1. Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

2. These questions should be answered at the end of these notes: What is a pronoun? What is an antecedent? What is a pronoun-antecedent error?

3. What is a pronoun?? Takes the place of a noun or another pronoun Subject word: I, you, he, she, we, it, they… Object word: me, us, them, him, her… Possessive word: mine, your, its, ours, theirs…

4. What is an antecedent?? The word that the pronoun replaces Ex: Hermione Granger threw her wand down. (her replaces Hermione) Ex: When Ron saw the wand, he picked it up and handed it to her (it replaces wand)

5. So what is pronoun-antecedent disagreement? Basically: all pronouns and their antecedents need to agree in person and in number

6. Agree in Person I hate to proofread my paper because proofreading is such a boring thing for you to do. Why should I study literature? You don’t get anything out of it. **If something is written in 1 st person, it should use 1 st person pronouns, 2 nd person= 2 nd person pronouns etc.

7. Agree in Number Singular antecedents get singular pronouns -The boy tossed his hat on the ground. Plural antecedents get plural pronouns -The boys tossed their hats on the ground.

8. Those Examples are easy…. There are several other exceptions that can make this type of agreement very difficult!!

9. Problem: Singular Nouns that can refer to a man or a woman Ex: A person should be able to make up their own mind about prayer in schools INCORRECT---why?? Ex: PEOPLE should be able to make up their own minds about prayer in schools. OR A person should be able to make up his or her own mind about prayer in schools.

10. Problem: Need to decide if the subject is singular or plural Ex: The jury took only two hours to reach their verdict. INCORRECT---why?? Ex: The jury took only two hours to reach its verdict.

11. Some words are tricky—BE CAREFUL! Another Anybody Anyone Anything Each Either Everybody Everyone Everything Little Much Neither Nobody Nothing No one Nothing One Other Somebody Something Someone

12. One last example… Each of the groups will have (its, their) convention here. Singular or plural pronoun needed??

13. Warm-up: 3/2/11 1. The captains of both teams forgot the words of wisdom that (his/her, their) coaches had given the night before the championship. 2. Every student should proof (his/her, their) essay for Type I errors. 3. Everyone complained that (his/her, their) food was cold. 4. None of my sisters remembered to purchase (her, their) tickets. 5. Each of the daughters followed (her, their) mother's footsteps.

14. Antecedent Review 1. The committee has disagreed about (its, their) next move. 2. Each of the groups will have (its, their) convention here. 3. That package of clothes is heavy, so don't lift (it, them). 4. If any one of the sisters needs a ride to church, (she, they) can call me.

15. And again…. 5. Kathryn and Alex are concerned about (her, their) welfare in this course. 6. Did Sam or Chris want (his, their) hair cut? 7. Somebody left (his or her, their) trash on the road. 8. At the end of the movies, each of the couples cleared up (its, their) misunderstanding. 9. The Washington team was optimistic; (it, they) took advantage of every break.

16. 10. When a person is in trouble, (he or she, they) may resort to anything. 11. The new style of hats is supposed to be popular, but I don't like (it, them). 12. The books or the bag would be quite enough to carry, so don't tire yourself over (it, them). 13. What is wrong with the jury? (They, it) can't make a decision. 14. Actors during early rehearsals often forget (his or her, their) lines. 15. Both of my parents decided to cut (his or her, their) hair.

17. 5. If any one of the sisters needs a ride, (she, they) can call me. 6. When someone has been drinking, (he or she, they) may drive poorly. 7. If the board of directors controls the company, (it, they) may vote for a raise. 8. Neither the pilot nor the attendants gave (his or her, their) opinion about the mishap. 9. Each of these companies had (its, their) books audited. 10. Some of the china has lost (its, their) luster.