grammar pedantry

[nerakrose]

Yeah, again. I was reading a fic yesterday (it was a very good fic, actually, and I liked it lots) that had this problem, even after having been betaed. It was, in fact, the only problem I could find with the fic at all.

The sad thing about this is that it's really easy to fix. My English teacher gave us this tip back in second year of high school, I think it was - at any rate, it is more than five years ago and I've put it to much use since.

When to use "me" or "I" in a sentence

"The job was offered to Ron, his thirteen aunts, and I"

WRONG

"The job was offered to Ron, his thirteen aunts, and me"

Why?

If you were talking about just yourself, you wouldn't say "The job was offered to I". The problem with these sentences is that as soon as there is something else between the verb and you, it's as if you completely lose sight of what the end product is going to be. It doesn't matter if it's just Ron or if Ron's thirteen aunts were shoved in there too, as soon as you hit the end of the sentence and you need to include yourself, you put down the standard "I" because you've "forgotten" what the sentence is about. So, without going into further lengthy explanations of why this happens and what the difference between "me" and "I" is, let's move on.

How to fix it

Remove Ron and his thirteen aunts and you can see clearly what's going on.

"The job was offered to Ron, his thirteen aunts and I"

It becomes pretty blatantly obvious, doesn't it? If you're ever in doubt whether to use "me" or "I", do this little check. If it sounds odd once Ron and his thirteen aunts are out, you fix it. It if it doesn't, you did it right.

The other side of the coin

"Me and Ron went out for dinner" / "Ron and me went out for dinner"

WRONG

"Ron and I went out for dinner"

Why?

Same explanation as above. You wouldn't say "Me went out for dinner". This problem is incredibly common and so prevalent in speech that everyone does it and no one realises it is actually wrong. Hell, I do it and I know it's wrong, and I don't do it in just English, the same thing is extremely prevalent in Danish.

How to fix it

Again, remove Ron from the sentence and see what happens.

"Me and Ron went out for dinner"

Atrocious, isn't it?

TL;DR: If ever in doubt whether to use "me" or "I" in a sentence, remove the other subjects and see if it looks right.

Comments

[stella-fiver.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I'm doing it wrong all the time without really thinking about it... it's so easy though!

[nerakrose]

you're welcome ^^ and yeah, loads of people get it wrong. i think this is the most common mistake to make (and not you're/your, for example).

[stella-fiver.livejournal.com]

you know what's funny? I typed my last entry right after I read your post here... and made a they're/there-mistake. xD I have NEVER done that before.

[nerakrose]

haha awwwww XD *pets* i've done it a few times, but always noticed right away. xD

[aigooism.livejournal.com]

This is definitely something that people will always mess up on everywhere you go where English is spoken XD;;

[nerakrose]

yep, but that doesn't mean nothing should be done about it :ppp

[nerakrose]

yeah, that's pretty much the long explanation i didn't want to go into because most people's eyes would glaze over. XD also if i did, i'd have to rephrase everything else since 'i' and 'me' aren't grammatical subjects in the sentences i mentioned above, but regular subjects. XD if i'd called them objects, i think people would've been confused. XD

[inside-the-veil.livejournal.com]

*sighs happily*

Thank you. <3

[nerakrose]

You're welcome? :D

[inside-the-veil.livejournal.com]

I spent all morning reading about subject/object coding in uralic languages and types of alignment and shit...

...it does hurt a little when people don't even get the basics right in English. XD Like, count your blessings, you don't have to code your agents in the egressive and you have objects instead of infinite verb forms or verbal nouns...

[nerakrose]

Oh, I see. <.< and yeah. english is so bloody simple when it really comes down to it.

I still don't get objects in finnish quite right. the other day i found myself looking up what happens with the object in 'en pidä' sentences. does the partitive win (negative sentence), or the elative (case government)? so confusing. I did find out though! google <3

[inside-the-veil.livejournal.com]

haha yes. English has other traps for people who learn it. XD subject/object shouldn't be one of them. XD

hmm, I'd say en pidä sinusta. right? My Finnish has gone so rusty...

[nerakrose]

very true. XD

yep :D

[inside-the-veil.livejournal.com]

wohoo! XD

[cmajalis.livejournal.com]

I admit I'm guilty of using "Me and X did this." knowing that it's wrong! But I always feel guilty afterwards XD But I'm trying to stop it!

[nerakrose]

I usually don't bother in speech, but when I write I try to remember not to do it. XD

[ballyharnon.livejournal.com]

*standing ovation*

[nerakrose]

Thanks :P

[fayte.livejournal.com]

ooooh i have a problem with this when i'm speaking. i think it's because i'm the horrible combination of southern and lazy (well, when it comes to speech). blame my subpar education, but i had never heard of that rule...i will definitely try to remember it now! thanks!

[nerakrose]

Me toooo. well, the second half. I never ever fuck up the first and if I do, I'm always absolutely horrified. XD
It's not really a rule, I think, just an idiotproof tip, or something. XD I think that's what my teacher said.

[nerakrose]

Thanks ^^

[phaelas.livejournal.com]

I love you and this post. Possibly the Oatmeal should make a comic out of Ron and his 13 aunts. XD

[nerakrose]

Haha thanks :D and yeah. maybe. XD

[congo]

No idea how I got here, but... bless this post!

[nerakrose]

Teehee :D Thanks ^^