January 2005
WHY USE "MYSELF" WHEN YOU CAN USE "ME"? (PUN INTENDED)
by Gina Nelson, Grammar Guest
I always feel simultaneous annoyance and pity for well-meaning individuals who never know how to refer to themselves when speaking or writing.
Examples of such misuse include these:
"John, Mary, and myself are going to lunch."
"Please tell Katie and I when you are ready to leave."
A friend recently told me he believes some elementary school teachers are actually teaching incorrect usage of pronouns.
The remedy to this sort of grammatical error is simple: When in doubt, take the other people out.
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Example: John, Mary, and myself are going to lunch.
Remedy--Take the Other People Out: Myself are [or am] going to lunch. [This makes no sense.]
Corrective Action: Change "myself" to "I."
Correction: John, Mary, and I are going to lunch.
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Example: Please tell Katie and I when you are ready to leave.
Remedy--Take the Other People Out: Please tell I when you are ready to leave. [This sounds odd.]
Corrective Action: Change "I" to "me."
Correction: Please tell Katie and me when you are ready to leave.
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The sad thing is that those who use improper grammar think that those of us with proper grammar are wrong. A pompous telemarketer tried to correct me one day when I said, "You can talk to my husband or me about it." Needless to say, that's one conversation I ended quickly!
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Thanks, Gina, for this great grammar tip!
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YOUR GRAMMAR AND WRITING QUESTION
QUESTION: How are the names of video games punctuated? (Karen)
GRAMMARCHECK: The names (or titles) of video games and computer software should be capitalized, but style guides differ about the need to italicize (or underline) the titles.
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GRAMMARCHECK ARCHIVES
Read past issues of GrammarCheck on-line at http://www.GrammarCheck.com/archives/
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YOUR GRAMMARCHECK COMMENT
QUESTION: In last month's issue, your second example of the second rule [RE: "Eliminating Wordiness in Your Writing"] violates your first rule using make. A more succinct sentence would read as follows:
"Too many cars on the road today congest the highways." (Jason)
GRAMMARCHECK: Jason is referring to the following example from last month's edition:
Wordy: There are too many cars on the road today, which makes the highways congested.
Revision: Too many cars on the road today make the highways congested.
While we agree with Jason in principle, here's a better revision:
"Too much traffic on the road today congests the highways."
Otherwise, the following sentence--"Too many cars on the road today congests the highways"--is a bit awkward, as if some of the cars on the road do not congest the highways, and some of them do. Using the collective term "traffic" makes more sense.
Jason's e-mail message, however, drives home an important difference between writers and readers: Writers often edit their own texts to recognize and correct mechanical errors (thus overlooking style issues), while readers read for meaning. Last month's issue is a good example of this distinction.
So what can a writer do to keep style in mind when editing? Here's a writing tip that may help: Use your computer's "find" (or "search") feature to recognize style weaknesses. Let's take a look at a useful procedure to follow as it applies to last month's article on avoiding the use of "make" and "made" in your writing.
1. Use your word processor's "find" feature to search for all uses of "make" in the electronic document.
Note: Most word processors can highlight all instances of a particular word in the entire document. In Microsoft Word, for example, check the "Highlight all items found in" box.
2. Go to the first use of "make" and eliminate it if possible. (Note: If you edit the electronic document, all other highlighted instances of "make" may disappear.)
3. Repeat Steps #1 and #2 until all unnecessary uses of "make" are eliminated.
4. Repeat the same process for the word "made."
5. If you wish, you can search for and try to eliminate other "words to avoid," including are, was, were, be, have, has, and had.
6. After all changes have been made, read the document again to check whether your editing has improved the flow, rhythm, and cadence of your style.
As an alternative method, you could circle all uses of the "words to avoid" directly on a hard copy of the document, and then change the electronic copy. Choose the method that works best for your writing needs.
Notice how implementing this writing tip would have highlighted every "word to avoid" in last month's examples:
EXAMPLE: Barbara MADE a decision to travel out West this summer.
REVISED: Barbara decided to travel out West this summer.
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EXAMPLE: I wanted Dale to MAKE some repairs to the swimming pool.
REVISED: I wanted Dale to repair the swimming pool.
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EXAMPLE: There are too many cars on the road today, which MAKES the highways congested.
REVISED: Too much traffic on the road today congests the highways.
When editing your documents for style, keep in mind that the "words to avoid" mentioned above are not "words you should never use." Style involves artistic expression and thus characterizes one's individuality in writing. In most cases, wordiness should not be confused with style.
Many thanks to Jason!
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HAVE ANY STYLE AND/OR EDITING SUGGESTIONS? WRITE TO US!
Our readers often share great ideas about writing and grammar. If you have a writing tip related to editing for style, e-mail it to grammar@grammarcheck.com. We'll print the best ones in next month's edition.
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YOUR GRAMMAR AND WRITING QUESTION
QUESTION: If one receives a letter or e-mail from a person of unknown gender, how does one address this person in the salutation of the letter or e-mail? I get a lot of e-mails from people with foreign names and I do not know when to use Mr. or Ms., and I don't like using their first names (too informal). (Patricia)
GRAMMARCHECK: Thanks for your question, which reflects a common concern these days. You can reply with a basic greeting like a simple "hello" or "Thanks for writing" before continuing with a detailed response. If the e-mail comes from a specialized group (e.g., a newsletter subscriber base), you can use "Dear Subscriber" as your salutation. Otherwise, simply omit the greeting and proceed to the text of your reply. Hope this helps!
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WEB SITE OF THE MONTH
Each month we'll feature a Web site that provides on-line help with grammar and/or writing. Check out this month's featured site:
"Guide to Grammar and Writing"
http://www.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/
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