Monthly Archives: April 2008

The Royal “We”

I love the Chicago Style Q&A. In the most recent edition, there’s a question that will amuse longtime readers of Talk of the Town:

Q. I am writing a thesis for my university and use the pronoun “we” instead of “I.” For example, “From this, we can conclude that . . .” I personally think this looks more scientific than using the “I” pronoun. However, a colleague of mine states that if I am the only one writing the thesis and doing the research, I should use “I,” because otherwise readers might wonder who else wrote the document. Do you know which one is better to use in my case?

A. “We” used to be more common in scholarly writing than it is now. The British use it more than Americans do. CMOS recommends using “I,” but if the literature in your field avoids this, you should follow suit. Either way, it’s fine to use “we” when referring to something that author and readers are implicitly doing together, as in your example.

See George Packer, Then See His Play!

Martin Schneider writes:
You’ve read the original article “Betrayed,” you’ve listened to the New Yorker podcast, you’ve kept up with the blog, you’ve read my awkwardly titled, very positive review of the play, now it’s time to listen to the author’s sure-to-be-thoughtful presentation—and finally, see the play itself.
Saturday, April 5, at 1pm, see George Packer talk about reporting in Iraq, his book The Assassins’ Gate, and the difficult process of creating a play, Betrayed, from real experiences, at McNally Robinson, at 52 Prince Street. Then catch the 3pm matinee of the play, only a short walk away—I’m told discount tickets are still available.
This event sounds so terrific, I wish I weren’t six time zones away.