Happy Jack hereby declares July 8th to be: World Wide Illeism Pride Day.
Illeism is the act of referring to oneself in the third person instead of first person.
A few years back Happy Jack was banned from a site for using this style of rhetoric - it was described as "smug" and "pompous". Once again, Happy Jack's use of this ancient style has been questioned on a blog. This time, the blog owner described it as "odd" and "confusing".
So what is wrong with illeists? Many people who hear someone engaging in it often perceive the individual as an "oddball". Are we smug, annoying people? Are we psychologically disordered egoists or narcissists? Others suggest there is a link between illeism and asperger’s syndrome.
Although such reactions are understandable as folk are not accustomed to people referring to themselves using their own name, is it reasonable?
From Wiki:
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.
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 the third person.
There is now a growing body of research on illeism:
Self-Talk as a Regulatory Mechanism: How You Do It Matters
Self-Distancing: Theory, Research, and Current Directions
This all suggests that using this method promotes self-distancing; enhances people’s ability to
regulate their thoughts, feelings, and behaviour under social stress; and leads people to appraise social-anxiety-provoking events in less threatening ways.
According to the researchers, non-first-person thinking and self-talk is a way to distance oneself that improves perspective and enables thinking more objectively.
The big take-away is that the linguistic shift from using “I” to using one’s name, or other non-first-person pronouns, has positive effects. It can bring long-term benefits to thinking and emotional regulation. People using it tend to become humbler, readier to consider other perspectives, have improved perspective and greater empathy.
To the modern ear, illeism does sound a little silly or pompous. Yet this research suggests it brings real cognitive and emotional benefits.
So there!
All responses to be submitted in third person only.
Give it a try!
