NewsBlues mrsbgrammar Page 13
Chapter 1 Common Grammar Mistakes
3
myself/me
"Myself" is one of those words that pop up a lot in daily
conversation.
And Mrs. B hears it used incorrectly 99 percent of the time.
The only right way to use "myself" is reflexively or intensively.
v
I told MYSELF I'd never do that again.
v
I treated MYSELF to a much deserved lunch hour after the noon
show.
Those are reflexive uses of "myself."
Here's what using "myself" intensively looks like:
v
I MYSELF am to blame.
v
I MYSELF have taken a lot of flak for that.
We get paranoid about using "me."
So we stick "myself" in where it doesn't belong:
(wrong) The desk assigned the story to Ron and "myself."
Take away Ron.
You wouldn't say, "The desk assigned the story to myself."
The correct version is:
v
The desk assigned the story to Ron and ME.
"Me" is a much-maligned pronoun.
Mrs. B is campaigning for "me" to get the respect it deserves.
