Refering to yourself in the third person

Language Learning Chinese
1

I originally posted this in the “presidential accents” thread but got no response.

Actually, my question is not really political.

I have always wondered why Chen Shu-bian often refers to himself in the third person, “A-Bian is happy to be here tonight” or “A-Bian feels your pain” (OK, he probably didn’t say that last one, but you get the idea).

I haven’t heard too many speeches by Lian Zhan but does he do it as well? Ma Ying-jiu?

Is there a tradition of doing this in Chinese or Taiwanese culture or speech? “Laoban hen shengqi.” “Baba hen e.”

Why is it done? Why not just say “I” (“wo”) instead of “A-Bian”?

Or is it just a personal affectation of a few people?

Thanks.

2

In classical Chinese, people do it all the time. I’ve heard other Taiwanese speakers do it. Women refer to themselves as ‘ren2jia1’ (lit., the other).

3

Thanks, Feiren.

Are there any equivalents in English or French or in other languages? Way back when, would a king or queen in England, for example, refer to himself or herself in the third person (“Queen Elizabeth enjoyed your speech.” “Napoleon never retreats; Napoleon always attacks!”)

Could I venture to say that pronouns are used less in Chinese?? For example, isn’t it often “didi shuo” or “meimei yao” not just “ta shou” or “ta yao” (in other words, “big brother” is often used instead of a name or a pronoun in sentences.).

Ah, maybe I’m way off base here. Thanks again for the info, Feiren. (I do remember hearing the renjia before (I think) - “Renjia taoyan ni ah.”

4

I know many proffesional wrestlers like to refer to themselves in the third person, but wrestlers are actors and liars, so I guess there isn’t any correlation to Taiwanese politics…

5

It does seem to be a stylistic thing in formal Chinese. I’ve come across a couple of articles about artists by the artist in question where they’ve referred to themselves in the third person throughout. And quite a number of politicians do the same, I’ve been told.

The closest I can think of in English by way of a parallel would be things like the Royal We.

6

Sounds like a perfect match to me, right down to the occasional actual fight.

7

Come to think of it my in-laws often refer to themselves as “mama” and “baba”. Mom will say things like “Mama jintian yao zuo fan!”, or Dad will say “Baba qu pa shan”. I don’t think my own mother of father would speak in this way, I guess it’s a Chinese thing. They usually say it in a cute, self-depreciating kind of way, though. Very different from the politicians.

8

[quote=“fee”]I originally posted this in the “presidential accents” thread but got no response.

Actually, my question is not really political.

I have always wondered why Chen Shu-bian often refers to himself in the third person, “A-Bian is happy to be here tonight” or “A-Bian feels your pain” (OK, he probably didn’t say that last one, but you get the idea).

I haven’t heard too many speeches by Lian Zhan but does he do it as well? Ma Ying-jiu?

Is there a tradition of doing this in Chinese or Taiwanese culture or speech? “Laoban hen shengqi.” “Baba hen e.”

Why is it done? Why not just say “I” (“wo”) instead of “A-Bian”?

Or is it just a personal affectation of a few people?

Thanks.[/quote]

I remember when I was translating an autobiography for a student, she asked me why I kept using the word “I” in the translation. I told her it’s because it’s an autobiography - it’s all about her, telling the reader about her own life - of course you have to use I all the time. She asked me to minimize the usage of the word, because it’s not polite to use “I” all the time - it sounds selfish. I told her that it’s pretty much impossible to do that in an English-language autobiography, which requires a subject in every sentence.