tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6824896765631412903.post2616978799697826891..comments2023-09-05T12:51:25.656-05:00Comments on edittorrent: Questions on the Case of PronounsEdittorrenthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14295505709568570553noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6824896765631412903.post-47485317358305037352010-07-27T13:59:01.726-05:002010-07-27T13:59:01.726-05:00And, yes, Jami, I threw that one in just for you. ...And, yes, Jami, I threw that one in just for you. A special present from your twitter friend. LOLLeonahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11786326364037397675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6824896765631412903.post-8996255211745520052010-07-27T13:58:04.783-05:002010-07-27T13:58:04.783-05:00I think that usage and correct are not always the ...I think that usage and correct are not always the same. Also, you need to look at the time period of your MS. Theresa keeps using "archaic" and says as of "30 years ago" so I think time and place has something to do with the correct usage. <br /><br />Americans tend to be less formal, even in their formal speech than our English speaking counterparts across the ocean. <br /><br />I find myself in a quandry when I write sometimes, because, as I grew up, I read heavily the works of writers like CS Lewis, Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Nagio Marsh, etc. I still read European authors like Dick Francis.<br /><br />One might ask why that would put one in a quandry. However, I hopefully have answered that question in my lead in statement. I find myself wanting to use "one" in place of you and, in fact, prefer it. There are other places I prefer it as well, but one as a pronoun is the one (hehe) that gets me in to trouble.<br /><br />From my writing style, one might concur that I grew up in England, except that one would find more American colloquialisms than English. So, what is one to think then?Leonahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11786326364037397675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6824896765631412903.post-82376309673051665022010-07-25T19:24:12.712-05:002010-07-25T19:24:12.712-05:00Theresa said: It's just an extra fun way to co...Theresa said: <i>It's just an extra fun way to complicate the SVO-OVS switchup.</i><br /><br />Oh, yeah, <b>loads</b> of fun. LOL!<br /><br />Thanks, Theresa, that made sense. (It's always good to know that you're not <i>completely</i> wrong about something.) I just wonder why schools are still teaching the old way (and this was in elementary grades). It must still be on standardized testing or something.<br /><br />Thanks!<br />Jami G.Jami Goldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00957122956518765455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6824896765631412903.post-32367540325631341512010-07-25T15:56:38.164-05:002010-07-25T15:56:38.164-05:00For the record, from my 1982 version of Warriner&#...For the record, from my 1982 version of Warriner's, p. 107:<br /><br />Usage Note: It is now perfectly acceptable to use me as a predicate nominative in informal usage. (The construction rarely comes up in formal usages.) The plural form (it's us) is also generally accepted.<br /><br />So, as of nearly 30 years ago, this had already fallen out of standard usage. I can't find anything to contradict that in any more contemporary books.<br /><br />TheresaEdittorrenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14295505709568570553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6824896765631412903.post-16230231413421760892010-07-25T15:52:20.995-05:002010-07-25T15:52:20.995-05:00Jami, the predicative nominative in its archaic fo...Jami, the predicative nominative in its archaic form required "I" instead of "me" after verbs of being. That's no longer considered good usage. "Woe is me" is correct. "Woe is I" is archaic.<br /><br />However, the predicative nominative still requires he/she/they after verbs of being in *formal* usages only for third person conjugations. <br /><br />So, in academic writing,<br /><br />It was he at the door.<br /><br />In most manuscripts,<br /><br />It was him at the door.<br /><br />It's just an extra fun way to complicate the SVO-OVS switchup.<br /><br />TheresaEdittorrenthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14295505709568570553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6824896765631412903.post-70235466785426416862010-07-25T15:42:29.803-05:002010-07-25T15:42:29.803-05:00Uh-oh, I feel a headache coming on. Wasn't th...Uh-oh, I feel a headache coming on. Wasn't the whole point of the title of the grammar book "Woe is I" (Amazon link: http://tinyurl.com/2fyd3vh) saying that "Woe is me" is wrong? :)<br /><br />Hmm, maybe I didn't do a good job of asking my question. In school, the textbooks teach that the proper answer to a question like "Who was at the door?" is "It was I/he/she/they." Are the textbooks right or wrong? :)<br /><br />This sounds wrong to me, but maybe this is similar to Thomas's example of the missing words. If I complete the sentence, it sounds better but still not great: "It was I <i>at the door</i>." Is that how I should check it to make sure which form to use? (Sorry, I'm obviously thinking and rationalizing why the "correct" answer is correct while I'm typing.)<br /><br />Is there a specific name for this type of sentence construction? In the textbooks, it almost always seems to be an "It is/was..." type answer to a question. Are there other common circumstances to watch out for this?<br /><br />Or am I confused beyond help? :)<br /><br />Thanks!<br />Jami G.Jami Goldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00957122956518765455noreply@blogger.com