Sunday, July 02, 2006

To the one who questioned my correction on the use of 'I' or 'me' in certain sentences; the following, from http://www.roomours.co.uk/ryder4.htm.

‘I’ or ‘me’?

Some people seem to think that the word ‘me’ is, somehow, crude or common. The mere use of the word appears to be something to be avoided. Maybe it is because ‘me’ has no capital letter, even though it refers to the speaker: the speaker exaggerates their importance. ‘Me’ is neither crude nor common. The incorrect use of ‘I’, when ‘me’ is appropriate, is very crude and all too common. Put the correct word in this sentence:

‘He told Charlotte and ___ to stand by the window.’

Hands up all those who said ‘I’? You are all wrong. Remain behind after school and write 50 lines. Try again.

‘He told ___ to stand by the window.’

Anyone who still thinks that ‘I’ is correct in that sentence is probably from a rural community in England’s West Country, for whom allowances must be made. Likewise, Rastafarians. The only difference between ‘He told me to stand by the window’ and the previous sentence is the addition of Charlotte. Charlotte does not make ‘me’ change into ‘I’. ‘I’ is one of those ‘doing’ words. You only follow ‘I’ with an action - stated or implied.

“Who will be going to the party?”
“Charlotte and I will.”

If you remove ‘will’ - which many people do, these days - ‘I’ does not metamorphose into ‘me’. The word “will” is implied - or ‘understood’.

“Who will be going to the party?”
“Charlotte and I.”

The use of ‘I’ or ‘me’ can be complicated and incorrectness in this area is very common.


Clayton Northcutt.

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