VAGUE PRONOUNS
code: ref
A noun is a person, place, thing, idea, animal, quality, or action. A pronoun is a word
that replaces a noun. Common pronouns are he, she, it, they, him, her, them, their,
who, which, that, and this. A pronoun refers back (and more rarely, ahead) to a noun or
noun phrase it replaces:
I talked on the phone to Joan last night and she’s not coming to class today.
But if there is no antecedent noun, or if it appears too far before the pronoun, or if there
are two or more possible antecedent nouns, then the pronoun will be vague. It won't be
clear what the pronoun refers to, what noun it is replacing, as in the following:
X
“Going to class, Ben met Phil, but as he was in a hurry, he did not stop to talk.”
In this case, the pronoun he can refer to either of the antecedent nouns, Ben or Phil. This
ambiguity makes the meaning of the sentence unclear. Which character was in a hurry,
Ben or Phil? The substitution of the proper name for the first pronoun would clear up the
confusion:

“Going to class, Ben met Phil, but as Ben was in a hurry, he did not stop to talk.”
The most frequently vague pronoun is probably the notorious this. It is often used to
begin a sentence, the writer assuming that the antecedent noun or noun phrase will be
clear in a previous sentence—but it isn't always:
X
Gothic literature is largely a literature of conventions—these include the
frightened heroine; the demonic villain; sublime emotions; images of death; and
the decaying castle, abbey, or house. This has become rather tired but recent
writers have done much to revitalize it by giving a twist to them.
The pronoun this in the passage is ambiguous because its antecedent isn’t clear. To what
noun or noun phrase does it refer in the previous sentence? The other pronouns it and
them are also unclear. By inserting explanatory and/or summarizing nouns or noun
phrases, however, we achieve clarity:

Gothic literature is largely a literature of conventions—these include the
frightened heroine; the demonic villain; sublime emotions; images of death; and
the decaying castle, abbey, or house. This genre has become rather tired but
recent writers have done much to revitalize it by giving a twist to the
conventions.
Any pronoun can be used vaguely, but another that is frequently vague in sentences is it.