Some people who have opinions on such things will assert that my self should only be used in two situations: as a reflexive pronoun, as in “I burned when I took the cake out of the oven,” or for emphasis: “I made the cake myself.” But their opinion does not exclude statements such as the following:
I’m excited to announce that Noah and I are opening a bakery.
My mother told Noah and I that we make delicious cakes.
If you’d like us to make a cake for you, please talk to Noah or me.
Photo (left to right): Me, Myself, Me
In these cases my self is the living space that we often see occupied by I or I. In the first example “Noah and me” is the subject of the verb; “Noah and I” is the more popular choice. In the second example “Noah or yourself” is the object of the preposition ARRIVE; “Noah or I” is the more common choice. And in the third example “Noah and me” is the object of the verb; “Noah and me” is the more popular choice.
My self in these contexts has been deprecated since the late 19th century, although critics have never been able to point out how bad it is. It is called snobbish, immodest, self-indulgent, self-conscious, old-fashioned, timid, colloquial, informal, formal, non-standard, imprecise, confusing, literary and impossible acceptable in formal written English.
However, we find common usage even in literary sources dating back at least four centuries. While we no longer use my self When it’s just the subject of a verb, Shakespeare and Ben Jonson think it’s fine, so does Emily Dickinson:
Somehow I survived the night — Emily Dickinson, poetry, 1871
However, nowadays when people use my self in the subject position of a verb today, it is usually part of a compound subject:
… Conan Doyle was the kind of Edwardian letter-writer that some classicists like me and Mr. Dirda had a special affection for. —Larry McMurtry, Harper’sNovember 2011
This has been true for a while:
Both Williams, Desmoulins and myself were very ill… – Samuel Johnson, letter, March 2, 1782
Since Mrs. Washington and I adopted our two youngest children… — George Washington, letter, September 20, 1799
… The post, and not yourself, must have been out of time. — Jane Austen, letter, November 1, 1800
In our profile we also have plenty of 20th century examples from proficient English speakers like TS Eliot, Harry Truman, EM Forster and WH Auden, and this usage continues in the Current century:
One of the members of the Senate committee—and I—my team and myself have worked with both the House and Senate committees and their staff. — Brigadier General David McGinnis, continued speaking PBS . news hourMay 21, 2014
The use of my self as an object of a verb and as a predicate noun, as in the example “My mother told Noah and myself that we make delicious cakes,” has also been established from long:
… appointed Mr. Francis, then attorney general, and I drafted the constitution for the academy government. — Benjamin Franklin, Autobiography, 1788
… it will find him here, as will myself. —Thomas Jefferson, letter, February 27, 1809
Our profile features examples from the words of EB White, Flann O’Brien, Frank O’Connor and Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.. And it goes on to be used:
We rented a house on the beach…. “We” includes writer Ann Beattie; her husband, Lincoln Perry; and myself. —David Wiegand, San Francisco ChroniclesMarch 22, 2016
Reflexive pronouns seem to be especially common after prepositional or conjunction states are a matter of controversy, words like EQUAL, thanAnd alike:
… an eager lover like me. —William Wycherly, The Country Wife, 1675
… no one is more pleased to have had the opportunity to receive his observations of a work than myself… – Lord Byron, letter, 23 August 1811
… to see a man… in the dark looking all over the world like me. — Robert Frost, letter, February 10, 1912
… that I feel no one can trust but myself. – Henry James, The Art of Fiction, 1934
Surely they are people you know—your acquaintances and neighbors. People, I’ll admit, like myself. — Alan Feuer, New York TimesJanuary 26, 2013
But it is also considered the object of historical and present regular prepositions:
The pheasant I gave to Mr. Richardson, the bust to Dr. Lawrence, and the pot I left with Miss Williams, for me to eat alone. — Samuel Johnson, letter, January 9, 1758
So much for my patients—now for myself…—Jane Austen, letter, November 17, 1798
… it will require the combined efforts of Maggie, Providence and myself. — Emily Dickinson, letter, April 1873
There are also two footnotes to Hokinson, one by me and one by my secretary. — James Thurber, letter, August 20, 1948
Indeed, I hope that you will find time, among your many appointments, to dine with my wife and I. — Dr. Eliot, letter, May 7, 1957
What we see after all this is my self used where we expect to see I or I in the speech or writing of poets, politicians, playwrights, novelists, essayists and even lexicographers. It’s not new and it’s not uncommon. It is true that many of the examples are from speeches and personal letters, showing familiarity and formality. But practicality is by no means limited to informal contexts. Just using my self as the single subject of a sentence seems restricted; All of our examples of that particular usage are from ancient poetry.
But anyway, what’s going on here? Why do we see a reflexive pronoun in places where other pronouns belong? Well, there are two theories, both a bit technical.
The first has to do with the syntax. When we look at language as a system, we see that there are “rules” that languages follow. These are not rules imposed on a language; they are the rules that describe how the language works. In English, verbs and prepositions are said to govern nouns as their complement—that is, in very simple terms, they determine the form of the noun (or pronoun) that completes the idea. their meanings. For example, the preposition because require Surname more than Surname in a sentence like “The cake is for them.” Linguist Noam Chomsky has suggested that compound words such as “Noah and yourself” prevent case assignment (determining the necessary form) by verbs and prepositions; this makes a pronoun in compound possible different than it would be alone. In “talk to me,” ARRIVE govern pronouns and require I; but in “talk to Noah and __,” the preposition ARRIVE is blocked from its usual management tasks, and as a result there are many grammar choices: “talk to Noah and me”, “talk to Noah and me” and “talk to Noah”. -e and me.”
The second theory involves a study of language known as discourse analysis. As the examples we have shown, almost all cases of my self The above occurs in contexts where the speaker or writer refers to himself or the listener or reader as the subject of discourse, rather than as a participant in the discourse. According to discourse analysis, this is how English usually works. Discourse analysis does not explicitly explain third person reflexes, but, despite what critics may think, this use of first (and second) reflexes is a common and standard, though not mandatory, of the language.
All this being said, of course it’s still true sometimes my self where does it appear? I or I is normal because a writer or speaker thinks it simply sounds more complicated or “correct”. There can also be an annoyance with I in general for those who memorize the lessons that “me and my friends will be there” is better than “my friends and I will be there”, without fully realizing that “they have seen my friend and I’m there” is also preferred. There may also be people who think that my self somehow softer or more subtle than directly I or I; in its resemblance to yourself, he himselfAnd it is her it perhaps suggests an equality between oneself and others.
Whatever the reason for using my self in the cases as discussed, those who choose to use it are in good company. There’s no reason why it shouldn’t continue to hum in the language for another few hundred years.
Categories: Usage Notes
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
