13a Make the point of view consistent in person and number.

The point of view of a piece of writing is the perspective from which it is written: first person (I or we), second person (you), or third person (he, she, it, one, or they).

The I (or we) point of view, which emphasizes the writer, is a good choice for informal writing based on personal experience. The you point of view, which emphasizes the reader, works well for giving advice or explaining how to do something. The third-person point of view, which emphasizes the subject, is appropriate in most formal academic and professional writing.

Once you settle on an appropriate point of view, stick with it. Shifting points of view within a piece of writing confuses readers.

The example reads, Our class practiced rescuing a victim trapped in a wrecked car. We learned to dismantle the car with the essential tools. (strikethrough) You (end strikethrough) (insert) We (end insert) were graded on (strikethrough) your (end strikethrough) (insert) our (end insert) speed and (strikethrough) your (end strikethrough) (insert) our (end insert) skill in freeing the victim.

The text below reads, The writer should have stayed with the we point of view. You is inappropriate because the writer is not addressing readers directly. You should not be used in a vague sense meaning open quotes anyone. Close quotes (See 24 d.)

Exercise 13–1

Edit the following paragraph to eliminate distracting shifts in point of view (person and number). Create two versions. First, imagine that this is an introductory paragraph designed to engage the reader with a personal story; write it in the first person (using I and we). Can you think of other contexts in which the first-person point of view would be the best choice? Then write the paragraph in the third person (using people and they). In what contexts would this version be the best choice?

When online dating first became available, many people thought that it would simplify romance. We believed that you could type in a list of criteria—sense of humor, college education, green eyes, good job—and a database would select the perfect mate. Thousands of people signed up for services and filled out their profiles, confident that true love was only a few mouse clicks away. As it turns out, however, virtual dating is no easier than traditional dating. I still have to contact the people I find, exchange emails and phone calls, and meet him in the real world. Although a database might produce a list of possibilities and screen out obviously undesirable people, you can’t predict chemistry. More often than not, people who seem perfect online just don’t click in person. Electronic services do help a single person expand their pool of potential dates, but it’s no substitute for the hard work of romance.