The dependencies in the syntax of natural language are one of the central issues in grammatical studies.  The coreference between pronouns and their antecedents is such dependency.  Pronouns constitute a special class in Chinese with their peculiar characteristics that make a vague picture of the class.  There has been so far few systematic study, or full-fledged description of the pronoun in contemporary Chinese.

Based upon the case study and the sample statistics, this paper provides a detailed functional description of the personal pronoun, an important component of the class of the pronouns, which reveals the distribution and type of Chinese personal pronouns. Besides, the Chinese personal pronoun is compared with its English counterpart within the framework that consists of some pragmatic parameters, including (a) the social deixis, (b) inflection, (c) emphasis, (d) inclusiveness and (e) omission. Evidence is also found to show whether Chinese personal pronouns are, as many people believe, intrinsically animate.

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