Not to turn a meme into a teachable moment, but: this is a technique.

Indeed, it’s a safety tool.

Shifting between first and third person, both for your character (“I put on my hat” vs “Gandalf puts on his hat”) and for other characters (“I punch Boromir” vs “I punch you”) https://twitter.com/andthemeltdowns/status/1322249267663245319

has a powerful effect on the intensity and intimacy of a scene (this is also true of direct vs reported speech—whether you exchange dialogue in character, or summarise what is communicated).

By making intentional choices about how to refer to your character, you can manage how

embodied you wish to be in different kinds of scenes and content, and how visceral they will feel.

Similarly, becoming aware of the choices you’re making and taking control means you can ask and respect the preferences and comfort levels of your fellow players.

“Gandalf stabs him” vs “I stab him” entail different experiences of immediacy, embodiment, intimacy, and intensity.

The same with “I kiss your character” vs “I kiss you” for your partner.

The same with summarising a character’s threats, or speaking them verbatim and out loud.

I invite you, in your next session, to pay attention to which modes of reference and representations you’re defaulting to, and how that matches/differs from your fellow players.

Once you become aware, those modes can be a powerful tool for storytelling and for safer play.