Illeism (/ˈɪli.ɪzəm/; from Latin ille: “he; that man”) is the act of referring to oneself in the third person instead of first person. It is sometimes used in literature as a stylistic device. In real-life usage, illeism can reflect a number of different stylistic intentions or involuntary circumstances. The term Illeism comes from Latin ille meaning "he, that".

In literature

Early literature such as Julius Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico or Xenophon's Anabasis, both ostensibly non-fictional accounts of wars led by their authors, used illeism to impart an air of objective impartiality, which included justifications of the author's actions. In this way personal bias is presented, albeit dishonestly, as objectivity.

In an essay, theologian Richard B. Hays challenged earlier findings that he disagrees with: "These were the findings of one Richard B. Hays, and the newer essay treats the earlier work and earlier author at arms' length."[1]

Illeism may also be used to show idiocy, as with the character Mongo in Blazing Saddles, e.g. "Mongo like candy" and "Mongo only pawn in game of life"; though it may also show innocent simplicity, as it does with Harry Potter's Dobby the Elf ("Dobby has come to protect, even if he does have to shut his ears in the oven door"). The childlike Sesame Street character Elmo almost exclusively speaks in the third person.

In the Babylonian Talmud and related texts, illeism is used extensively, often taking the form of the speaker utilizing the expression hahu gavra ("that man") when referring to himself.[2]

In everyday speech

In different contexts, illeism can be used to reinforce self-promotion, as used to sometimes comic effect by Bob Dole throughout his political career ("When the president is ready to deploy, Bob Dole is ready to lead the fight on the Senate Floor", Bob Dole speaking about the Strategic Defense Initiative at the NCPAC convention, 1987). This was particularly made notable during the United States presidential election of 1996 and lampooned broadly in popular media for years afterwards. Deepanjana Pal of Firstpost noted that speaking in the third person "is a classic technique used by generations of Bollywood scriptwriters to establish a character's aristocracy, power and gravitas".[3]

On the other hand, third person self-referral can be associated with self-deprecation, irony, and not taking oneself too seriously (since the excessive use of the pronoun "I" is often seen as a sign of narcissism and egocentrism),[4] as well as with eccentricity in general. Psychological studies show that thinking and speaking of oneself in the third person increases wisdom and has a positive effect on one's mental state because an individual who does so is more intellectually humble, more capable of empathy and understanding the perspectives of others, and is able to distance emotionally from one's own problems.[5][6][7][8]

Accordingly, in certain Eastern religions, like Hinduism, illeism is sometimes seen as a sign of enlightenment, since through it, an individual detaches their eternal self (atman) from their bodily form; in particular, Jnana yoga encourages its practitioners to refer to themselves in the third person.[9] Known illeists of that sort include Swami Ramdas,[10] Anandamayi Ma,[11] and Mata Amritanandamayi.[12]

A number of celebrities, including Marilyn Monroe,[13][14] Alice Cooper,[15] and Deanna Durbin,[16] referred to themselves in the third person to distance their public persona from their actual self. Mary J. Blige, in her song Family Affair, introduces herself in the third person.

Some parents use illeism (refer to themselves as "Daddy" or "Mommy") because very young children may not yet understand that the pronouns "I" and "you" refer to different people based on context.[17][18] Toddlers acquiring speech often refer to themselves in the third person before learning proper usage of the pronoun "I", and their speech evolves past using illeism once they develop a strong sense of self-recognition, often before age two.[19]

Notable illeists

Real people

Politics and military

Sports

  • After pitching Game 5 of the ALDS, Johnny Cueto (b. 1986) gave a post game interview in the third person.[36]

Entertainment

Religion and spirituality

Other

Fictional characters

Books

Comics

  • Doctor Doom is known for more often than not referring to himself as "Doom" instead of "me" or "I".[83]
  • The Hulk[83]
  • Solomon Grundy[83]
  • Mantis almost always refers to herself as "Mantis", "she", and "this one"; this has to do with her upbringing at the Temple of the Priests of Pama, an alien pacifistic sect heavily inspired by real-life Eastern religious movements.[84]
  • Namor

