Answers
Aug 03, 2012 - 01:59 PM
Rachel, as went through the program (I'm repeating Level 4 right now), those pronouns show up with reduced frequency. As far as every day language, I don't know. I do know that many of my friends whose primary language is Spanish, but are fluent in English, don't use he/she nor the subject's name as often as I'd like when speaking English. Sometimes, I'm not sure to whom they're referring. When I've asked them about it, they're not aware of it. Perhaps this is a carry-over from their primary language.
Aug 06, 2012 - 10:39 AM
In my experience of Spanish, people tend to omit the subject pronouns most of the time, unless they want to emphasize it or make very clear who they're referring to. So in common everyday language, each time it's clear who you're referring to, I would recommend to avoid it, but with precaution because it implies knowing your conjugations very well!!
Aug 07, 2012 - 09:58 PM
Thanks, Emilie and Tim!
Aug 08, 2012 - 08:02 PM
In my experience (studied Spanish since high school, intermediate level; learned Portuguese in Brazil in 2009, intermediate level) your observation is spot on, Rachel, and simply reflects how spoken everyday language is more relaxed. When a friend asks you if you're attending the concert tomorrow night, do you respond "Yeah, I'm gonna go" or "Yes, I am going to go" ? Using the pronoun in Spanish is a little stilted, in some ways, but it can be useful either for clarification or emphasis. Think of it as language "training wheels" -- you'll speak a bit differently at an advanced level.