Who Are These People?

Each one of us is accustomed to the word “I” used as a self identification. “We” is the plural form. Other first person pronouns are “me,” “my,” “our,” and “us.”

Second person pronouns refer to the person to whom you speak directly, the person or people across from you in a conversation, or even you as the reader of this blog. Second person pronouns are the basic “you” and “your,” with the additional “you’re” (a contraction for “you are”) thrown in because it is commonly used.

The third person pronoun indicates anyone at all out there in the universe, Third person pronouns are “he,” “she,” “they,” “theirs,” “them,” etc.

No doubt someone has told you not to use second person pronouns (“you,” “your”) in formal writing, and you may wonder why that is the case. The answer is that second person pronouns are considered too personal for formal writing; and third person pronouns are preferred for a considered, somewhat impersonal but objective tone.

One way to remember to use third person pronouns is to concoct a mental picture of your professor holding your essay and reading along nicely until the moment comes when a statement such as, “You should never drink a gallon of whiskey and then get behind the wheel of your car” catches him (or her if you don’t want to be sexist) by surprise.

You might imagine your professor taking terrible offense with a frowning “Who… me?” expression taking the place of a previously pleased one as the reading of your otherwise perfect paper continues. It is far better for your timely advice against whiskey drinking and driving to be directed toward anyone else, some anonymous “he” or “she” or “they” out there in the wide, wide world, rather than your very own professor whose drinking and driving habits are doubtless above suspicion.

In any reading, whoever is doing the reading can be considered the “you” to whom you refer when opting to use a second person pronoun. Stay with third person pronouns so that your reader cannot take what you say personally. (You might note that I used a sentence formation that constitutes the “you understood” form, as in (“You”) Stay with third person pronouns ….)

Two other aspects of pronoun usage have to do with number (Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement) and case (Pronoun Case). I hope that you will look into both topics in order to learn to apply the right pronoun in the right place.

There is little I can say about the awkwardness of “he/she” or “him/her” constructs. That difficulty belongs to grammarians concerned about gender bias. I try to avoid putting myself in the position of trying to solve the problem of sexism in writing, often choosing plural nouns so that the generic “them” or “their” or “they” takes the place of a singular “he/she” or “him/her.” Once upon a long time ago, a singular noun was followed by “he” or “him,” meaning mankind (or humankind), all of us; but that usage has passed from favor nowadays. That said, the unwieldy use of “he/she” or “s/he” is probably more acceptable than using the word “you” in a formal essay.

Roxy’s tip: Avoid awkwardness and confusion in your fomal writing by using pronouns appropriately.

See you next time the breeze is cool, the sun is up, and the waves roll into view! My next entry is coming soon. ‘Til then, hang ten!