When we stick to the requirements of written language, one that first resurfaces, and perhaps the main one, is textual clarity. Any and all interlocution, whether in speech or writing, only becomes materialized if it is clear, objective and precise.
If that doesn't happen, we can say that some obstacles played their part, and believe me: there are several that manifest themselves in this regard. One of them, literally representing this aspect, is expressed by the ambiguity caused by the inadequate use of some pronouns, more specifically the possessive ones. Therefore, as a resultant factor of this (the ambiguity) we only have a double interpretation of what is now said, making it difficult, therefore, to understand the message.
In order to verify how such an occurrence takes place in practice, let us rely on the current example:
As soon as he met Marcela, Paulo made comments about your excellent results in the final exams.
The lack of clarity in the message stems from the use of the possessive pronoun “yours”, given that the comments made by Paulo may be referring to Marcela's results, his results or even the results of both.
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How then to decipher what it is about? Sounds a little confusing, doesn't it?
In this sense, to avoid manifestations like this, the Portuguese language offers us several resources so that we can build our speech with efficiency and precision, thus allowing the interlocution to be materialized in a plausible. Therefore, instead of using the aforementioned pronoun, we can use others, which are also possessive, represented by him (s) and her (s). In this way, it only remains for us to make the necessary changes in the statements that served as examples, once expressed by:
As soon as he met Marcela, Paulo commented on his excellent results in the final exams.
As soon as he met Marcela, Paulo commented on her excellent results in the final exams.
As soon as he met Marcela, Paulo commented on their excellent results in the final exams.
By Vânia Duarte
Graduated in Letters
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
DUARTE, Vânia Maria do Nascimento. "The lack of textual clarity... Can the inappropriate use of some pronouns result in it? "; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/gramatica/a-falta-clareza-textual-emprego-inadequado-alguns.htm. Accessed on June 28, 2021.
