Chinese Honorifics - Referring To Oneself

Referring To Oneself

When referring to oneself, the regular pronoun "I" was to be avoided in most situations. When addressing a person or persons of a superior status, use of a humble form of "I" was required. For example, servants and slaves must not use the pronoun "I", when speaking to their masters. The same rule applied among royalty, government officials, and commoners based on rank and status. Socially, a person may refer to him/herself humbly in formal exchanges and settings, regardless of status and rank, in order to display virtue and enlightenment. Below is a list of some of the humble substitutes, when referring to oneself or his/her own family or possessions.

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Famous quotes containing the words referring to, referring and/or oneself:

    Meanwhile Snow White held court,
    rolling her china-blue doll eyes open and shut
    and sometimes referring to her mirror
    as women do.
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    Meanwhile Snow White held court,
    rolling her china-blue doll eyes open and shut
    and sometimes referring to her mirror
    as women do.
    Anne Sexton (1928–1974)

    Success is dangerous. One begins to copy oneself, and to copy oneself is more dangerous than to copy others. It leads to sterility.
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