Sentence correction

Mister Micawber,

Very formally, you would replace 'me' with 'I'.

I agree completely.

In a way, I can wrap my head around this.

1) I would wash my car.

2) If you were I, you would wash my car.

So I can see I=I, if you will.

By logical extension, is it, "If you were she, ...."

3) She should buy that house.

4) If you were she, you should buy that house? She/Her?

Am I correct?


My guess is that most people would trip on our sentences. They'd want to use the subjective case.

I am confident you are correct Mister Micawber; it is just not the way I would instinctively write or say it.

Again, interesting example. I am curious what others will have to say.

MountainHiker

S S Sridhar,

In the future tense only? In that case, a better way to say it would be:

If you are ever in my place, you'll do the same.

You can avoid all the controversy surrounding the correct usage after the words "If you are/were ???" by using the wording "In my place, you ...", "In your place, I ...", In our place, they ...", and so on.



Jim

Guys, I'm not going to get dragged into analyzing structures like "Were she he, she would ..." and "Had they been we, it would be a different story" and "Who's the president of this organization?" -- "I used to be he; now she is she"!!!

Just haven't got the stamina tonight! Take care, all!

Mister Micawber,

MH got me pretty good I think.

Nope. I didn't get you good. That would imply that I deliberate set you up.

I am/was trying to understand for my own edification.

I am confident that you are correct.

What I am trying to reconcile is this:

She is taller than me/I? We know that it is "I". If asked by someone else to explain why it is "I" and not "me", we simply reply that the following makes sense:

She is taller than I am. NOT: She is taller than me is.

Everyone understands and everyone is happy.

But the "If you were me/I..." construct is harder to explain.

If you use the correct way and someone else challenges you on it, how do you respond? If you say that construct is correct according to a few grammar books, everyone thinks your an egghead, because most people are familiar with the "me" as the correct answer.

So I was just trying to wrap my ears around the logic. I don't doubt Mister Micawber is correct. I am just trying to understand it better so that I can explain it to someone else later.

Hope that helps and clarifies.

MountainHiker

Dr. Kulkarni has seen that on the morning of 27 September