Me, Myself, and I

Me hears very often that people have trouble distinguishing between when to use me in a sentence, and when to use I (generally in sentences that contain more than one subject). Fortunately for you, I happen to know how the whole issue started. And I have one very simple way to help you remember which way it goes.

1. In the beginning... 

It all started back in England, when Middle English was blossoming into the more commonly spoken forms. (speaking of which, have you ever tried to read something in Middle or Old English? Not easy, I'll tell you.)

See, the rich were properly trained in grammar, and they were taught when to use me and when to use I. The poor had no such luxury. They very frequently used me, to the point that it was almost exclusive.

But then the rich started to make fun of them. Mockery is always a good way to develop a language change, I've found.

That's how it started to spread. The poor wanted to speak more like the rich, so they started to use I all the time. And I do mean all the time. That's how the problem began. The poor didn't know the rule on when to use I and when to use me, so they switched from exclusivity of me to exclusivity of I.

There you have it. One more thing you can blame rich people for.

2. Methinks I know how this works... No really, I do. 

As promised, I have a very simple way for you to remember which way it goes.

First, here are a few sample sentences:

Me and John are going to the store.
Sally and I really like pickles.
John, Sally, and me want to get pickles at the store.
My Mum keeps picking on I for the pickle references, because me have a pickle craving.

I hope by now you've caught where I'm going with this.

The problem mainly occurs in more complex sentences, with more than one subject being involved (as in the sentences above). But the simple way to figure it out is to make the sentence into a simple one.

"Me and John are going to the store" becomes "Me is going to the store."
Obviously then, me is the wrong word choice.

"Sally and I really like pickles" becomes "I really like pickles."
This one's correct.

"John, Sally, and me want to get pickles at the store" becomes "Me want to get pickles at the store."
Again, incorrect.

We won't even touch the last one, because I only put it there to prove my point.

When you're not sure which one to use, make it into a simple sentence to find out which one makes sense.


I hope you all still enjoy my grammar posts, just as much as I enjoy writing them!

[love]

{RD}