Television

Film

Manga and anime

Video games

Podcasts

  • Jabari "The Safari" Hightower (played by Lou Wilson) in Not Another D&D Podcast

See also

References

  1. Richard B. Hays, “‘Here We Have No Lasting City’: New Covenantalism in Hebrews” in Richard J. Bauckham et al. (eds.), The Epistle to the Hebrews and Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2009), 151–173, esp. 151–152, 167.
  2. Cf. Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Chagigah 15a
  3. "Rahul Gandhi, blurring lines between filmi and real politicians". Firstpost. 2014-01-28. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  4. Raskin, Robert (1988). "Narcissism and the Use of Personal Pronouns". Journal of Personality. 56 (2): 393–404. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1988.tb00892.x. PMID 3404383.
  5. "Illeism: The ancient trick to help you think more wisely". BBC. 2023-04-14. Retrieved 2023-07-04.
  6. "Why speaking to yourself in the third person makes you wiser". Aeon. 2019-08-07. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  7. "The Benefits of Talking About Yourself in the Third Person". HowStuffWorks. 2018-04-16. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  8. "The Psychological Case for Talking in the Third Person". Mic. 2015-02-25. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
  9. "Hinduism-The Religious Life". uwyo.edu. Archived from the original on 22 October 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  10. "Swami Ramdas". bhagavan-ramana.org. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  11. 1 2 Aymard, Orianne (2014-05-01). When a Goddess Dies: Worshipping Ma Anandamayi after Her Death. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0199368631.
  12. 1 2 "rediff.com: The Rediff Interview/Mata Amritanandmayi". rediff.com. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  13. 1 2 Spoto, Donald (2001). Marilyn Monroe: The Biography. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 324. ISBN 9780815411833.
  14. 1 2 Leaming, Barbara (2010). Marilyn Monroe. Crown. p. 404. ISBN 9780307557773.
  15. 1 2 Whitworth, Melissa (August 28, 2007). "Alice Cooper: 'Some people turn to God, I turned to golf'". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on August 29, 2007. Retrieved August 13, 2011.
  16. 1 2 Private letter to film historian/critic William K. Everson in the late 1970s
  17. "Language – Why do parents refer to themselves in the third person?".
  18. "Why do We Refer to Ourselves in the Third Person when We Talk to Our Kids?".
  19. Lewis, Michael; Ramsay, Douglas (2004). "Development of Self-Recognition, Personal Pronoun Use, and Pretend Play During the 2nd Year". Child Development. 75 (6): 1821–1831. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00819.x. ISSN 1467-8624. PMID 15566382.
  20. Alexander, Catherine M. S., ed. (2003). The Cambridge Shakespeare Library: Shakespeare's times, texts, and stages. Cambridge University Press. p. 101. ISBN 9780521808002.
  21. See the Wikisource of the book: s:The Education of Henry Adams
  22. Glass, Loren Daniel (2004). Authors Inc: Literary Celebrity in the Modern United States, 1880–1980. NYU Press. p. 29. ISBN 9780814731604.
  23. Eisenhower, Dwight (1967). at ease. DoubleDay & Company. pp. 214.
  24. "France: Third Person Singular". Time Magazine. 1970-10-19. Archived from the original on March 22, 2007. Retrieved 2009-01-22.(subscription required)
  25. 1 2 3 4 Barford, Vanessa (2015-08-28). "Why do some people refer to themselves in the third person?". BBC News. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  26. Harris, Scott (1996-03-10). "Bob Dole Needs to Put the 'I' in Identity". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-12-07.
  27. 1 2 "Acervo Digital VEJA – Digital Pages". abril.com.br. Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  28. Bourn, Chris (27 April 2018). "Why People Like Trump Refer to Themselves in the Third Person". Mel Magazine. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
  29. Forza Italia, Berlusconi parla in terza persona, La Repubblica, 26 October 2013
  30. HOW BIZARRE: Biden Oddly Talks About Himself in the Third Person, 'Biden is a Simple Proposition' | Sean Hannity
