Is it just americans?

54% Normal

Every single time I watch TV, should it be something as innocuous as 'Housewives of New York', the people on the shows try to sound polite by using the word 'I' instead of 'ME' - especially the Countess who thinks she's so superior. Yet, why are they so stupid?

Is it only Americans who aren't taught the difference at school?

To put it very simply, it's 'I' if you are the subject of the sentence and 'ME' if it's being done to / with you, as the object of the sentence.

Is it normal that this grates on me so much, it's like fingernails down a blackboard?

Voting Results

54% Normal

Based on 52 votes (28 yes)

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Comments ( 39 )

dappled

12 years ago | pl

Americans aren't stupid. They do allow their media to portray them that way, though. And, to be honest, I'm still not sure why.

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- Lynxikat
  
  12 years ago
  
  I'm an American, and yet, I admit that this is true.
  
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  - dappled
    
    12 years ago
    
    If it makes you feel any better, I had to listen to an English person today say "We could have did this different".
    
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    - Snowmine
      
      12 years ago
      
      Wow, my brain couldn't even register that much stupidity at first. I had to read it several times before I got the full extent of his or her's horrible grammar... sigh.
      
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      - dappled
        
        12 years ago
        
        Hehe, it was a British footballer and they seem to have their own bastard version of the English language. Another common one is "Our boys done good". Or they often start a sentence with "Like I said", regardless of whether they've said it or not. More often than not they're referring to something for the first time.
        
        One time I heard a manager say: He didn't go round the man like what he did when he didn't do that. And I heard a pundit once say: The boy give it some eyebrows. Amazingly, I actually knew what he meant although he tried everything in his power to conceal it with mangled English.
        
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        Anonymous Post Author
        
        12 years ago
        
        We all know their level of education! They don't even play football at grammar schools.
        
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    - Anonymous Post Author
      
      12 years ago
      
      Aaarrrggghhhh!! Hope you corrected them!
      
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      - dappled
        
        12 years ago
        
        They were on TV. I corrected them in spirit, though. For both mistakes. I'm amazed they managed to mess up twice with just a six word sentence.
        
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Legion

12 years ago

american reality shows are complete trash, yet people still watch them.

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- Legion
  
  12 years ago
  
  theres nothing real about them, except that most of the people on there are shallow people devoid of lives in real life.
  
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Angel_in_a_Glass_Dress

12 years ago

If you're talking about perhaps saying "Wendi and I" or "Steve and me" it depends on the context.

The *easiest* way to decide which to use is to simply remove the other person from the sentence.

i.e. Let's take "Wendi and I" and going to the store.
Wendi and I went to the store. ... Remove Wendi and ... and it becomes "I went to the store. Therefore that's OK.

But let's try Steve.
Steve and me went to the store. Remove Steve and it becomes "Me went to the store." Unless you're Cookie Monster that just sounds horrible.

But let's say... Cookie monster gives you and and your friend some cookies.

Cookie monster gave Wendi and I some cookies.
Remove Wendi and it becomes "Cookie monster gave I some cookies." That sounds bad.

However if you try it with "Steve and me"...
Cookie Monster gave Steve and me some cookies.
Remove Steve and it becomes "Cookie monster gave me some cookies." That sounds good.

Personally I never gave one crap about "object" of the sentence or any rules like that... I simply learned the rules by ear. I can tell if it sounds right or wrong. That's good enough for me. ;)

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- Anonymous Post Author
  
  12 years ago
  
  We know when it sounds right because we know the rules. I thought everyone was taught the rules you've spelt out for them above!!
  
  Do they not teach this simple rule at all schools in America?
  
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  - Angel_in_a_Glass_Dress
    
    12 years ago
    
    Yes they taught the rule in school. I just personally found the memorization of some of the rules to be rather boring and tedious. I never cared one iota about what the "object" of a sentence is. I never will care either.
    
    What you see in me is something different. Instead of memorization of lists of rules, I simply learned how proper English is structured from my Mother and from my voracious reading habits. Mom always made a point of correcting my sister and me when we said things like "more better" or when we asked "can I do this?" I, in turn have also corrected my mother back on the "can" vs "may" statements too. :-)
    
    So... yes, I don't really know some of the minute details with "objects" etc but I can tell you if a sentence "sounds" proper.
    
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PumpkinKate

12 years ago

Trying to associate intelligence or lack thereof with a specific country is bigoted, in my opinion. Intelligence is subjective, anyway.

That being said, the American school system isn't the highest rated in the world. Perhaps there is some statistic involving the American education system and proper use of "I" vs. "me", but I don't think that's a clear indicator of overall intelligence, just a single, grammatical intricacy.

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- Anonymous Post Author
  
  12 years ago
  
  We very rarely hear this silly use of I instead of me in British soaps - except Lucy Pargeter in Emmerdale. Surprising though, coz she plays a low class person yet tries to be proper, or maybe that's the point - she's deliberately trying to be stupid.
  
  I think you may mean, "just a single, grammatical ERROR" rather than intricacy.
  
  Anyhow, if it's helped anyone hear to sound a little more educated then it was worth mentioning.
  
