Should the pronoun "I" really be used in formal English?

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MrPedantic

#184459 Tue, 17 Jan 06 01:04 AM

Anonymous wrote:
Pieanne wrote:

Of course, one could.

Could one ask you for some examples of the formal English you are thinking of, Anon?

Things like, formal business letters, lawyer reports and contracts, diplomats' speeches, and academic papers.

In all these contexts, an "I" is sometimes appropriate, and sometimes not. It depends entirely on the content, and the impression the writer or speaker wishes to give.

Did you have a specific text in mind, Anon?

MrP

MrPedantic

Joined on Tue, Oct 12 2004

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Anonymous

#184465 Tue, 17 Jan 06 01:26 AM

MrPedantic wrote:
In all these contexts, an "I" is sometimes appropriate, and sometimes not. It depends entirely on the content, and the impression the writer or speaker wishes to give.
Did you have a specific text in mind, Anon?

MrP

Not really. I just wanted to know if "I" was Ok in formal situations.

Anonymous

Nouns, Pronouns

Clive

#184526 Tue, 17 Jan 06 05:54 AM

Hi,

So, the answer is 'yes', depending on the situation.

As I recollect, George Bush said something like 'I swear to uphold the constitution of the United States . . '. In court, you say 'I swear to tell the truth . . .' In a wedding, the bride and groom say 'I do'.

On the other hand, Tarzan said 'Me Tarzan'.

Clive

Joined on Thu, Oct 28 2004

Canada

Veteran Member (22,537)

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Archaic

#184533 Tue, 17 Jan 06 06:02 AM

One is the impersonal pronoun. It is only interchangeable with other impersonal pronouns, and he, she, I, etc. are incorrect when used with it. Typically it is used to replace the informal you. We or the author can replace I.

Archaic

Joined on Fri, Jan 13 2006

Oxfordshire

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Nouns, Pronouns

Teo

#184689 Tue, 17 Jan 06 02:25 PM

i'm lovin' it is McDonald's slogan. Why do they use lower case i, not capital I?

Teo

Joined on Tue, Sep 28 2004

Taiwan

Contributing Member (1,631)

Thank you very much for your reply.

Anonymous

#184796 Tue, 17 Jan 06 04:19 PM

Teo wrote:
i'm lovin' it is McDonald's slogan. Why do they use lower case i, not capital I?

Because they think that it looks good. It's the world of markrting and adverstising. There, the language often behaves in a different way.

Anonymous

MrPedantic

#185086 Wed, 18 Jan 06 01:15 AM

Teo wrote:
i'm lovin' it is McDonald's slogan. Why do they use lower case i, not capital I?

Because it will annoy the parents. The fact that the parents are annoyed will please the kids. The kids will then insist on frequenting McDonald's all the more. The parents will protest, but in any case will have little say in the matter.

The upshot: fat kids, tetchy parents, and bargain prices on uppercase I's at your local fascia retailer.

Buy now and buck the trend.

MrP

MrPedantic

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