Wednesday, August 29, 2007

A Question That I Just Have To Ask



I have been looking around some of the conservative political blogs in Montana and found a trend that just drives me crazy. Why, pray tell, would one choose to write a blog in third person?

Some examples. Carol, from Missoulopolis, writes about her picks in Missoula races:

WHEREAS most people pay not the slightest attention to City politics, yet are often greatly affected thereby, Missoulapolis offers her election guidance for the edification of her loyal readers.
Emphasis mine. Generally, that part of the sentence might be written as:

I offer some election guidance for the edification of my loyal readers.
OK, so Carol prefers to refer to herself in the third person, but then I followed some links and found The Scoop. Watch as The Scoop discusses something or other:

The Scoop agrees. It is time to plan ahead.

That's not all though! You see, The Scoop is not an ordinary blogger. The Scoop has magical powers. How so? The Scoop is not constrained to a single perspective, but can slide effortlessly between the third and the first person. The very next sentence:

I can’t argue with the fact that a defensible barrier around homes makes sense.
That dude kick ass! Imagine if you could switch planes of existence like that!

While these authors are generally using a rather benign limited third person, I think that they are working on secret powers to be able to write from the omniscient third person.

An omniscient narrator, as in more limited third-person forms, is also disembodied; it takes no actions and has no physical form in or out of the story. But, being omniscient, it witnesses all events, even some that no characters witness. The omniscient narrator is privy to all things past, present and future - as well as the thoughts of all characters. As such, an omniscient narrator offers the reader a birds-eye view about the story.

I mean hell, they have all the right answers anyway. Montana is lucky to be in the presence of such power. Let me try:

WrongDog thinks that they must be putting something in the water in Missoula.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Our people will soon be assimilating your people, it's best to submit now before we have to cut you in two.

Anonymous said...

I think the "third person" deal just makes them feel more important than they really are.

It doesn't really do anything for the rest of us though, 'cept maybe cause us to chuckle a bit at their presumed highmindednesss.

Shane C. Mason said...

tmm

Wrongdog likes being cut into two. Wrongdog will not be assimilated...

Shane C. Mason said...

Giftshoppeguy. I had thought about that too. It must make them feel like one of two things:

1. Someone else is writing about them.
2. They are the all powerful, all knowing narrator of life.

Scoop Montana said...

Shane -

You are correct. The Scoop does have magical powers.

Or, at least I like to think I do.

The Scoop

Anonymous said...

Yes, and Denny Rehberg tells us what to say - even about Council races!