Being structure sound 2 pot

Distance vs. Intimacy

Whether writers intend it or not (though they almost

always do), the third-person point of view establishes

a certain distance between the writer and the reader.

There’s no direct person-to-person contact that way

(me to you). Rather, with the third-person point of

view, someone (or something) else is speaking to the

reader.

The first-person point of view, on the other hand,

establishes a certain intimacy between the writer and

the reader. The writer uses I, my, mine, we, our, or us as

if expressing his or her own personal feelings and ideas

directly to the reader. “We congratulate you” makes

message B much more personal than message A, where

the company congratulates you.

■ First-person point of view establishes intimacy.

The writer wants to be close to the reader.

■ Third-person point of view establishes distance.

The writer wants to distance him- or herself from

the reader.

When Writers Use Third Person

In a business environment, it’s not always practical to

be personal. Though the first-person point of view

may make the reader feel close to the writer, the first￾person point of view also implies a certain subjectivity.

That is, the writer is expressing a very personal view

from a very personal perspective.

Subjectivity vs. Objectivity

There’s nothing wrong with expressing personal views,

but in the business world, writers may not always be at

an advantage using the first-person point of view.

They’re more likely to be taken seriously when they’re

objective, presenting things from an outsider’s point of

view, than when they’re subjective, presenting things

from their own possibly selfish or biased point of view.

■ Subjective: based on the thoughts, feelings, and

experiences of the speaker or writer (first-person

point of view)

■ Objective: unaffected by the thoughts, feelings,

and experiences of the speaker or writer (third￾person point of view)

Thus, if you wanted to complain about a new

office policy, which of the following points of view do

you think would be more effective?

A. I think our new office policy is a failure.

B. The new office policy appears to be a failure.

Most people would agree that sentence B is more

effective. The question is, why?

1. The point of view of sentence B is more effective

than that of sentence A because

a. sentence A is too subjective.

b. sentence B is too subjective.

c. sentence A is too objective.

d. all of the above.

The answer is a. Sentence A uses the first-person

point of view, and because I is so subjective and per￾sonal, it doesn’t carry as much weight as the objective

sentence B. In sentence B, there is no personal per￾spective; someone from the outside (a third person, not

the reader or the writer) is looking at the policy and

evaluating it. The third-person point of view is almost

always considered to be more objective because the

third person is not directly involved in the action. I,

however, is directly involved in the action (the policy)

and therefore cannot have an objective opinion about

the policy’s success or failure. I’s opinion may be prej￾udiced by the writer’s personal experience.

Of course, even when a writer uses third person,

he or she can still express his or her own opinion.

When that opinion is expressed in the third person,

however, it appears much more objective.

–A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE: POINT OF VIEW–

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