  31. Alberts, Sheldon (9 November 2011), There's no 'you' in Herman Cain, The National Post
  32. "Hang me if I have committed any crime, but no apology, Narendra Modi says – The Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 2014-04-16. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  33. "泛民5名單報名參選超區議席". now.com. 2016-07-17. Retrieved 2016-07-17.
  34. Manthorpe, Jonathan. Forbidden Nation: A History of Taiwan (2005 ed.). St. Martin's Griffin. p. 15.
  35. Trotsky, Leon (1937). The Revolution Betrayed. What Is the Soviet Union and Where Is It Going?. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Doran & Company, inc.
  36. Landers, Chris (2016-02-11). "Johnny Cueto was pretty impressed with Johnny Cueto's Game 5 gem in this third-person interview". mlb.com. How was Johnny Cueto able to step up in such a pivotal Game 5? "Games like this are where you see Johnny Cueto – the real Johnny Cueto." Yes, Cueto gave his interview through an interpreter, but if you listen closely, you'll hear the pitcher was speaking in the third person the whole time.
  37. Mewis, Joe (2013-10-03). "Read the best Zlatan Ibrahimovic quotes on the outspoken Swedish striker's birthday". The Mirror. Retrieved 2016-05-17. There's big boasts, lashings of ego and plenty of third person references ahoy
  38. Hruby, Patrick (2012-08-18). "Lebron James definitely has Dan Gilbert all wrong". ESPN Page 2. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved 2012-12-07.
  39. Nordquist, Richard (2012-09-24). "A Few More Oddities: Illeism, Semantic Satiation, and Garden-Path Sentences". About.com guide. Archived from the original on 2014-04-14. Retrieved 2012-12-07. Here, for instance, is how pro basketball player LeBron James justified his decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Miami Heat: I wanted to do what was best for LeBron James and what LeBron James was going to do to make him happy.
  40. Taibbi, Matt (2010-03-02). "A Field Guide to Sports Egos". Men's Journal. Archived from the original on 2013-01-28. Retrieved 2012-12-06. They actually have a word for what Rickey Henderson is: illeist.
  41. Fowler, Matt (2009-07-02). "Line-O-Rama: The Rock Says". IGN. Retrieved 2012-12-06.
  42. "Doug Robinson: Karl Malone is one of a kind". Deseret News. 2010-08-10. Retrieved 2012-12-06. Maybe Malone didn't even know he was the one who was saying those things, because he tended to talk about himself as another being, in third person. Or maybe he was just schizophrenic, whatever.
  43. Amis, Martin (2004-10-01). "In search of Dieguito". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2018-02-22.
  44. e. g. here
  45. Shefter, Adam (2011-02-27). "Sources: Cam Newton thrown for loop". ESPN.com. His comment drew such a reaction because some say his swagger teeters on the edge of pure arrogance. In roughly 12 minutes at the podium, he referred to himself in the third person three times. When asked if some mistake his confidence for cockiness, he said: "I'm not sure, but I'm a confident person, and it was instilled in myself at an early age to believe in myself".
  46. Hattenstone, Simon (2003-06-30). "And God created Pele". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2009-01-22.
  47. Fink, Jesse (2011-11-13). "Pelé's mouth should get a straight red". The Sunday Guardian. Archived from the original on 2022-11-08. Retrieved 2012-12-06.
  48. "Former Nottingham Forest manager Billy Davies claims 'whispering campaign' has sabotaged Premier League ambitions". The Independent. 27 February 2016. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
  49. Wiltz, Teresa (2006-11-02). "Love Him, Or Leave Him?". Washington Post. Retrieved 2012-12-06. They all purport to be in love with Flav, a man who refers to himself in the third person and whose idea of fine dining is a dash to Red Lobster.
  50. "The Deseret News – Google News Archive Search". google.com. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  51. Canales, Luis (1990). Imperial Gina. Branden Publishing Company. ISBN 9780828319324.
  52. A simple country girl The Boston Globe, 29 July 1956
  53. Everybody Picks on Lollobrigida The Miami News, 11 September 1955
