2020-11-10
ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด M - Myself
การใช้ภาษาอังกฤษ ที่ถือว่า ถูกต้องนี้ เป็นไปตามมาตรฐานการใช้ภาษา
การใช้คำอังกฤษ ไม่กำหนดมาตฐาน ถือตามส่วนใหญ่ที่ใช้แต่ละท้องถิ่น
ความหมาย อาจยืดหยุ่น ขึ้นอยู่กับ ตำแหน่ง/หน้าที่ ในประโยค
Dictionary.com
ออกเสียง Myself = ‘mahy-SELF’
Dictionary.com
USAGE NOTE FOR MYSELF
There is no disagreement over the use of myself and other -self forms
when they are used intensively ( I myself cannot agree ) or reflexively
(He introduced himself proudly).
Questions are raised, however, when the -self forms are used
instead of the personal pronouns ( I, me, etc.)
as subjects, objects, or complements.
Myself occurs only rarely as a single subject in place of I:
Myself was the one who called.
The recorded instances of such use are mainlypoetic or literary.
It is also uncommon as a simple object in place of me :
Since the letter was addressed to myself, I opened it.
As part of a compound subject, object, or complement,
myself and to a lesser extent the other -self forms
are common in informal speech and personal writing,
somewhat less common in more formal speech and writing:
The manager and myself completed the arrangements.
Many came to welcome my husband and myself back to Washington.
Myself and other -self forms are also used,
alone or with other nouns or pronouns,
in constructions after as, than, or but
in all varieties of speech and writing:
The captain has far more experience than myself in such matters.
Orders have arrived for everyone but the orderlies and yourself.
There is ample precedent, going as far back as Chaucer and running through the whole range of British and American literature and other serious formal writing, for all these uses.
Many usage guides, however, state that
to use myself in any construction in which I or me could
be used instead
(as My daughter and myself play the flute
instead of My daughter and I, or a gift for my husband and myself
instead of for my husband and me)
is characteristic only of informal speech and that
such use ought not to occur in writing.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Using Myself in Place of I or Me: Usage Guide
Myself is often used where I or me might be expected:
as subject to wonder what myself will say
— Emily Dickinson others and myself continued to press for the legislation, after as, than, or like an aversion to paying such people as myself
to tutor was enough to make a better man than myself quail old-timers like myself , and as object.
now here you see myself with the diver for my wife and myself it was a happy time
Such uses almost always occur when the speaker or writer is referring to himself or herself as an object of discourse rather than as a participant in discourse.
The other reflexive personal pronouns are similarlybut less frequently used in the same circumstances. Critics have frowned on these uses since about the turn of the century, probably unaware that they serve a definite purpose.
Users themselves are as unaware as the critics
—they simply follow their instincts. These uses are standard.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Usage Notes
Putting 'Myself' Where 'Me' or 'I' Usually Goes
It's just me, myself, and I—unless it's just 'myself'
Some of those who opine about such things
will assert that
myself should only be used in two circumstances:
as a reflexive pronoun,
as in "I burned myself while pulling the cake out of the oven,"
or for emphasis: "I made the cake myself."
But their opinions do not preclude such sentences as these:
I'm excited to announce that Noah and myself are opening a bakery.
My mother has told Noah and myself that we make very good cakes.
If you'd like us to make you a cake, please talk to Noah or myself.
In these instances
myself is inhabiting space we more often seeoccupied by I or me.
In the first example "Noah andmyself" is the subject of the verb;
"Noah and I" is the more common choice.
In the second example "Noah ormyself" is the object of the preposition to;
"Noah or me" is the more common choice.
And in the third example "Noah and myself" is the object of the verb; "Noah and me" is the more common choice.
Myself in these settings has been objected to since the late 19th century, though critics have never been able to put their collective finger on what's so bad about it. It's been called snobbish, unstylish, self-indulgent, self-conscious, old-fashioned, timorous, colloquial, informal, formal, nonstandard, incorrect, mistaken, literary, and unacceptable in formal written English.
