Abstract

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First Person Plural

Jim Chen
University of Louisville - Louis D. Brandeis School of Law

July 9, 2006

Minnesota Legal Studies Research Paper No. 06-30

Abstract:
Like most other Indo-European languages, English does not distinguish between the inclusive and exclusive uses of the first person plural. By contrast, languages as diverse as Tok Pisin, Samoan, Taiwanese, and Cherokee take care to distinguish between first person plural pronouns that include the listener and those that exclude the listener. This linguistic difference sheds light on the use of we throughout the foundational documents and the authoritative interpretations of the American constitutional tradition.

Keywords: linguistics, constitutional law, Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Supreme Court, pronouns

Working Paper Series

Date posted: July 11, 2006 ; Last revised: March 11, 2008

Suggested Citation

Chen, Jim, First Person Plural (July 9, 2006). Minnesota Legal Studies Research Paper No. 06-30. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=916018

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Contact Information

James Ming Chen (Contact Author)

University of Louisville - Louis D. Brandeis School of Law ( email )

Wilson W. Wyatt Hall
Louisville, KY 40292
United States
502-852-6879 (Phone)
502-852-0862 (Fax)