Is "it" singular or plural these days?
Normally you’d write "it" as a singular pronoun for either a subject and an object in a preceding sentence, like so:
She left her book in the kitchen. But it is not there now.
If you mention more than one item, you’d not use "it", but write the plural "they" instead:
She left her book, her wallet, and her keys in the kitchen. But they are not there now.
So, how do you account for the discrepancy in the sentences below?
“The choice of tablecloths, the poached salmon, the musicians, even the service—all of it would be tasteful in the extreme.”
“Everyone is speaking at once, gesticulating, shaking their heads, all of it aimed at Laurel.”
“Michael did not say, It’s not your face, Daphne. He did not say, It’s her nose to do with as she pleases. He did not say, The surgeon did a beautiful job, it looks completely natural and not all that different. He did not say that was over a decade ago. He had said all of it so many times before.”
Excerpts From "The Grammarians" by Cathleen Schine
“No one ever talks back to Dr Moone. If this was Dr Morgan or Mr Hendrix, they would be asking all sorts of inappropriate questions right now. Where was she found? When did it happen? OK – those are appropriate questions, but on hearing she was found in the lake perhaps they would ask if she had been partially eaten by fish, and enquire whether or not she floated, and whether the VBs were involved and what Princess Augusta would think about it all."
“There’s her gym plan, her school exercise plan, her records on MyFitnessPal. How clean and neat it all is.”
Excerpts From ‘Oligarchy" by Scarlett Thomas