We find the usages, however, to be widespread even in literary sources dating back at least four centuries. While we no longer use myself alone as the subject of a verb, Shakespeare and Ben Jonson thought it was fine, as did Emily Dickinson:
Somehow myself survived the night
— Emily Dickinson, poem, 1871
Today, though, when people use myself in the position of subject-of-the-verb these days, it's typically part of a compound subject:
… Conan Doyle was the kind of Edwardian man of letters for whom certain retro bookmen such as myself and Mr. Dirda retain especial affection.
— Larry McMurtry, Harper's, November 2011
This has been true for some time:
Both Williams, and Desmoulins, and myself are very sickly …
— Samuel Johnson, letter, 2 Mar. 1782
From the moment Mrs. Washington and myself adopted the two youngest children …
— George Washington, letter, 20 Sept. 1799
... the Post, & not yourself, must have been unpunctual.
— Jane Austen, letter, 1 Nov. 1800
In our files we also have plenty of 20th century examples from such competent users of English as T. S. Eliot, Harry Truman, E. M. Forster, and W. H. Auden, and the use continues in the current century as well:
One of the members of the Senate committee—and I—my group and myself have been working with both committees in the House and the Senate and their staffs.
— Brigadier General David McGinnis, speaking on PBS News Hour, 21 May 2014
The use of myself as the object of a verb and as a predicate noun, as in the example "My mother has told Noah and myself that we make very good cakes," is likewise long-established:
... appointed Mr. Francis, then attorney-general and myself to draw up constitutions for the government of the academy.
— Benjamin Franklin, Autobiography, 1788
... it will find him here, as it will myself.
—Thomas Jefferson, letter, 27 Feb. 1809
Our files have examples from the words of E. B. White, Flann O'Brien, Frank O'Connor, and Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., too. And it continues to be used:
We'd rented a house on the beach…. The "we" included the writer Ann Beattie; her husband, Lincoln Perry; and myself.
— David Wiegand, The San Francisco Chronicle, 22 Mar. 2016
The reflexive pronoun seems particularly popular after words whose status as preposition or conjunction is a matter of some dispute, words like as, than, and like:
... an eager lover like myself.
—William Wycherly, The Country Wife, 1675
... no one would feel more gratified by the chance of obtaining his observations on a work than myself …
— Lord Byron, letter, 23 Aug. 1811
... to see a man, who ... in the dusk looked for all the world like myself.
— Robert Frost, letter, 10 Feb. 1912
... as to which I felt no one to be trusted but myself.
— Henry James, The Art of the Novel, 1934
They are no doubt people that you know—your acquaintances and neighbors. People, I'll admit, like myself.
— Alan Feuer, The New York Times, 26 Jan. 2013
But it is also historically and currently found as the object of ordinary prepositions:
The pheasant I gave to Mr. Richardson, the bustard to Dr. Lawrence, and the pot I placed with Miss Williams, to be eaten by myself.
— Samuel Johnson, letter, 9 Jan. 1758
So much for my patient—now for myself …
—Jane Austen, letter, 17 Nov. 1798
... it will require the combined efforts of Maggie, Providence, and myself.
— Emily Dickinson, letter, April 1873
There are also two captions for Hokinson, one by myself and one by my secretary.
— James Thurber, letter, 20 Aug. 1948
Indeed I hope that you will have time, amongst your numerous engagements, to have a meal with my wife and myself.
— T. S. Eliot, letter, 7 May 1957
What we see after all this is that myself gets used where we expect to see me or I in the spoken or written words of poets, politicians, playwrights, novelists, essayists, and even lexicographers.
It is not new and it is not rare. It's truethat many of the examples are from speech and personal letters, suggestingfamiliarity and informality.
But the practice is by no means limited toinformal contexts.
Only the use of myself as sole subject of a sentence seems to be restricted;
all our examples of that particular use are from older poetry.
But what's going on here anyway?
Why do we see a reflexive pronoun in places where other pronouns belong?
Well, there are two theories, both of which are a bit technical.
The first has to do with syntax.
