+232.+ There is one other class of pronouns which plays a great part in
our speech and is a wonderful help to us. For example, suppose I want to
tell you several things about this book. I say: _I am reading this book.
It interests me greatly._ Now it would be a great advantage to me if I
could put these two sentences together, and we have for this use a
pronoun which makes it possible for us to combine these sentences, and
so I say:
The book which I am reading interests me greatly.
Thus I am able to unite two short sentences into a long sentence, which
conveys my meaning better than the two short sentences and gives a
smoother bit of reading. We have four pronouns which we use in this way,
_who_, _which_, _that_ and _what_ and they are called relative pronouns
because they refer or relate to some noun in the sentence and they also
serve to connect two statements.
+233.+ +A relative pronoun is a pronoun that relates to an antecedent
and at the same time connects two statements.+
A relative pronoun always relates to its antecedent and at the same time
connects the statement that it introduces with the one that contains the
antecedent to which it relates, as in the sentence above, _The book
which I am reading, interests me greatly._ _Which_ is the relative
pronoun; first, because it relates to the antecedent, _book_; and
second, because it connects the statement, _I am reading_, with the rest
of the sentence. Notice these sentences also:
The man who thinks will not enlist in the army.
We will destroy the system that enslaves us.
_Who_ and _that_ are the relative pronouns in these two sentences and
their antecedents are _man_ and _system_, and they connect the
statements, _who thinks_ and _that enslaves us_, with the rest of the
sentence.
+234.+ +Who is used to relate to persons.+
+Which is used to relate only to animals and things.+
+That may relate to either persons, animals or things.+
+What relates to things.+
Note that _which_, as an interrogative, may refer to persons as well as
to animals and things; but as a relative, _which_ never refers to
persons.
+235+. Note that we use the same pronouns _who_, _which_ and _what_ as
both relative and interrogative pronouns. You will not be confused in
this matter if you will remember that they are called interrogative
pronouns only when they are used to ask questions. When they are used as
interrogative pronouns they never have an antecedent. _Who_ and _which_
and _what_ are always relative pronouns when used in an assertive
sentence and referring to an antecedent.
_That_ and _what_ have the same form for both the subject and object
forms. They have no possessive form. _Who_ has a different form for the
subject form and the possessive form and the object form. _Which_ has
the same form for subject and object forms, and a different form for the
possessive form. Note the following:
_Subject form_ _Possessive form_ _Object form_
who whose whom
which whose which
I know the man _who_ called him.
I know the man _whose_ voice I hear.
I know the man _whom_ they called.
In these three sentences we have the pronoun _who_ used in its three
forms, subject, possessive and object form. We should be very careful
not to confuse the subject and the object forms of the pronoun _who_.
This is the book _which_ tells the truth.
This is the book _whose_ author is in prison.
This is the book _which_ I wanted.
In these three sentences we have the pronoun _which_ used in its three
forms, _subject_ form, _possessive_ form and _object_ form. In the first
sentence the pronoun is the subject of the verb _tells_; in the second
sentence, it is used in the possessive form with the noun _author_; in
the third sentence, it is used as the object of the verb _wanted_.
+236.+ _What_ differs from the other relative pronouns in that its
antecedent is never expressed, for it is implied in the word itself.
_What_ is always equivalent to _that which_, or _the thing which_. For
example, the sentence, _Do not tell what I have told you_, is equivalent
to saying, _Do not tell that which I have told you_, or _the thing which
I have told you_.
+237+. Never use _what_ in a sentence as a _relative_ pronoun unless you
can replace it and make good sense by using _that which_, or _the thing
which_ in place of _what_.
For example, do not say, _I know that what he would say_. This is
incorrect. You should say, _I know that which he would say_, or _I know
what he would say_, using _what_ in place of _that which_. Here is a
sentence that occurred in an English examination recently, which
illustrates most aptly this point. _A subject is that what something is
said about._ Here _what_ is used incorrectly. _A subject is that about
which something is said_, would have been the correct form.
Watch for this in your speech for it is a most common error and to the
educated ear is harsh and marks the speaker as uneducated. All of these
mistakes which we make so commonly will require a considerable amount of
effort to overcome, but the result is worth the effort, for even those
about us who will not take the pains or give the required time and
effort to acquiring an education for themselves, will give greater heed
to the speech of those who do speak correctly, and will readily
acknowledge the leadership of those who have given the time and effort
to self-development.
+238.+ The antecedent of _who_ is sometimes omitted and understood; for
example, _Who follows the cause must endure hardship_, _He_, is
understood and omitted. _He who follows the cause must endure hardship._
+239.+ The relative pronoun itself is often omitted. For example:
These are the men (whom) you must help.
The words (that) you use and the deeds (that) you do, are your judges.
+240.+ The relative pronouns have compound forms also, such as
_whoever_, _whosoever_, _whichever_, _whichsoever_, _whatever_ and
_whatsoever_, which are used in the same manner as the simple forms.