Illeism

Illeism /ˈɪli.ɪzəm/ (from Latin ille meaning "he") is the act of referring to oneself in the third person instead of first person.

Illeism is sometimes used in literature as a stylistic device. In real life usage, illeism can reflect a number of different stylistic intentions or involuntary circumstances.

In literature

Early literature such as Julius Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico or Xenophon's Anabasis, both ostensibly non-fictional accounts of wars led by their authors, used illeism to impart an air of objective impartiality to the account, which included justifications of the author's actions. In this way personal bias is presented, albeit dishonestly, as objectivity.

Illeism can also be used in literature to provide a twist, wherein the identity of the narrator as also being the main character is hidden from the reader until later in the story (e.g. one Arsène Lupin story where the narrator is Arsène Lupin but hides his own identity); the use of third person implies external observation. A similar use is when the author injects himself into his own third-person-narrative story as a character, such as Charlie Kaufman in Adaptation, Douglas Coupland in JPod, and commonly done by Clive Cussler in his novels, beginning with Dragon. (There are also novels in which illeism may have been committed, but are not explicit, such the Traveller in H. G. Wells' The Time Machine, the identity of whom is often presumed to be Wells himself, as portrayed in the 1979 film Time After Time.)

It can also be used as a device to illustrate the feeling of "being outside one's body and watching things happen", a psychological disconnect resulting from dissonance either from trauma such as childhood physical or sexual abuse, or from psychotic episodes of actions that can't be reconciled with the individual's own self-image.

The same kind of objective distance can be employed for other purposes. Theologian Richard B. Hays writes an essay where he challenges earlier findings that he disagrees with. These were the findings of one Richard B. Hays, and the newer essay treats the earlier work and earlier author at arms' length.

A common device in science fiction is for robots, computers, and other artificial life to refer to themselves in the third person, e.g. "This unit is malfunctioning" or "Number Five is alive" (famously said by Johnny Five in Short Circuit), to suggest that these creatures are not truly self-aware, or else that they separate their consciousness from their physical form.

Illeism is also a device used to show idiocy, such as the character Mongo in Blazing Saddles, e.g. "Mongo like candy" and "Mongo only pawn in game of life."

In everyday speech

Illeism in everyday speech can have a variety of intentions depending on context. One common usage is to impart humility, a common practice in feudal societies and other societies where honorifics are important to observe ("Your servant awaits your orders"), as well as in master–slave relationships ("This slave needs to be punished"). Recruits in the military, mostly United States Marine Corps recruits, are also often made to refer to themselves in the third-person, such as "the recruit," in order to reduce the sense of individuality and enforce the idea of the group being more important than the self.^{[citation needed]} The use of illeism in this context imparts a sense of lack of self, implying a diminished importance of the speaker in relation to the addressee or to a larger whole.

Conversely, in different contexts, illeism can be used to reinforce self-promotion, as used to sometimes comic effect by Bob Dole throughout his political career. This was particularly made notable during the United States presidential election, 1996 and lampooned broadly in popular media for years afterwards.

Similarly illeism is used with an air of grandeur, to give the speaker lofty airs. Idiosyncratic and conceited people are known to either use or are lampooned as using illeism to puff themselves up or illustrate their egoism. The artist Salvador Dalí used illeism throughout his interview with 60 Minutes's Mike Wallace, punctuating it with "Dalí is immortal and will not die," although this may have been a reference to the legacy of his art rather than his actual self. The wrestler The Rock was notorious for this, mainly to enhance his persona to a superhuman level.

An increasingly common use of illeism in common speech is as sarcasm, used when a person is being spoken about by other people present as if he weren't there. For example, Alice and Bob having a conversation about Carol: "Did you hear about Carol?" to which Carol interrupts with "Carol can hear you, you know."

Young children in Japan commonly refer to themselves by their own name (a habit probably picked from their elders who would normally refer to them by name, this is due to the normal Japanese way of speaking where referring to another in the third person is considered more polite rather than using the Japanese words for "you", like Omae) though as the children grow older they normally switch over to using first person references. Japanese Idols also may refer to themselves as so to give off the feeling of childlike cuteness.

