Grammar: Personal pronouns

Pronouns are divided into four classes: personal, possessive, relative, and interrogative.

Personal pronouns

From A New English Grammar for Schools, by Thomas Harvey: 

1. A personal pronoun shows the  person of the noun it represents.

I write; you read; he listens

a. The words “I,” “you,” and “he ” are pronouns, because they take the place of nouns.

b. “I” denotes first person, because it indicates the person speaking.

c. “You” denotes second person, because it indicates the person addressed.

d. “He” denoted third person, because it indicates the person spoken of.

 Those words which show by their form the person of the nouns they represent are called personal pronouns.

2. Personal pronouns are either simple or compound.

That is my book; I read that book by myself.

a. Simple personal pronouns are declined as follows: 

b. Compound personal pronouns are formed by adding self or selves to some form of the personal pronouns.

myself; yourselves; himself;  herself;
themselves

They are declined as follows:

3. General remarks:

a. Thou, thy, thine, thee, thyself, and ye, are archaic pronouns. Though still used in some versions of the Bible and other sacred writings, they are now seldom used except in poetry. You, your, yours, and yourself are used in modern writing.

The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness.

b. You, originally plural, is now used to represent singular as well as plural nouns.

c. We is often used in place of I, in royal proclamations, editorials, and when the speaker or writer wishes to avoid the appearance of egotism.

We, George III, King of Great Britain and Ireland, do proclaim...

We formerly thought differently, but have changed our mind.

d. It is sometimes used in the nominative without referring to any particular antecedent, 

It thunders.

It seems to me

It is a true saying.

and in the objective for euphony alone:

“Click it or ticket”

e. Since the English language doesn’t have a pronoun of the third person singular and common gender, it’s okay to use the masculine forms he, his, him, for that purpose.

A thorough scholar studies his lesson carefully.

f. When reference is made to an assemblage containing males only, or females only, the masculine or feminine forms should be used, as the case may require.

g. When pronouns of different persons are used, the second should precede the third, and the third the first.

You, and he, and I were boys together.

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