There are two different “thirds” on my mind lately, and I’m not referring to probability, statistics, fractions or math of any kind. Instead I’m talking about “third person” and “third parties.” These days, both are more prevalent than ever due to the proliferation of digital and social media. Third Person
In the third-person narrative, each and every character is referred to by the narrator as "he", "she", "it", or "they", but never as "I" or "we" (first-person), or "you" (second-person). In third-person narrative, it is necessary that the narrator is merely an unspecified entity or uninvolved person that conveys the story, but not a character of any kind within the story being told. The funny thing about third person is that, these days, a lot of how we talk about ourselves and experiences is - technically - in the third person. Think about Facebook status updates. How many times a day do you read about how “John is tired” or “John wants to on vacation”? Linguists all over are studying the effects of text messaging and commensurate shifts in communication – things like condensed communications, proliferation of new jargon and shorthand. It used to be that we frowned upon people who referred to themselves in the third person (or at least I did). Now, not so much. We expect it – digitally anyways. I wonder if this kind of third person self-reference is going to spill over into the “real world.”
Third Party
A third party is someone other than the principals involved in a transaction. This definition suggests a passive, almost insignificant role played by these people. However, today, third parties are perhaps the most important party, making themselves principals like buyer and seller. Their validation and support is critical in today’s marketplace. And, we have 24/7/365 access to an seemingly infinite number of them...
Net net, these are just two observations/questions/interesting things. To me, digital and social media and experiences are redefining, reshaping and reframing everything we know to be true.