  54. Barton, Ruth (2010). Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film. University Press of Kentucky. p. 108. ISBN 9780813126104.
  55. Copeland, Cody (2020-09-09). "The First Career Of MythBusters' Jamie Hyneman Will Surprise You". Grunge. Retrieved 2022-11-08.
  56. Bret, David (2014). Jean Harlow: Tarnished Angel. Aurum Press. ISBN 978-1-781-31343-5.
  57. Porter, Darwin (2003). The Secret Life of Humphrey Bogart: The Early Years (1899-1931). Blood Moon Productions, Ltd. p. 221. ISBN 978-0-966-80305-1.
  58. "Queremos tanto a Lila". Revistamarcapasos.com. 1999-02-22. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  59. IGN Staff (October 10, 2006). "Mr. T Reveals Why He Pities Fools". Retrieved 12 March 2013.
  60. Jenkins, Craig (4 January 2021). "Hip-Hop Needs No Other Supervillain After MF DOOM". Vulture.
  61. Delaney, Sam (June 1, 2019). "'I confuse people': Noel Edmonds on bank fraud, Mr Blobby and his 'barmy' reputation". The Guardian.
  62. Susunaga Weeraperuma. "The Life of Swami Ramdas" (PDF). Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  63. Singh, Puran (1924). The Story of Swami Rama: The Poet Monk of the Punjab. Madras: Ganesh & Co.
  64. "Osho World Online Magazine :: February 2013". Oshoworld.com. Archived from the original on 2013-11-04. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  65. Rod Elledge (2007). Use of the Third Person for Self-Reference by Jesus and Yahweh: A Study of Illeism in the Bible and Ancient Near Eastern Texts and Its Implications for Christology. Bloomsbury T&T Clark. ISBN 9780567671448.
  66. Dalí, Salvador (April 19, 1958). "Salvador Dalí – The Mike Wallace interview – Transcript". The Mike Wallace Interview (video). Interviewed by Mike Wallace. Retrieved 2017-03-31 via Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin.
  67. Norman Mailer (1997-09-30). The Fight. Vintage. ISBN 0-375-70038-2.
  68. Batchelor, Bob (September 3, 2019). The bourbon king : the life and crimes of George Remus, Prohibition's evil genius (First Diversion books ed.). New York. ISBN 978-1-63576-586-1. OCLC 1111785855.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  69. De Sousa Correa, Delia (2000). The Nineteenth-century Novel: Realisms. Psychology Press. p. 162. ISBN 9780415238267.
  70. Barrie, J. M. (1921). Peter Pan and Wendy. Hodder and Stoughton. p. 145. ISBN 978-0-340-24629-0.
  71. 'Winnetou' actor Pierre Brice dies Deutsche Welle
  72. Seeking the Aboriginal experience in Germany, Windspeaker
  73. Your next box set: Agatha Christie's Poirot, Emine Saner, The Guardian, 28 Jul 2011
  74. Tolkien, J. R. R. (1997). The Hobbit (Revised ed.). New York: Ballantine Books. p. 72. ISBN 0-345-33968-1.
  75. ""You're Not the Same Kind of Human Being": The Evolution of Pity to Horror in Daniel Keyes' Flowers for Algernon – Cline – Disability Studies Quarterly". DSQ-SDS.org. Brent Walter Cline. 32 (4). 2012-09-28. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  76. Chalker, Jack L. (2013-07-25). When the Changewinds Blow. Orion. ISBN 9780575097995.
  77. Pizzino, Christopher (2008). Religion in postmodern science fiction: a case study in secularity (PhD thesis). Rutgers University.
  78. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-01-07. Retrieved 2020-02-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  79. Nguyen, Hann (2 April 2019). "'Game of Thrones': Unmasking Arya's Mysterious Faceless Man". TV Guide. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  80. RavenWolf, Silver (2001). Witches' Key to Terror. Llewellyn Worldwide. p. 25. ISBN 9780738700496. The three girls milled around the kitchen, dodging Ramona, looking for midnight snacks. Bethany wished for the thousandth time that the housekeeper would not talk about herself in the third person. Too weird.
  81. "Bookslut | Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami".
  82. Mussari, Mark (2011). Haruki Murakami. Marshall Cavendish. p. 77. ISBN 9780761441243. Retrieved 2017-01-07.
  83. 1 2 3 Chris Bourn (April 26, 2018). "The Psychology of Referring to Yourself in the Third Person". MEL Magazine. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
