Apocalypto!

[elfs]

No one can outrun their destiny.

Look, Mel. I can probably forgive the anti-semitic bullshit. I can understand that everyone carries a little-- or a lot-- of hypocritical bigotry inside them for one group or another, and it is the hypocrisy of keeping it inside all the time while living up to the higher standards of public discourse that make civilization clank along in its ungainly fashion like Frankenstein's Monster.

But get your freaking tagline's grammar right! Okay? "No one can outrun his destiny." Got it? Repeat after me. "No one can outrun his destiny." Singular referent, singular reference. Make sure you get it right before you put it on posters going up in every theater across the planet! Otherwise people really will start to think you really are a bloody idiot.

I'm just sayin'.

Comments

Singular 'they'

[(Anonymous)]

http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/002536.html

The singular 'they' isn't necessarily bad grammar. For whatever reason, when I read that tagline, it does not make me cringe. Of course I don't write nearly as much or as often as you do.

[vik_thor]

»points up« What they said.

I use the singular they quite a bit. Not saying that makes it correct, just that its use is quite common.
(and this should not be construed as an endorsement of Mr. Mel...)

[j5nn5r.livejournal.com]

How would *you* write that gender neutral?

I'm really curious.

The only solution I can think of is "they". Yes I know abut singular referent, singular reference.

[norikos-author.livejournal.com]

Singular 'they' dates back to at least the 1200s. Sorry, Elf, but you're wrong on this one.

[valarltd.livejournal.com]

I'd capitalize Destinty and omit any possessive.

"No one can outrun Destiny."

Or is that just pretentious?

Gordan Sumner

[pendorbound.livejournal.com]

Yeah, yeah, but Sting was an English teach (an English English teacher at that), and it was still, "If you love someone, set them free."

I feel your pain, though. It makes me cringe every time I hear it. But I give up. This grammar-nazi's letting this one slide from now on.

[(Anonymous)]

First if you capitalise destiny it makes it sound like a name, "noone can outrun Destiny" could mean there's some girl called Destiny pursuing you.

While "they" does seem a bit odd when you think about it all these rules don't affect evolution. Language evolution is based on its use not the written rules, otherwise we'd need huge committees to decide on how to change things and be sueing dictionary publishers for false advertising when they make mistakes. "You said it was an English dictionary, it doesn't conform to English grammar therefore it must not be English."

oh the irony

[(Anonymous)]

"I can understand that everyone carries a little-- or a lot-- of hypocritical bigotry inside them for one group or another ... "

Well, the indefinite pronoun 'everyone' is singular, and later in the sentence you used the word 'them,' which is plural. Who's a hypocrite now?

There are two further errors in that sentence. I'll let you find them :)