  Dappled above explained that Americans allow their media to portray them as stupid. In the UK the TV station would have dozens of complaints regarding the grammar and it would be in the newspapers as little jibes against the particular programme. Maybe you should all complain more, especially as you know these programmes are going worldwide!? Just a thought.
  
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  - PumpkinKate
    
    12 years ago
    
    Write to complain????? I don't think there's any object lodged deep enough up my butt for me to care THAT much?
    
    Also, the television program in question is depicting a person who lives in America. The audience needs to see someone believable and real, so why (if some people in real life make this grammatical error) would they try to show every sitcom character as speaking perfect English? That's not believable. I wouldn't buy it.
    
    Also, basing one's view of an entire culture and nation on a television sitcom is just... mind-boggling. I'm actually in awe that a professedly intelligent person would see this as an accurate representation of even a minority of people living somewhere, let alone the vast majority. I'm not sure how to address that. All I can say is that I would never visit the UK if I believed every Brit to be just like Mr. Bean. He's a buffoon. (Albeit a lovable one!)
    
    Also, it's "here" not "hear", and "it's" is a contraction of "it" and "is", not "it" and "has", as you've used it. I'm not trying to slam you with that, but notice how even intelligent people make errors.
    
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    - Anonymous Post Author
      
      12 years ago
      
      Are you referring to "We very rarely hear ..." then I'm sorry but it is HEAR as we listen with our ears! Also "it's" is a standard contraction of it is but, it's also used when any letter has been left out such as "it has" - It's been nice to chat to you.
      
      So yes PumpKinKate I do notice how even reasonably intelligent people like yourself make mistakes.
      
      The reason I mentioned the Housewives and particularly LuAnn is the fact that she tries to pass for Royalty and she hasn't got a snowball's chance in hell, if she is so totally ignorant of English grammar.
      
      I can't believe that the show's producers are so sycophantic that they won't even tell her that she's portraying herself as an uneducated idiot on national, even international, TV.
      
      We Brits do expect people to use the English language correctly, and our shows will only have incorrect grammar if they are portraying the lower classes or unemployed. It's the American shows that never seem to be correct - and if no-one complains out of the millions of you, then they continue to portray the Americans as idiots.
      
      I don't believe that even the majority of Americans are ignorant of the English language, and there are plenty of Brits who use it carelessly - preferring "me" instead of I, just out of laziness and not trying so hard to sound 'proper'.
      
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      - PumpkinKate
        
        12 years ago
        
        "Anyhow, if it's helped anyone hear to sound a little more educated then it was worth mentioning."
        
        ^ You wrote this. It is incorrect. Crybaby.
        
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        Anonymous Post Author
        
        12 years ago
        
        Typo ;D
        
        Had to work out if that was you or I / ME :D
        
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[Old Memory]

12 years ago

Quibbling over nonsensical details doesn't make you dumb but it does make you petty.

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chadams

12 years ago

I am an American and I notice it a lot too. My favorite one is "between you and I". I hear it a lot and it cracks me up. You know they are trying to sound "proper" but they are failing miserably. OBJECT of a preposition is always OBJECTIVE case.

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nowimsureimsane

12 years ago

Footballers???wth?

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NothingxCrazy

12 years ago

It's sad that people actually want the kind of lives they see on shows like The Jersey Shore.. it's like they don't know how to be their own person so they need to copy someone that's famous for being dumb..

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m.a.s97

12 years ago

We are taught that in America, but most Americans are just dumb...:/

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alv1592

12 years ago

I think people only use "I" in place of "me" when they want to sound very proper. And I agree that most reality/talk shows here are crazy, but I often find them interesting lol

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- Anonymous Post Author
  
  12 years ago
  
  Exactly!! They are trying to sound 'proper' but when they don't actually know which one to use they just come across as idiots. So, why do they bother? Why not just be themselves and stop trying to be so fake and something they're not!
  
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Anonymous Post Author

12 years ago

These people are supposed to be well-educated and wealthy, I'm not talking about a programme like 'Maury' where we expect them to be dumb.

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sfosternyc

12 years ago

Hahahaha!!! There is no such thing as smart Americans! You guys are funny...

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lisac1919

12 years ago

its housewives...what do you expect?

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- Angel_in_a_Glass_Dress
  
  12 years ago
  
  You know... there's the other problem.
  
  The OP is watching TV.
  
  This is something I don't partake in anymore excepting for DVDs. I quite literally have full control over what programs enter my mind.
  
  So I don't have to wade through the crap they call prime-time. Hell, I doubt it's going to be better than the copy I just bought of Ivanhoe. :-)
  
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  - lisac1919
    
    12 years ago
    
    i do the same...always dvds for me, i can hardly flip through the channels, find somthing thats halfway decent and have to wait for millions of commercials...
    
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Dizzee

12 years ago

It's not my fault that I was born here. ; ~;

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- DolphinAngel
  
  12 years ago
  
  I wish I would've been born in the USA
  
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  - Dizzee
    
    12 years ago
    
    move here and we can be friends. :3
    
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Are You Normal?

Is it just americans?