Posted by David Bamford on March 24, 2002 at 22:17:57 from 203.10.110.132:
In Reply to: Re: Ships as "she" posted by Peter H on March 24, 2002 at 13:12:04:
Personally, I disagree with using "the" at all, preferring to refer to the ship [or locomotive] by its name. My own boat was named "Swallow" by its first owner in 1917, and I refer to it by name only, not prefixed by anything. The reference to locomotives is very interesting, as it encompasses the relationship between the apparently inanimate article and the crew, to whom it is anything but inanimate. This may be a love/hate relationship, but it is rarely uninvolved.