Notable uses

Real people

Politics

• Julius Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico presents the author's exploits in the Gallic War in the third person.
• Henry Adams, historian, author and descendant of presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams, throughout his autobiography The Education of Henry Adams
• Charles de Gaulle
• Bob Dole, during his United States presidential campaign in 1996.
• Herman Cain, during his United States presidential campaign in 2012.
• Paulo Maluf, Brazilian politician
• Anthony Garotinho, Brazilian politician
• Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus.

Sports

• Pelé
• Rickey Henderson occasionally referred to himself as "Rickey".
• Karl Malone
• LeBron James made several references to himself in the third person during his highly publicized The Decision program on ESPN in 2010.
• Gordon McCauley, a New Zealand cyclist, frequently refers to himself as "The People's Champion".^{[citation needed]}
• Diego Maradona
• Billy Davies, soccer manager, currently of Nottingham Forest, formerly of Derby County and Preston North End.
• Gregg Easterbrook, sports journalist, refers to himself as "TMQ" throughout his weekly Tuesday Morning Quarterback column.
• Cam Newton, NFL quarterback, referred to himself in third person during his press conference at the NFL Combine in 2011.
• Amir Khan, boxer

Entertainment

• Conan O'Brien often does it as a joke, much in the sarcastic or self-deprecating sense.
• Brigitte Bardot was known for her occasional habit of speaking in the third person.
• Flavor Flav,
• Chad Kroeger, lead singer of Nickelback, is known by referring to himself as "Chad" in concerts.
• Regis Philbin, American media personality^{[citation needed]}
• Lila Morillo, Venezuelan singer, actress, and media personality, very well-known in her country for her permanent habit of speaking in third person.
• Mr. T, became one of his trademarks in the 1980's

Other

• Salvador Dalí in his 60 Minutes interview with Mike Wallace on April 19, 1958.
• Norman Mailer's non-fiction work, The Fight, refers to the author in the third person throughout The Fight, explaining why he has chosen to do so at the beginning of the book.

Fictional characters

Literature

• Major Bagstock, the apoplectic retired Indian army officer from Charles Dickens' Dombey and Son (1848) refers to himself solely as Joseph, Old Joe, Joey B, Bagstock, Josh, J.B., Anthony Bagstock, and other variants of his own name.
• Captain Hook in J. M. Barrie's "Peter Pan and Wendy" (1911): " 'Better for Hook,' he cried, 'if he had had less ambition!' It was in his darkest hours only that he referred to himself in the third person."
• Shinichi, from The Vampire Diaries (novel series), often spoke in third person to intimidate people.
• Tarzan sometimes refers to himself in the third person, due to his lack of English knowledge.
• George from George of the Jungle refers to himself in the third person for the same reason.
• Patrick Bateman, in American Psycho refers to himself in the third person near the end of the novel, as his depersonalization is at its peak.
• Gregory from The Tale of Despereaux
• Dr. John Faustus from Christopher Marlowe's play The Tragicall History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus
• House-elves in the Harry Potter books, particularly Dobby, who also usually refers to Harry in the third person when speaking to him.
• Lord Voldemort of the Harry Potter series of books, as a means of showing his narcissism and sociopathic tendencies.
• Gollum from The Lord of the Rings spoke in an idiosyncratic manner, often referring to himself in the third person, and frequently talked to himself — "through having no one else to speak to," as Tolkien put it in The Hobbit.
• The Phantom of the Opera refers to himself in third person in the original novel.
• Boday, a quirky female artist from Jack Chalker's "Changewinds" trilogy.

Comics

• Lunker, a character from the Retail comic strip
• The supervillain Dr. Doom is famous for almost always referring to himself in the third person (one of the few exceptions being when he introduces himself with the line "I am Doom.") This trait has been mocked by superheroes such as the Human Torch and Spider-Man.
• Gambit (Remy LeBeau) from the X-Men
• Mordac, a character from the Dilbert comic strip

