Confused about this use of "estos"

[createdamadman]

This is from the same short story as the last question I posted, but it's a different issue. A man is giving students a tour of a solar farm, and the second sentence seems to say that they can see the mirrors and the machines that make them - the mirrors - move. But I don't understand why "estos" is used instead of "ellos". Is this an error or does this make sense?

[Rusty]

The word estos is a demonstrative pronoun in this instance, and can be translated as these (a reference to 'the latter' or 'the last thing' mentioned). Its referent is the mirrors.

They can see the mirrors and the machines that make these (the mirrors) move ...

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

I agree with Rusty. I will just add that they can't used "ellos", because mirrors are not persons. That's why they used "estos".

[createdamadman]

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

I agree with Rusty. I will just add that they can't used "ellos", because mirrors are not persons. That's why they used "estos".

Okay, so is it right to say that "ello/ella" can be used to mean "it", but cannot be pluralized to mean "them" when talking about objects? Also, I believe I've seen "ella" used to mean "them" as well when talking about objects; is that correct?

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Correct, although this is a bit complicated to explain. Ask all the questions you need if I didn't make it clear enough.

Both words, despite their similarity, are not one the plural of the other.
"Ello" is a neuter pronoun which is used to replace mostly abstract things, situations or general ideas, and it never takes a plural.

- Fuiste infiel. Con ello me basta para romper la relación.
You cheated on me. That's enough for me to break up.
- Tengo que lavar la ropa, pero no tengo fuerzas para ello.
I must do the laundry, but I don't feel strong enough to do it.
- La acusada lloraba durante el juicio, pero ello no fue suficiente para convencer al jurado.
The accused was crying during the trial, but that was not enough to convince the jury.
- En la casa sólo tenía pasta y queso. Con ello improvisó su cena.
At home she only had pasta and cheese. With that, she improvised her dinner.


"Él/"ella" are personal pronouns. They normally replace persons. They can take a plural when there are multiple persons.

- Pedro es mi amigo. Él siempre me hace sonreír.
Pedro is my friend. He always makes me smile.
- Juan y María son mis amigos. Ellos siempre me hacen sonreír.
Juan and Maria are my friends. They always make me laugh.
- Laura está enferma. Voy a pasar la tarde con ella.
Laura is sick. I'll spend the afternoon with her.
- Mis hijas están enfermas. Voy a pasar la tarde con ellas.
My daughters are ill. I'll spend the afternoon with them.


As for objects, we conjugate the verbs for the third person either singular or plural, but we tend to use other pronouns instead of "él (ellos)"/"ella (ellas)".
This is when demonstrative pronouns "este (estos)"/"esta (estas)", "ese (esos)"/"esa (esas)" and "aquel (aquellos)"/"aquella (aquellas)" turn up. Choosing any of them also expresses how close you are to such objects: "este" (close), "ese" (a little farther), "aquel" (really far).

- Había tres faldas diferentes, pero elegí esta. (I have the skirt at hand so I can show you)
There were three different skirts, but I chose this one.
- Dame por favor un lápiz. No, ese no porque tiene la punta rota. (You're closer than me to the pencils and I'm pointing at them.)
Please give me a pencil. Not that one because its lead is broken.
- Quiero cortar unas manzanas, pero quiero aquellas en lo alto del árbol.
I want to harvest some apples, but I want those on top of the tree.


Finally, these demonstrative pronouns also have a neuter form: "esto", "eso" and "aquello". They are used just like "ello", but they also express how close you feel to the abstract situation.

- El coche está descompuesto. Esto me tiene muy nerviosa. (I feel close to this situation, because it's a problem I haven't solved yet.)
The car is broken. This has me very upset.
- La cafetería estaba cerrada y eso me hizo llegar tarde al trabajo. (Some hours after being late for work, I don't feel so close to the situation.)
The coffee shop was closed and that made me late for work.
- Cuando era niña vi morir a mi perro. Nunca he hablado de aquello. (This is something that is not only far in time, but also I don't want to get anywhere near talking about the subject.)
When I was a child I saw my dog die. I never have talked about it.