All alone vs. alone

[Meira]

Is it OK to say “all alone” in prose? “all by herself”? Or should it always be “alone” and “by herself” ?

[James D. Macdonald]

Does it reveal character? Does it support theme? Does it make the sentence rhythm smoother (or more rough, depending on your purpose)? Which way sounds better to you?

This is an art.

[CheshireCat]

What James said.

[SpookyWriter]

Is it OK to say “all alone” in prose? “all by herself”? Or should it always be “alone” and “by herself” ?

She was all alone at the morgue checking in dead bodies while her friends were having fun at the disco.

She was all by herself when the bomb exploded.

[NicoleJLeBoeuf]

She was all alone at the morgue checking in dead bodies while her friends were having fun at the disco.

She was all by herself when the bomb exploded.But Meira wasn't asking for a demonstration of the phrases' use; she was asking whether the phrases were worth using. If it comes down to it, I can demonstrate use of the phrase "comprised of" or the George Bush pronounciation of "nukyooler" without making either correct.

Are those phrases OK? There's nothing inherently incorrect about them. They're OK if they work OK. How do you tell if they work OK? That's more complex part.

Whether to say "all alone" or just "alone" is the sort of thing I'd probably not decide at all, not at first. One or the other would just come out of the pen/keyboard on the first draft. During revisions, I'd decide whether to let it stand or change it based on rhythm and feel and other "know it when I see it" criteria. Uncle Jim's response ("This is an art") about sums it up.

To me, there's a sort of desperate feel in adding "all" to the description "alone"/"by myself." It's an intensifier. It emphasizes being alone, abandoned, without support or company. It can add pathos or a feeling of childlike powerlessness. Whereas "alone" by itself feels like a data point. "Alone in the morgue" feels like a police report; "All alone in the morgue" emphasizes the mortician's vunerability. (I'm going with "when the serial killer burst out of a side lab and attacked" rather than "while her friends were having fun at the disco."

If you're familiar with that song from the 80s, with the line, "All by myself / don't wanna be / all by myself / anymore" - the word "all" not only makes it scan *g* but also adds emphasis to the loneliness of being alone, the way I hear it.

All of this is highly subjective, of course. If it jibes with your own feeling for the language, right on; if not, feel free to ignore. *g*

[SpookyWriter]

But Meira wasn't asking for a demonstration of the phrases' use; she was asking whether the phrases were worth using. If it comes down to it, I can demonstrate use of the phrase "comprised of" or the George Bush pronounciation of "nukyooler" without making either correct.

How better to answer the question then with usage?

Originally Posted by Meira http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/images/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1923825#post1923825)
Is it OK to say “all alone” in prose? “all by herself”? Or should it always be “alone” and “by herself” ?

[benbradley]

I have the impression (thus it's just me seeing the words, and my "impressions" have been wrong before) that alone works as one word, and that all alone is sort of an idiom, used to somehow emphasize the word alone.

[Danger Jane]

To decide things like this is why I read my writing out loud, always. You don't have to cut that semi-redundant little word if it makes the sentence flow better, or worse, depending on what kind of prose you're going for.

[Gillhoughly]

I'm re-editing some of my early work and have been deleting the "alls" throughout.

The character is a hard-boiled guy in noir situations. When an "all' appears it makes him sound soft.

I've been reserving it for numerical situations, like "All the people in the room were..."

Now, if I can just burn out alllll those "-ly" words!

[scarletpeaches]

Is the word 'all' necessary here?

The only circumstances under which I could see a need for it would be if part of her had a tendency to run away by itself...normally her left arm and nose went to nightclubs while she stayed at home, but tonight she was all by herself.

[Just Jack]

Is the word 'all' necessary here?

The only circumstances under which I could see a need for it would be if part of her had a tendency to run away by itself...normally her left arm and nose went to nightclubs while she stayed at home, but tonight she was all by herself.

It depends on the situation. You could do without it, but it does emphasize the fact that she is ALL by herself. Maybe she spends a lot of nights alone. But maybe she normally doesont, and it kills her to spend even one night alone. I would say it depends on the character in question.

[kuwisdelu]

I think the "all alone" implies the character is literally the only one around, while "alone" seems to imply the character is not with anyone he or she knows--there may be others around, but he or she isn't with any of them. Maybe that's just me.

[Meira]

Thanks guys! This discussion is very helpful to me. I love all the explanations and examples. Now that I found AbsoluteWrite, I am no longer all alone. ;)

[SpookyWriter]

Is the word 'all' necessary here?

The only circumstances under which I could see a need for it would be if part of her had a tendency to run away by itself...normally her left arm and nose went to nightclubs while she stayed at home, but tonight she was all by herself.I think the usage of "all by herself" is used to emphase the adject feeling of loneliness. If you omit the "all" and it becomes "was by herself" which means, to me, that she was somewhat alone and in some manner of dispair.

Just a play on words.

[Fox The Cave]

I think it depends on how limited your perspective is - if your perspective is very close to the MC and the prose reflects her thoughts and feelings, then all alone is fine.

If your perspective is more distanced from your MC, then alone is better - its more detached, no emotional connations.

For example:

"Jessica was alone."

"Jessica was all alone."

The second one is closer to the character, we know because the language is more intimate that this is a reflection of the characters feelings. The first is more detached.

You have to pick and choose in relation to the style of the book. One word can make a big difference - but do try to not spend hours over it.