: Re: Can I use "We" to refer to me and the reader? I am writing my thesis and in many cases I want to take the reader through an example. For example: Besides the advanced composition rules,

@Ravi5107385

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The answer is going to depend on context, and the consistency of your usage.

The "I" in your example quote clearly refers to you, the author, and does not include the reader.

Replacing "I" with "we" does indicate you are referring to both you and the reader.

However, you have to be cautious, because the context could change. For example, you could reach a point where you need to refer to you and someone else other than the reader, in which case using "we" could confuse the issue.

Personally, if you are addressing the reader, and you want to take the reader through an example, I would consider using "you" directly instead of "we". Remember: the example is for the benefit of the reader, and not yourself. Therefore, use "you" and "I" so that there is no ambiguity.

An example rework of what you've given:

Besides the advanced composition
rules, it is also important to have a
set of basic rules to help in
controlling some of the elements of
the frame. For example, you may want
to have a river across the diagonal of
the frame, yet also want some animals
near the river to be in the top-left
corner of the frame. You can use the
diagonal dominance rule on the river
to assure that it is shown diagonally,
but the other advanced rules cannot be
of any use for placing the animal in
the top-left corner of the frame. For
this, you should implement the
following basic composition rules,
which I found to be enough for most
applications:

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