by Bailey Bischoff<\/p>\n
We use the word \u201cyou\u201d a lot in our everyday speech. However, when writing a paper for class, it is often inappropriate to use \u201cyou\u201d as the subject of your sentence. Engaging with your reader by using \u201cyou\u201d (e.g., You should wear a rain jacket when traveling in the rainforest.) is called using a second person narrative voice. Whether you are writing in first person, second person, or third person is determined by which pronouns you use in your writing.<\/p>\n
First Person:<\/strong><\/p>\n Pronouns \u2013 I, me, we, mine, us Second Person:<\/strong><\/p>\n Pronouns \u2013 you, your, yours Third Person:<\/strong><\/p>\n Pronouns \u2013 he, she, his, it, they, theirs For formal academic writing, it is best to stick with a third person narrative, although some fields and assignments may be excepted. Third person narrative is more formal and professional, which is why we use it for academic writing. Of course, formal and professional isn\u2019t the point. Being clear and specific is. Avoiding \u201cyou\u201d helps you be precise for your readers.<\/p>\n How can you transition your writing to third person when you\u2019re so used to speaking in first and second person?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sometimes, cutting out \u201cyou\u201d from your sentences happen naturally as you write more clearly and concisely.<\/p>\n Ex.<\/em> When flying across the country, you<\/strong> should always pack a book for the plane ride. You can also substitute \u201cone\u201d for \u201cyou\u201d, to give your writing a more formal tone.<\/p>\n Ex.<\/em> When flying across the country, one<\/strong> should always pack a book for the plane ride.<\/p>\n Even better, you can use the real subject of the sentence.<\/p>\n Ex.<\/em> When flying across the country, travelers<\/strong> should always pack a book for the ride.<\/p>\n When it comes to writing academic papers, you should remember to use \u201cyou\u201d less! Bailey Bischoff<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>is a junior majoring in political science and is serving as student body president.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Bailey Bischoff We use the word \u201cyou\u201d a lot in our everyday speech. However, when writing a paper for class, it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[63,65,109],"tags":[92,153,56,155,125],"class_list":["post-1747","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-clarity","category-sentences","category-writeherewritenowwriteon","tag-editing","tag-specificity","tag-style","tag-voice","tag-word-choice"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5DI6r-sb","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1747","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1747"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1747\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1749,"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1747\/revisions\/1749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1747"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1747"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/content.principia.edu\/teaching-excellence\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1747"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nExample \u2013 Last week, I wrote a research paper about which type of music Principia students like to listen to at the pub.<\/p>\n
\nExample \u2013 It is probably surprising to you to learn that George Washington\u2019s teeth were not made of wood, but were made instead of bone, ivory, and human teeth.<\/p>\n
\nExample \u2013 In Professor Shimkus\u2019s article, she argues that the globalization of markets contributes to increases in the amount of cross-continental human trafficking.<\/p>\n
\nEx.<\/em> Packing a book for an upcoming plane ride often makes long flights more enjoyable.<\/p>\n
\nNo, wait! Writers<\/strong> should remember to use \u201cyou\u201d less.<\/p>\n