When we look at languages as systems we see that there are "rules"
that languages follow.
These aren't rules that are imposed on a language;
they're rules that describe how the language functions.
In English,
verbs and prepositions are said to govern
the nouns that are their complements
—that is, in very simple terms,
they determine the form taken by the nouns (or pronouns) that complete their meaning.
For example, the preposition for requires them rather than they
in a sentence like "The cake is for them." Linguist Noam Chomsky has suggested that compounds like "Noah and myself" block the assignment of case (which determines the form required) by verbs and prepositions;
this makes it possible for a pronoun in the compound to be other than it would be alone.
In "talk to me," to governs the pronoun and requires me; but in "talk to Noah and __," the preposition to is blocked from its usual governing duties and the result is a variety of grammatical options: "talk to Noah and me," "talk to Noah and I," and "talk to Noah and myself."
The second theory involves a linguistic study called discourse analysis.
As the examples we've shown demonstrate, almost all the instances of myself above occur in contexts where the speaker or writer is referring to himself or herself or to the listener or the reader as a subject of the discourse, rather than as a participant in it.
According to discourse analysis this is the way that English ordinarily works.
Discourse analysis doesn't explain third person reflexives very well,
but, in spite of what the critics may think,
this use of the first (and second person) reflexives is a common and standard, though not mandatory, feature of the language.
All this being said, it's still of course true that
sometimes myself appears where me or I is usual
because a writer or speaker thinks it simply sounds more sophisticated or "correct."
There may also be an uneasiness with me
generally for people who took to heart lessons that taught
"my friend and I will be there" as preferable
to "my friend and me will be there,"
without fully recognizing that "they saw my friend and me there" is also preferred.
It may also be that some people thinkthat myself is somehow gentler or more refined than the direct me or I;
in its similarity to yourself, himself, and herself
it perhaps suggests a parity between oneself and others.
Whatever the reasons for using myself in instances like those discussed, people who choose to employ it are in good company.
There's no reason it shouldn't continue to hum along in the language for another few hundred years.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language,
Usage Note:
The -self pronouns, such as myself, yourselves, and herself,
are sometimes used as emphatic substitutes for personal pronouns,
as in He was an enthusiastic fisherman like myself.
The practice is particularly common in compound phrases:
The boss asked John and myself to give a brief presentation.
Although these usages have been common in the writing of reputable authors for several centuries, they may not sit well with many readers today.
A majority of the Usage Panel dislikes them, though resistance has been eroding over the years. In our 1993 survey, 73 percent disapproved of the fisherman example quoted above. In 2009, only 55 percent disapproved of the same sentence.
The Panel still finds the use of -self pronouns in compound constructions even less appealing, but here too the percentages have fallen over the years. In 1993, the John and myself example was rejected by 88 percent of the Panel. In 2009, 68 percent rejected the same sentence.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary,
usage:
Questions are raised with certain uses of myself and other -self forms
in place of the personal pronouns (I, me, you, etc.).
myself as a single subject (Myself shall be the messenger) is mainly poetic or literary.
As a simple nonreflexive object,
the -self form is not uncommon in speech:
Since the letter was addressed to myself, I opened it. Packages had come for everyone but themselves.
As part of a compound subject, object, or complement,
myself and to a lesser extent the other -self forms are common in informal speech and personal writing, somewhat less common in more formal speech and writing:
Many friends welcomed my husband and myself back home.
Smith, Murray, and myself are the three candidates.
Such forms are similarly used after as or than in all varieties of speech and writing:
No contributors have been more generous than yourselves.
These uses of the -self forms are characteristic of informal speech and writing and are often considered erroneousin more formal or careful contexts. See also me.
Dictionary of Problem Words and Expression
Myself
This word is a reflexive pronoun,
normally used in a sentence with I as the subject (I hurt myself).
The use of myself for me
as the object of verbs or preposition is nonstandard;
say “The supervisor spoke to Jane and me (not myself).
Also, do not use myself as the subject of a verb,
say “The policeman and I saw the accident,”
not “The policeman and myself saw the accident.”
