: Re: Is it eccentric to address the reader in non-fiction writing? I have observed that I often address the reader in my essays to lay down a point. To give you an example, I'll write: You

@Pierce369

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I believe you are mixing two different problems here.

One thing is to use an impersonal form: "if you want to fight, expect to bleed", or "sometimes you win, sometimes you lose". Here you're not talking to a specific listener, but you use a generic impersonal form. It is a common english language practice, as I see it.

The other thing is whether you should break the fourth wall - to use a drama expression - and address directly the reader. There are many cases when this happens. It all depends on whose voice you decide to adopt when writing, whose point of view is it, and who is the ideal reader in the fiction.

For instance, The Bethroted (by A. Manzoni) and Pinocchio (by C. Collodi) directly engage the reader. They both assume that the story is told by someone to someone else, and play on this mechanism. Also Moby Dick is told by the protagonist in a very informal tale to a casual listener. "Call me Ishmael", he begins, to catch the audience's attention, and implying "... and I will tell you a story".

It all depends on the point of view you choose, and the fictional audience the story is told to.

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