英语语法:46 Olympic Theme Song
时间:2019-01-07 作者:英语课 分类:英语语法 Grammar Girl
Today we're going to learn a lesson about pronouns from the delightful 1, inspiring, and just a tad grammatically incorrect Olympics theme song.
Does the Olympic Theme Song, “I Believe,” Have a Grammar Error?
I believe in the power that comes
From a world brought together as one
I believe together we'll fly
I believe in the power of you and I
Lest you think I'm being a snobby 2 American, I want you to know that I've been getting e-mail messages from Canadians ever since the song debuted 3. Here's one from Gilda in Thornhill, Ontario:
As a Canadian, I’m very proud and excited that my country will be hosting the upcoming Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Our national broadcaster of the Games has started to play their official theme song, “I Believe,” and it really is gorgeous, inspiring, and uplifting.
However, as much as I love it from a patriotic 4 and sports-lover point of view, I have a problem with it. One of the lines in the chorus, repeated in several places in the song, is “I believe in the power of you and I” (to rhyme with “fly").
I realize they needed “I” instead of “me” for the rhyme, but it still offends me.
As an Olympic fanatic 5, I know I am going to hear this song a million times in the next three weeks, but as a grammar stickler 6, it’s going to bug 7 me EVERY SINGLE TIME I hear it. What do you think?
Well, Gilda, what do I think? I think we shouldn't be surprised when songs are grammatically incorrect because they're like poetry, and there's a reason breaking the rules is called taking poetic 8 license 9.
But I share your cringing 10 and hate to think that millions of people are singing along absorbing the incorrect phrase into their subconscious 11 so that the next time they have to write about the power, the myth, the clash, or the best you and me, they instead write about the power, the myth, the clash, or the best of you and I.
So let's do what we can to set people straight and talk about pronouns.
What Are Pronouns?
Pronouns fill in for nouns. I think of them as stuntmen and women, stepping in for nouns when the going gets tough, or just when nouns get tired. Instead of saying something like “Kenny went to Kenny's car,” you replace the second instance of “Kenny” with a pronoun so we don't have to hear Kenny's name over and over: Kenny went to his car. “His” is the pronoun that replaces the noun “Kenny.”
Just so you know the terms, “Kenny”--the noun the pronoun is filling in for—is called the pronoun's antecedent.
Now, because they don't get the recognition they deserve, some pronouns can be temperamental. Some will only work when they can be the subject of the sentence, and others will only work when they can be the object of the sentence.
“I” is exclusively a subject pronoun, and “me” is exclusively an object pronoun.
What Is the Difference Between a Subject and an Object?
Subjects are the ones taking action in a sentence, and objects are the ones receiving the action.
In the sentence “Squiggly slimed Aardvark,” “Squiggly” is the subject because he's the one doing something, taking the action, sliming. “Aardvark” is the object because he's the target of the action. He's not actively 12 doing anything; he's just getting slimed.
“I” Versus 13 “Me”
When a pronoun steps in for a subject noun, it has to be in the subject form.
I slimed Aardvark.
I hugged Squiggly.
I thanked Kenny.
In each of those sentence, you can tell “I” is the subject because it refers to the person taking an action: sliming, hugging, and thanking.
When a pronoun steps in for an object noun, it has to be in the object form.
Aardvark slimed me.
Squiggly hugged me.
Kenny thanked me.
In each of those sentences, you can tell “me” is the object because if refers to the person who is the target of the action: the one who is being slimed, hugged, and thanked.
Prepositions and Objects
You may be thinking, in the lyrics 14 “I believe in the power of you and I,” (cringe) it doesn't seem as if the pronouns--“you” and “I”--fit the model of that simple sentence you gave us with a subject, verb, and object. And you're right.
The clue in “I believe in the power of you and I” (cringe) is that the pronouns follow the word “of.” They're part of a prepositional phrase, and when pronouns follow prepositions, they are always in the object case. It's just one of those things you have to know—the only pronouns you'll find following prepositions are object pronouns.
It can help though to notice that those pronouns aren't taking an action, so it's pretty clear they shouldn't be subject pronouns.
The cloud was above him.
Water rained over me.
The river ran through it.
The secret was between them.
In each of those sentences, the pronoun following the preposition wasn't referring to a person or thing doing anything. The pronoun wasn't taking any action, so you could tell you shouldn't use a subject pronoun because only subjects take action.
I Believe in You and I or You and Me?
So now, which one is the object pronoun: “I” or “me”?
“Me!”
So which pronouns should follow “I believe in the power of”?
“You and me!”
So when you hear the song “I Believe,” be inspired, be uplifted, but don't be snookered into messing up your grammar. Remember that the correct way to say that line is “I believe in the power of you and me.”
- We had a delightful time by the seashore last Sunday.上星期天我们在海滨玩得真痛快。
- Peter played a delightful melody on his flute.彼得用笛子吹奏了一支欢快的曲子。
- Can I really tell my snobby friends that I now shop at-egads-Walmart? 天呐,我真得好意思告诉那帮势利的朋友们我在沃尔玛买东西?
- In late 2003 a full-size SUV, the Pathfinder Armada, debuted. 2003年末,全尺寸SUV的探路者无敌舰队,推出。
- The album debuted at number two and quickly went platinum. 专辑一亮相就荣登排行榜第二名,很快就取得了白金销量。
- His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
- The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。
- Alexander is a football fanatic.亚历山大是个足球迷。
- I am not a religious fanatic but I am a Christian.我不是宗教狂热分子,但我是基督徒。
- She's a real stickler for etiquette,so you'd better ask her advice.她非常讲求礼节,所以你最好问她的意见。
- You will find Mrs. Carboy a stickler about trifles.您会发现卡博太太是个拘泥小节的人。
- There is a bug in the system.系统出了故障。
- The bird caught a bug on the fly.那鸟在飞行中捉住了一只昆虫。
- His poetic idiom is stamped with expressions describing group feeling and thought.他的诗中的措辞往往带有描写群体感情和思想的印记。
- His poetic novels have gone through three different historical stages.他的诗情小说创作经历了三个不同的历史阶段。
- The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
- The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。
- He had a cringing manner but a very harsh voice.他有卑屈谄媚的神情,但是声音却十分粗沙。
- She stepped towards him with a movement that was horribly cringing.她冲他走了一步,做出一个低三下四,令人作呕的动作。
- Nail biting is often a subconscious reaction to tension.咬指甲通常是紧张时的下意识反映。
- My answer seemed to come from the subconscious.我的回答似乎出自下意识。
- During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
- We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。
- The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
- The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。