You know how annoying it is when people talk about themselves in the third person. My favorite practitioner of the fine art of Third Person Speak is probably the NBA's Allen Iverson, who often refers to himself as AI, as when defending himself he'd say "AI just has to be AI." According to the Internets, the former baseball player Rickey Henderson was also really fond of the third person, as was the Presidential candidate Bob Dole.
Referring to oneself in the third person also happens to be hilarious, when done properly. Tonight I conducted an experiment and referred to myself only as Paul Achter for about two hours, which went on until C wanted to shoot me. The text messages I sent referring to myself in the third person went unreturned, and when I used it on the phone with my friend about seven times he never once called attention to what I was doing--no doubt to get me to stop. As it turns out that there's actually research about the psychological benefits of referring to yourself in the third person, which has something to do with creating distance between oneself and one's actions.
Parents and grandparents use the third person all of the time. We like calling ourselves mommy and daddy and so on, partly because it reminds us (especially as new parents) that we actually are parents now. As I type, C is reassuring the fussy boy: "momma is here." Earlier tonight we were at Sam's Club and as we turned the corner to face the massive floor-to-ceiling snack section I shouted, "Daddy's favorite aisle!"
I challenge you to refer to yourself only in the third person for as long as you can today. If you have the same experience I did, you'll notice that it's a lot more annoying to others if you use your full name than it is if you use a role.
Then again, if you want to call yourself "daddy" for awhile today, that could be pretty funny, too.
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2 comments:
mCallie Viggiano thinks that Callie Viggiano is wayyyy to long of a name to use when referring to oneself in the third person, even if for the sole purpose of annoying everyone. Callie Viggiano thinks that her potential for hilarity and raising irksome annoyance would benefit from combining a rediculous nickname with a definite article. The Cal-ster would like some salt, The Cal-miester needs a brewsky. You get the idea. However, if Callie Viggiano were to test this theory, Callie Viggiano predicts that Spanish people would think Callie Viggiano was just plain crazy. The Cal-inator hopes all is well with the Achters in VA.
Calzilla makes a good point. PC would love to learn how the third person works out in espanol, though. Or if it's possee-blay.
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