Inclusive vs exclusive “we”
“Terminator and us are DONE professionally.”
So says the front page blerb for this episode of the Down in Front movie podcast. I just wanted to note as a werd nerd that the traditionally correct form is “Terminator and we are DONE professionally”, but the reason this sounds wierd is peculiar.
We almost never use we in an “and” construction because English can’t distinguish between times when “we” includes the other thing we’re talking about and when it doesn’t. And in any “and” construction, it’s natural to assume that it should be inclusive, because why else would you include them in the same construction? I don’t remember if the original construction they are parodying* was “We are done professionally” or “You and I are done professionally” but you can see how that we is inclusive and the way the “you and I” is synonymous with “we” in that sense.
But DIF’s parody uses us/we in the exclusive sense. That is, it excludes “Terminator” from the “us/we” group (the DIF crew). But and naturally forms groups that get referred to as we. It’s grammatically confusing because English literally doesn’t have werds to express that thaut.
Insted, we would normally frase that sentiment as “Terminator and DIF are DONE professionally” or “We are DONE professionally with Terminator”.
By the way, it’s a nice parody and a pun at the same time. DIF is done doing commentaries for all the Terminator movies and satirically “DONE” werking with the Terminator franchise out of frustration with its behavior.
* A leaked recording of Christian Bale’s on-set rant directed at a crew member during filming of Terminator Salvation.
