At 12:09 PM 8/13/96 -0800, Stephen Nowlin wrote:

(snip)
>What's an abbess?  I always wondered, why didn't we have lawyeress,
>doctoress, airline pilotess, or bus driveress before the age of
>ess-enlightenment?

Probably because, until fairly recent times when many occupations opened up
to all genders and the "-ess" suffix fell out of favor in some circles,
there simply weren't many women in these positions.

Many of my female artist friends prefer to be known as "actress,"
"sculptress," "poetess," etc., since they feel their work comes from a
distinctly female point-of-view.


Eugene W. Dillenburg
Coordinator, Special Projects
Exhibits Department
The Field Museum of Natural History
Chicago, Illinois  60605-2496
V: (312) 922-9410 x636
F: (312) 922-6973
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"Never pay more than minimum wage for a shirt."

                                -- Bruce Elliott