| Calif Jim, does that mean both the above are grammatically correct, including 'Me
asking is a kind of sign.' ?? |
|
In some cases people disagree
when making judgments of grammaticality. Some people think both
are grammatically correct; some people think only the ones with
my or
his are correct. I believe that both forms can be considered correct as long as it is understood that the ones with
me or
him are much less formal.
When in doubt, use the possessives
my, his, etc. But note that there are cases where the object form (
me, him, etc.) is clearly the correct one, from the point of view of meaning.
I can't see him accepting that excuse, for example, makes more sense (to me) than
I can't see his accepting that excuse. The first sentence is an idiomatic expression meaning
I can't imagine that he would accept that excuse. The second, starting with
I can't see his ... makes us think the sentence will continue with some concrete noun that literally cannot be seen, like
I can't see his hat. But
not being able to see his accepting ( ! ) strikes us as strange. On or near which part of him is his "accepting"?
To take other examples, you can't use the possessive after the verb
catch or
hear as in the following structures:
Ed caught [him / *his] opening the mail.
I heard [him / *his] being interrogated by the boss.
[As usual, * indicates 'ungrammatical']
CJ