look at you & look at yourself

No, there is not.

The difference is almost imperceptable except at psychological level.

One is more painful. Apparently dependent on person. Though pain is not the accurate terminology, sorry..

Rather one is received as a greater impact to state of being, dependent on sender., also obviously attitude, or if you step back and logically view now, perceived attitude.

Don't pay any attention to that nonsense. There is no difference between the two phrases.

Incorrect, 'you' is implication of the third person.

"Look at you" can also be an idiom expressing an observation of a person, thing or event.

Look at you - you're all grown up!
Look at that - all the trash at the side of the road! What are people thinking?

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"Look at yourself " asks for someone to do a self examination.

Look at yourself. Your drinking is out of control.

I think the second is a little more emphatic. That's about it, though.

Seems to me that “Look at you” (in “A”) is a colloquialism that is not actually intended to mean what the words indicate. The person using the expression is not actually asking anyone to “look at” the subject person. It is simply an expression used as a preamble to the actual point of the outburst…which is to call the subject a mess.

In “B”…there seems to be an implicit command for the subject to actually look at him/herself…perhaps in a mirror to view what the person using the expression sees as a mess.

"A" can properly be re-worded, "You are a mess." "B" is more like, "Why don't you take a look at yourself in a mirror. You probably won't like what you see."

I think there is a difference…a very subtle difference, but a difference.

Don't pay any attention to a person who is unwilling to consider just because he has an overinflated opinion of his own worth.

Do you fail to comprehend that ignorance is not worth considering?

To call it nonsense, is entirely innacurate, nonsense seems to be definable as the following..

"oooghasdasdq"

Over inflated opinion is a seemingly present thing to you, as is nonsense to Setana.

I see no people here, only topics.. That is why I answer so profusely and irritatingly to your mind. You might class that as ignorance, which I cannot deny it is a form of, though it is built into me, it is not angry or intended ignorance.

Which in turn, brings about my final ignorance apology, which I will give you as the lie that it is in the terms
'If a man has zero purpose, holding a mirror up to him, will yield only your view twice of what you saw'

You're to be commended, Tod, for your persistence, patience, and tolerance

I assure you, I feel and know not what you mean, though that never stops me.
Connections terminated (pre-emptively as designed by life experience, if you see)

Yes I have been accused of opacity

Indeed let it not, your perseverance is admirable


You mean, "I'm pulling out of this thread because I can hardly understand what you're saying," then all I can resdpond, is welcome to The Team

I might have said in previous times.

Thank you, very well put... Please excuse me whilst I make a *** of myself all over your board, normal milling will resume shortly.

Hello, Smarty:

Until I read your question, I had never thought much about any difference.

After reading the other posters' great answers, I really learned a lot.

I went to the "books" section of Google, and I found many examples of how professional writers use those two expressions.

I thought that you would find this one example interesting:

"My wife says, 'Look at you. Just look at you. How can you look like that? Why

don't you take a good look at yourself?' "

Collected Fictions (2010) by Gordon Lish, page 198.


James