Re: Who can't write?

Subject: Re: Who can't write?
From: Gwen Gall <ggall -at- CA -dot- ORACLE -dot- COM>
Date: Thu, 18 Aug 1994 14:09:04 EDT

In-Reply-To: CNSEQ1:TECHWR-L -at- VM1 -dot- ucc -dot- okstate -dot- edu's message of 08-18-94 09:30

When Bonni says:

> The more an engineer protests that he or she can write "just as well as a
> writer" the more likely it is that he or she cannot. The less he or she
> protests this, the more likely it is that he or she can, but won't.

I am reminded of something my Engineering Professor father once explained
to me: Engineers have an unspoken but extremely well-understood set of
characteristics, which they obsessively develop from day 1 of first year
university, and to which they adhere unswervingly ever after. Besides thinking
they are experts in _every_subject_known_to_humankind_ because they know how
to build a bridge or write a computer program, they also adhere to the belief
that, if _you_ don't intrinsically and *instantly* understand it, _they_
certainly aren't going to waste their time explaining it to you (i.e. write it
down). This isn't to say all (well, not *all*) engineers have an unjustified,
inflated image of their own intelligence; hence Bonni's adage "the more likely
it is that he or she _can_ (emphasis mine), but _won't_ (emphasis mine)". It's
gotta go with the image, ya know.

I know this is true from deep, personal experience...(Father, Father-Out-Law,
Brother-Out-Law, and all the engineers I've ever tried to extract information
from on the job).

A telling exception to this: My spouse worked with a young guy who had recently
graduated from engineering, and he and his girlfriend came over for dinner,
then we all went out to a movie together. Later, when I remarked to Greg that
the fellow didn't seem anything like an engineer, Greg's explanation was that
the guy had only gone into engineering under extreme pressure from his
traditional (East Indian) father--he really wanted to be a film-maker! (For
those who care to know, he has since moved out of his father's home and into
his girlfriend's bohemian apartment, quit his engineering job, and gone back to
school--taking film studies. He's much happier now, even tho' his family has
disowned him, and his girlfriend has to support him.)


Take care, and may your dog go with you,

Gwen "Never generalize" Gall

P.S. My Father-in-law truly believes that I am a technical writer because I
am incapable of being an engineer--he doesn't accept the argument that I
never wanted to be one in the first place! He has never asked my why I didn't
follow in my father's footsteps, however--I'm a girl, after all. I only know
this from "discussions" of sexism in school (including engineering--he too is
a prof.) All his four sons were pressed extremely...but only one, the eldest,
fell hook-line-etc. His fourth son, who _dared_ to be so radical as to become a
(classical) musician, is incomprehensible to him. I'm sure it would have killed
the poor guy if any of his sons had turned out to be gay!

*Personal Diatribe over (as is my lunch)* Apologies offered to any offended...


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