I vs. i – A Grammatical Rule That Impacts Our Self-Concept

by Connie Habash | Feb 18, 2023 | Articles, Ecopsychology, Self, Spirituality

Recently, I have noticed more authors and writers choosing to put their name in lowercase letters (like bell hooks, or adrienne marie brown). I found it annoying and didn’t understand. I like rules of grammar and following rules – I think it gives me a sense of safety (well, that’s what rules and laws are for after all!). So why couldn’t they just follow the rules?!

But I wanted to understand. So I did some research which led me to explore the historical, political, ecological, and spiritual significance of capitalizing our self-prescribing pronoun, “I” (and why we might want to consider “i” instead).