Thread by @PnictogenHorses

we aren't used to strict Christian upbringing; it's tough for us to watch. we have to remind ourselves that things aren't what they first seem.

Mrs. Nixon is a strict Quaker; she addresses young @dick_nixon with "thee"—this may sound merely *upsetting* to modern ears.

(cont'd)

"thee" and "thou" and "thy", however, are pronouns used to refer to human beings in a general way, i.e. not an excessively *familiar* and specific way. Spanish, for example, has a similar distinction between the general-purpose _usted_ and the familiar _tú_.

(cont'd)

in addressing her son with "thee", Mrs. Nixon is reminding her son that she speaks to him as one Christian to another—as one person to another. it's slightly distancing, yes, but it's not meant to be hurtful or punitive, even if it seems that way.

(cont'd)

unfortunately, modern English has suppressed the distinction between general-purpose address and personal or familiar address. "you" now carries far too much weight in English—it can be both very personal and very general in usage, and that's confusing to people.

(cont'd)

confusing...and therefore *useful*, to the manipulator and abuser of language. #marketing and #management both know how to extract the maximum utility out of artful manipulation of the value of the pronoun "you".

~Mona Drafter of Pnictogen