than “she” when referencing devices,
small tools are treated as masculine in some dialects.
- in literature: winter, autumn, summer,*God, time, the sun, anger, love, murder,
war, death, ...
*God = ... God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called
according to his purpose. (Bible, Romans 8:28)

TASK: Prepare an explanation why the noun “God” belongs to masculine gender.
Feminine gender: names of universities, cities / towns, *countries, and
*vehicles
*countries = Mother Russia, England and her colonies, ...
- Although this usage is now mostly archaic, European countries have been
traditionally treated as feminine.
*ships = Diamond Princess, Queen Marry II, USS Barry, Hercules, Bismarck, ...
- There are various theories why ships (also with male and non-personal names)
are treated as feminine - a.) naming ships after goddesses, well-known women, or
female family members; b.) the tradition of having a female figurehead on the
front of the ship; c.) viewing a vessel as a motherly figure; or d.) satirically
comparing the attributes of ships with women (linking a ship to a woman who is
expensive to keep and needs a man to guide her and a lick of paint to look good).
*cars / trains = “My car, she’s a beauty.”
- The above are treated as feminine in informal contexts and when spoken by
men.
- in literature: the moon, *the earth, mercy, charity, faith, hope, modesty, justice,
freedom, ocean/sea, nature, luck, liberty, victory, music, wisdom, ...
*the earth = Joy to the world, the Lord has come,
Let earth receive her king … (a popular Christmas carol)

TASK: Prepare an explanation why the noun “earth” belongs to feminine gender.
Fig. 1 - Ships’ Figureheads (Wikipedia [online], 2005; Peabody Essex Museum [online], 2013)
Recent changes:
In general, feminizing and masculinizing inanimate objects is considered
outdated in English, and the practice is discouraged in official documents,
newspapers and other formal texts.
- ships:
- The Chicago Manual of Style, Associated Press Style Book, and The New York
Times Style Manual recommend treating ships as neuter, because they view the
practice of calling ships “she” as outdated and patronizing toward women.
- the Royal Navy and the US Navy continue to treat ships as feminine, because
they view it as an important tradition and a sign of respect toward the vessel.
- robots, computers, and tools:
- Recently, English speakers assign both masculine and feminine identities to
robots, computers and computer systems (even to non-humanlike or disembodied
machines).
- hurricanes:
- In the 1950s, meteorologists began naming hurricanes in the Atlantic with female
names and the newspapers referred to them as “she”. In the 1970s feminists
pressured the field to change its practices starting with Hurricane Bob.
- Hurricanes are now given alternating feminine and masculine names and are
treated as neuter.
THE GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF CASE

- Old English 4 cases = nominative, genitive, dative, accusative

- Modern English 2 cases:

a.) the common case = uninflected form

b.) the possessive/genitive case = inflected by:
-’s in singular: a girl’s book, my mother-in-law’s book, the boss’s birthday,
Peter and Paul’s quarrel, ... (add 5 other examples!)
-’ in plural: girls’ school, our parents’ house, the students’ favorite subject, ...
(add 5 other examples!)
BUT: children’s toys, the men’s room, ...
THE POSSESSIVE CASE IN PROPER NAMES ENDING IN “S”

When it comes to the possessive form of proper names that end in “s”, guides
disagree:

1.) Add -’ for ancient or classical names, but -’s for other names ending in “s”:
Achilles’ sword, Euripides’ tragedies, Descartes’ philosophy, BUT: Travis’s friends,
Kansas’s legislature, ... (The Chicago Manual of Style)

2.) Add -’ for all names ending in “s”: Dickens’ novels, Columbus’ voyages, Texas’
population, Charles’ pen, the Ganges’ source, ... (Associated Press Style Book)

3.) Add -’s for all names ending in “s”: Jesus’s name, Moses’s tent, Kansas’s
governor, Thomas’s car, Luis’s girlfriend, ... (The New York Times Style Manual)

4.) Add -’ if the possessive of a name ending in “s” is not pronounced with an
extra syllable: thus, Socrates’ philosophy because we say /ˈsɒk rə tiːz fə ˈlɒs əf ɪ/,
not /ˈsɒk rə tiːz ɪ(ə)z fə ˈlɒs əf ɪ/. (Penguin Guide to Punctuation)
DEPENDENT GENITIVE
- is followed by a noun and is used with: (add 2 other examples for each
category!) a.) proper names = Paul’s car, Alexander Pope’s poems, ...
b.) personal nouns = my sister’s school, the policeman’s wife, ...
c.) personal indefinite pronouns = someone’s passport, one’s life, ...
d.) names of animals = a dog’s life, cow’s milk, ...
e.) collective nouns = the government’s decision, your choir’s voices, ...
f.) geographical names = Slovakia’s export, Europe’s future, ...
g.) institutional names = the school’s history, a bank’s SWIFT code, …
h.) expressions of time, space, weight, or distance = the river’s edge, journey’s
end, …
i.) names of seasons, months, or days = Sunday’s newspapers, January’s weather
extremes, …
j.) words: sun, moon, earth, world, ship, boat, and vessel = the earth’s surface,
ship’s cargo, …
k.) personification (in poetry) = wind’s whistle, the sea’s roar, …
l.) fixed expressions = to be at the death’s door, by a hair’s breadth, …
THE ABSOLUTE / ELYPTICAL GENITIVE
- is not followed by a noun and is used when:

a.) it is clear what / who we are talking about = My car is next to Peter’s. Whose
hat is that? Caroline’s.

b.) referring to work-places, shops, banks, cathedrals, colleges, or houses = I’m

at ... the hairdresser’s, the butcher’s (shop), Marks and Spencer’s, McDonald’s,
Barclay’s (bank), St. Paul’s (cathedral), St John’s (college), Peter and Helen’s
(house), ...
THE “OF-GENITIVE” / “OF-CONSTRUCTION”

- is used with:

a.) things when we cannot form a compound = the shade of a tree

b.) parts of things = the roof of the house
c.) abstract nouns = the cost of living
d.) partitives = a slice of bread
e.) geographical notions = the city of Dublin

(add another example for each category!)

THE DOUBLE GENITIVE

- consists of two possessives (the “of-construction” + the absolute genitive) and is

used when a noun is determined by:

a.) the indefinite article = a friend of my father’s

b.) numerals = two sons of my uncle’s
c.) some = Jane is having lunch with some colleagues of hers.
d.) demonstrative pronouns = that idea of John’s

REMEMBER THAT:
- the absolute genitive must be personal;
- the noun preceding the “of-construction” cannot be a proper noun.