It's a first person narrative story I'm working on, and I was in the middle of writing this line when I stopped, wondering if it sounded right. I'm sure if I didn't think about it would seem okay, but now it's got me bugged.
"...it was easy to get sick of life here."
Would this be correct the way it is, or "...it was easy to get sick of life there."
He is talking about the place he was at, and it's in the past tense. But 'there' doesn't seem as... I don't know, personal?
-Jay
[This message has been edited by jaycloomis (edited November 28, 2007).]
Posted by annepin (Member # 5952) on :
Yeah, if he's talking about some place that's not the here and now, it should be "there".
Posted by KStar (Member # 4968) on :
I've been running into the same question. Thanks!
Posted by ArCHeR (Member # 2067) on :
It might be made even more clear if you added a bit to it to make it a bit less ambiguous:
"...It was easy to get sick of the life he led there..."
I'm pretty sure you're trying to convey discontent, not thoughts of suicide
It may be a bit more chunky than you want though. Just my thoughts...
Posted by spcpthook (Member # 3246) on :
If you want it more personal have him actually name the there because this should be there. It was easy to get sick of life on (Terra--insert actual name here)
Posted by Zero (Member # 3619) on :
Annepin is absolutely correct.
"Here" refers to the here and now, where he literally is at the place of the narrative. It might sound more "personal" because it is his thoughts. But "there" is just as personal for the same reason, it's his thoughts. What makes it personal is that he is thinking about it, not the narrator.
But if you say "here" and mean anywhere else or any other point in time other than the present, then it's both wrong and confusing.
