Is the direct object pronoun for you/formal lo/la?
Perhaps this is a question for Paralee.
I ask this because when I was in high school (many, many, many) years ago I learned that the lo/la was the direct object pronoun for he, she, it, you/formal. Now I am taking a class in which the book we are using indicates that lo/la is not used for you/formal. It indicates that le (as used in the indirect object pronoun) should be used. I asked the teacher and she says yes. Her husband is from Mexico and he uses it this way as well. What is correct? Has there been a change in this grammar point?
7 Answers
No the rules haven't changed. Check out the Reference article on d.o. pronouns here at this site. d.o. pronouns
It's a regional usage. In some regions le is acceptable as the replacement for lo when the d.o. is a singular male person (not any masculine gender object). If you are saying that le can be used for usted which may refer to a female as well, then what their probable regional usage is that le is used whenever the direct object is a person.
Even in regions where this leísmo isn't used, there are certain verbs in Spanish where many regions use le instead of lo as the direct object. I believe llamar may be one of them when it is used for calling people on the telephone. You'll see things like:
Le llamé a él por teléfono ayer.
instead of
Lo llamé a él ayer.
Now I am taking a class in which the book we are using indicates that lo/la is not used for you/formal. It indicates that le (as used in the indirect object pronoun) should be used
HI ann, interesting question as this book is right out wrong in this. Lo should be used as a direct object but it is often replaced by le, however, this is although accepted and called "le de cortesía" really a mistake, as le is the indirect object pronoun.
Debido a su extensión entre hablantes cultos y escritores de prestigio, se admite el uso de le en lugar de lo en función de complemento directo cuando el referente es una persona de sexo masculino: «Tu padre no era feliz. [...] Nunca le vi alegre» (TBallester Filomeno [Esp. 1988]). Sin embargo, el uso de les por los cuando el referente es plural, aunque no carece de ejemplos literarios, no está tan extendido como cuando el referente es singular, por lo que se desaconseja en el habla culta:
Sí, lo es.
Now I am taking a class in which the book we are using indicates that lo/la is not used for you/formal. It indicates that le (as used in the indirect object pronoun) should be used.
HI anne, this is quite different from saying: this should be used!
It boils down to: lo is correct, but le is the most used form, it is leísmo de cortesía and the leísmo is an incorrect use of the pronoun. However, as it is so frequently used all over the place, it has been accepted and we got a name and all for it: leísmo de cortesía.
Vikingo, why are you sending everybody to the dunce corner, most of the people said lo was the correct form to use, which is of course advisable. Actually I think everybody did.
However, le is the most used form. I would like to mention , that in other Spanish speaking countries the leísmo is much less common than in Spain.
I'd normally use le(s). Here is the relevant quote from the DPD regarding "leísmo de cortesía":
g) Otro caso de leísmo generalizado en todo el mundo hispánico es el llamado «leísmo de cortesía». Se trata del uso de le(s) en función de complemento directo cuando el referente es un interlocutor al que se trata de usted. Este leísmo se justifica por el deseo de evitar la ambigüedad de sentido que acarrearía el uso de los pronombres de acusativo lo(s), la(s), ya que estos podrían referirse tanto a un interlocutor presente como a una tercera persona no partícipe en la conversación: «Ande, y discúlpelo [a él], que yo en seguida le acompaño [a usted]» (MDíez Expediente [Esp. 1992]); «Que Dios le acompañe y le proteja. Yo aquí le espero» (Chao Altos [Méx. 1991]); «¿Quiere que le acompañe? [Dirigido a una mujer]» (Rossetti Alevosías [Esp. 1991]). No obstante, también se documentan ejemplos en los que no se da este tipo de leísmo, especialmente en el Perú y los países del Cono Sur: «Lo acompaño, sargento» (Scorza Tumba [Perú 1988]). Aunque el «leísmo de cortesía» no está tan generalizado cuando el interlocutor es femenino, debe considerarse aceptable, especialmente en fórmulas fijas de saludo o despedida del tipo Le saluda atentamente y similares.
So if you're in Peru, Uruguay, Argentina, etc., notice what they use. Otherwise, go with what your book says. 
Thanks for all the replies to my question on the Ud, Uds use of the direct object pronoun. I am using the book Easy Spanish, Step by Step, by McGraw Hill, author Barbara Bregstein. Here is a direct quote from the book "In order to express the direct object pronoun you in the Ud and Uds form, the indirect object pronoun le and les is used in most countries". It goes on with sample sentences.
So should I continue to just use lo/la or go with le? I think this might boil down to a regional usage as one person has indicated. At least it's nice to know what the correct grammar/usage is.
My question has to be..what book is this that you guys are using? What's the title? 'Street Spanish?'
Haha, anyhow, yea lo/la/los/las are definitely the direct object pronouns. What everyone said. It is a bit disconcerting to hear that a textbook is teaching this as the 'correct' spanish.
-Charlius-
