Pronouns - He, She, It, They, One

Ed · Post by Ed » Fri Apr 18, 2008 10:40 am

Hi Writers,

I've posted a blog concerning pronouns. Please take a look, and if you have any questions or comments, let's discuss them.

(Posting was a struggle . . . if you see any stray html, my apologies.)

Ed

Tuomas Tapola · Post by **Tuomas Tapola** » Fri Apr 18, 2008 9:53 pm

Not quite sure if I should put it here or on the thread meant for this.

You forgot a space on the second example, second sentence: Theyalso live a long time. It should have a space between They and also.

Anyway, to the question. I was wondering how long is it fine to use a pronoun instead of the noun. So if I would write a text and mention in the first sentence "a cat" and from there on call it she, should I stop calling the cat "she" latest when the paragraph ends, or would it be better to continue?

Ed · Post by Ed » Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:51 am

Mention the noun in every paragraph to keep the reader focused on what is being talked about. In addition, use the noun in any sentence where it could be unclear what the pronoun is referring to.

Confusing:
The cat liked the toy. It was fuzzy.

The cat, or the toy, was fuzzy?

Clear:
The cat liked the toy. The toy was fuzzy.

Tuomas Tapola · Post by **Tuomas Tapola** » Sat Apr 19, 2008 5:25 am

[quote="Ed"]Mention the noun in every paragraph to keep the reader focused on what is being talked about. In addition, use the noun in any sentence where it could be unclear what the pronoun is referring to.

Confusing:
The cat liked the toy. It was fuzzy.

The cat, or the toy, was fuzzy?

Clear:
The cat liked the toy. The toy was fuzzy.[/quote]

So basically: Anything that might confuse the reader, use the noun otherwise the pronoun is fine.

"The cat liked the toy. It was fuzzy." To make this one clear one would have to use have to use the noun of the fuzzy object, like you said. What if both, the cat and the toy, are fuzzy? Could it be done like this:"The cat liked the toy. They were fuzzy." Or would the second phrase be like this "Both of them were fuzzy.".

Are there any cases where it would be better to use the noun instead of the pronoun? I mean, in cases, where it is possible to use both, but which one would be better language?

vjlenin · Post by **vjlenin** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 1:12 am

one more addition: cat liked the toy. it was fuzzy.

It may be written like this ...

the cat liked the toy. It (the toy) was fuzzy. and seems to look better, no, Ed?

jak · Post by **jak** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 1:52 am

I don't think that's right, Lenin. It's a run-on sentence that should be two sentences. I'd avoid using pronouns at all:

The cat liked the toy, which was fuzzy.

The cat liked the fuzzy toy.

I much prefer the latter - much more economical.

But, of course, the subject of this thread is pronouns.

vjlenin · Post by **vjlenin** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 2:37 am

hi Jak,

no its not a run-on sentence. they are two sentences there not one sentence with two independent clauses. Sorry you misunderstood because the period looked like a comma and 'it' was in small beginning new sentence. Now I edited it look above!

Yes indeed, I wouldn't use pronouns as well in such sentences. I would rather go as you do yourself. thanks.

Ed · Post by Ed » Wed Apr 23, 2008 5:41 am

It isn't a run-on, but parentheses should only be used sparingly/stylistically. There are many ways to illustrate the meaning clearly without using a parenthesis.

Ed