The topic of pronouns seems like a modern concern, a first-world controversy gaining traction today, but it’s not. Language is constantly changing, and throughout history, speakers have fought against evolution. Old English had secondary pronouns for example, which were arguably even more useful than our modern “you.” “Thee” and “thou” differentiate between object and subject, something the current “you” is missing. It begs the question, why even introduce “you,” and how did it become the de facto secondary pronoun?
In Middle English and Early Modern English, the transitionary period between both “thee” and “ye” secondary pronouns, “you,” and its subject, “ye,” were considered the more polite or formal version of “thee” and “thou.” According to the Oxford Dictionary, they were used similarly to the more formal “usted” versus the informal “tú” in Spanish, to differentiate status or age. Additionally, as noted by Professor Connie Gritz, the switch was expedited by the Quakers, a religious group who deemed everyone equals, and therefore referred to everyone as “thou” or “thee.” They were contentious, and their stereotyping as religious fanatics added a negative connotation to the terms.
Shakespeare wrote in Early Modern English, and the battle between “you” and “thou” is seen in some of his most popular works. Hamlet, for example, shows both the old and new in a single conversation when the prince, Hamlet, says, “Thou art e’en as just a man,” and his friend replies, “At your service.” In this case, it shows a difference in status. As the pronoun became more formal, and more of the British began moving to the cities, to appear classy, many middle class adopted the “you” and “ye” as well.
London, the heart and trendsetter of the English language was one of the first to phase out “thou” and “thee” from general public use. According to Merriam-Webster, “thou” began being considered intimate, crude or insulting and only used in homes, severely hindering its popularity.
Eventually, after “thee” and “thou” were abandoned, “ye” was also phased out. This removal of a specific subject pronoun occurred because English speakers simply used “you” to refer to a subject and object. In the phrase “He gave her,” “he” is the subject, what is doing, whereas “her” is the object. When talking to two people, however, the phrase can switch to “you gave you,” where the first “you” is person A, the subject, and the second “you” is person B, the object. This does lead to confusion, and before “ye” was made obsolete, “ye gave you” would have been said instead.
This leaves Modern English, where the glory days of “thou” and “thee” are long over. Ironically, because of older religious texts and classic, studied works like Shakespeare, “thee” and “thou” are now seen as more formal than “you.” Their archaic shift has made sentences like, “thou shall not pass” significantly, almost obnoxiously, righteous sounding if used in everyday conversation, especially compared to the modern translation of “you shall not pass.”
Pronouns are not a crazy new topic because grammar is constantly changing based on use. Between “Lord of the Rings” and “Romeo and Juliet,” the use of “thee” and “thou” has stayed the same for now, but modern speakers often don’t realize the difference between the two or when to use them. However, as language evolves, speakers need to understand these shifts to ensure effective communication.