  84. Raymond, Charles Nicholas (8 May 2017). "Guardians of the Galaxy: 15 Things You Never Knew About Mantis". ScreenRant. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  85. "Why does Elmo refer to himself in the third person? Won't this teach kids improper English?". Frequently Asked Questions. Sesame Workshop. Archived from the original on 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2012-12-07.
  86. "Auf Wiedersehen, Pet". TV Cream. 12 April 2009. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  87. S07E13 - Disco Stu Doesn't Advertise, retrieved 2022-01-19
  88. [The Simpsons] DUFFMAN CANT BREATHE, retrieved 2022-01-19
  89. Strauchanie style, retrieved 2022-11-08
  90. Kettle, James (2011-05-28). "The best of Seinfeld". The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-12-07.
  91. Sullivan, Jonathan (2010-01-22). "DVD Review: Becker – The Third Season". Blogcritics.
  92. Mike Sager (10 June 2015). "Omar Little on 'The Wire' – Why Omar Is the Best Character on 'The Wire'". Esquire. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  93. Hinckley, David (2009-04-07). "ABC's 'The Unusuals' odd squad mixes drama and humor". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  94. Alston, Joshua (2010-10-14). "'Eastbound & Down': The Ugliest American". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  95. Gilmore, Dave (October 22, 2012). "'Boardwalk Empire' recap, 'Ging Gang Goolie'". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  96. Wightman, Catriona (2011-09-27). "'Hart of Dixie': First impressions – TV Blog". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
  97. Simpson, Craig (June 17, 2009). "Summer of '84—Waxing on Nostalgia: The Karate Kid". Slant Magazine. Miyagi is a trickier case: at first it looks like Avildsen overplays the man's exoticness (cue that pan flute!), enforced by Kamen's questionable emphasis on the character's me-no-likey phonetic third-person English. ("Miyagi this, Miyagi that...")
  98. "Quotes for Magua (Character)". IMDB. 2014-08-01. When the Grey Hair is dead, Magua will eat his heart. Before he dies, Magua will put his children under the knife, so the Grey Hair will know his seed is wiped out forever.
  99. "Fast & Furious (2009) – Quotes". IMDB. 2020-06-04. Papa Dwight wants you to take off your shoes! Dwight loves feet!.
  100. "Cars 2 – An interview with director John Lasseter". Sound and Picture Online. 2011-06-20. He's not just any formula car. He's the star from Italy, Francesco Bernoulli. He is so full of himself—he's an open-wheel car and in the car world, an open-wheel car is like those guys who barely button their shirts. He talks about himself in the third person. Voicing Francesco Bernoulli is John Turturro and he hit it out of the park. It's one of the most entertaining characters we've ever created.
  101. Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch - Clip. Lilo & Stitch 2 (Motion picture). June 7, 2022 [June 21, 2002].
  102. Jumba Has Failed Family. Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch (Motion picture). March 5, 2018 [August 30, 2005] via YouTube. Jumba has failed family.
  103. "A Cracked Concerto". Kanon (2006–2007). Episode 14.
  104. Bowers, J. (2007-09-27). "Nodame Cantabile, Vols. 6–10 (Del Rey)". playbackstl.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-17. Retrieved 2012-12-19.
  105. Moody, Allen (2013-11-05). "Haganai – Review". THEM Anime Reviews. Like Tim, I didn't like most of the other characters, especially Rika, whose tics (speaking of herself in the third person, and imagining sexual situations in the damnedest places- for example, in mecha manga) kept making me shout "Make it STOP!!!!"
  106. "Fairy Tail: 10 Things That Make No Sense About Juvia". CBR. 2020-02-25. Retrieved 2022-04-01.
  107. "Fernando Martinez, Grand Theft Auto Vice City". Quotes.net. Retrieved 2020-03-30. "Stay with me. Stay with Fernando. Por favor. Mi amor. Siolito. It's like Fernando said to his ex-wife: 'I love you, please, don't leave me. It is not what you think; I was bitten by a snake, and the nice lady, she came to suck out the poison. The story, she no work very well.'"
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.