Manga and Anime

• PallaPalla, from Sailor Moon
• Sesshomaru, from InuYasha
• Hana-chan, from Ojamajo Doremi, refers to herself in the third person, even saying "chan" along with her name.
• Candice from Pokémon. This is actually a translation error, as referring to oneself by name instead of pronoun is seen as "feminine" in the Japanese language, and is fairly common.
• Ed from Cowboy Bebop.
• Subaru Kujo, a gender-ambiguous character from Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love
• Alien Guts, from Ultra Seven
• Megumi Noda, aka Nodame, the title character from Nodame Cantabile: it indicates her eccentric, free-spirit personality.^{[citation needed]}
• Sayuri Kurata from Kanon speaks this way in order to separate herself from her past treatment of her little brother, which she regrets.
• Yuiko Hawatari from Loveless (manga), until she is taught to use the first person.
• Misa Amane from Death Note occasionally calls herself "Misa-Misa". (omitted or reduced in some localizations)
• Mayuri Shiina from Steins;Gate sometimes refers to herself as "Mayushii".
• Rena Ryuguu from Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, partly to stop people from using her real name (Reina).
• Asami Nakaoka from Highschool of the Dead habitually refers to herself in third person; she sometimes says "this officer".^{[citation needed]}
• Juvia Lockser from Fairy Tail refers to herself as "Juvia" when speaking.

Television live-action

• The Rock, during his pro wrestling career, particularly with the catchphrases "The Rock says" and "Do you smell what The Rock is cookin'?"
• Elmo from Sesame Street, whose speech is intended to mimic the speech of preschoolers.
• Jimmy from "The Jimmy" episode of Seinfeld, whose use leads to confusion about his identity. The usage rubs off on George Constanza, who exclaims "George is getting upset!"
• Bob from the TV series Becker
• Hercule Poirot, in the contemporary television adaptation Agatha Christie's Poirot
• Kenny Powers, from the television show Eastbound & Down
• Denny Crane, played by William Shatner on Boston Legal
• Lavon Hayes, the mayor from TV show Hart of Dixie.
• Eddie Alvarez from The Unusuals
• Bomber Busbridge from Auf Wiedersehen, Pet
• Drum, from ZingZillas

Cartoons

• Duffman, Gil, Groundskeeper Willie and Disco Stu from The Simpsons
• Scruffy the janitor in Futurama
• Foxxy Love of the animated series Drawn Together frequently refers to herself in the third person.
• Rolf from Ed, Edd n Eddy, perhaps due to a lack of English knowledge.
• Numbuh Five from Codename: Kids Next Door, an American animated children's cartoon, refers to herself in the third person on multiple occasions.
• Hesh, a character from Sealab 2021
• Cerebus the Aardvark
• The Flea from Mucha Lucha.
• I.R. Baboon, from I Am Weasel
• Grimlock in the various incarnations of Transformers
• Rath, a transformation of Ben Tennyson from the Ben 10: Alien Force and Ben 10: Ultimate Alien series often refers to himself in the third person, but not all the time.
• Jocktopus, from the children's television series, Fish Hooks
• Trixie, from My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
• Waspinator, from Beast Wars, always refers to himself in the third person.
• Aku, the main villain of Cartoon Network's Samurai Jack animated series by Genndy Tartakovsky, frequently referred to himself in the third person.
• Robotboy refers to himself in the third person.
• Atchan from Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi consistently refers to himself in the third person.
• Coldygury from Noonbory and the Super Seven
• Alfe from The Problem Solverz

Film

• Mongo from the Mel Brooks movie Blazing Saddles
• Mr. Miyagi from The Karate Kid sometimes refers to himself as "Miyagi".
• Golden Sparrow from The Forbidden Kingdom always refers to herself as "she" up until her last words.
• Jeff Bridges's character in the movie The Big Lebowski, Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski, refers to himself as "The Dude", such as in the popular final line "The Dude abides".
• Petrie from The Land Before Time occasionally refers to himself in the third person.
• Brendan Austin from Home and Away
• Francesco Bernoulli, from Cars 2

Video games

• Count Bleck from Super Paper Mario
• Fawful, a reoccurring antagonist in Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga and its sequels, refers to himself in the third person frequently. This is a part of a larger speech impediment he has.
• Doctor Suchong from the game Bioshock frequently refers to himself as Suchong.
• Fuko Ibuki from Clannad, only in the visual novel though.
• Nooby, from the video game Pocket God and its comic series of the same name.
• Khajiit from The Elder Scrolls series speak in third person
• Gregor from Fire Emblem Awakening. His English voice and speech patterns are based off a Russian accent.

Other media

• Fictional columnist Smoove B from The Onion refers to himself in the third person and sometimes turns his name into a verb to inform women that they will be "Smooved."