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Discussion Groups / English Usage / July 2009More more than I
I can't find the recent thread about 'than I' v. 'than me,' but that may be as well. It has probably sharpened my sensibilities, though, so it's not surprising that I stumbled over this, posted a few minutes ago in another group: "I asked him to post here as there are more knowledgeable people here than I am."  SignatureNoel > I can't find the recent thread about 'than I' v. 'than me,' but that > may be as well. It has probably sharpened my sensibilities, though, > so it's not surprising that I stumbled over this, posted a few > minutes ago in another group: > "I asked him to post here as there are more knowledgeable people > here than I am." Well, the crucial part here is the presence of "am." This requires a subject form, thus "I," IMO. However, "He's clever than me." Marius Hancu >> I can't find the recent thread about 'than I' v. 'than me,' but that >> may be as well. It has probably sharpened my sensibilities, though, [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > However, > "He's clever than me." You just did something my Filipina wife does all the time -- you omitted the qualifier for the "clever". Did you mean "more clever" or "less clever"? It matters. SignatureSkitt (AmE) >>> I can't find the recent thread about 'than I' v. 'than me,' but that >>> may be as well. It has probably sharpened my sensibilities, though, [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] >qualifier for the "clever". Did you mean "more clever" or "less clever"? >It matters. It does. I didn't notice the absence of a qualifier when I read it. I think my brain must have corrected it to "cleverer". SignaturePeter Duncanson, UK (in alt.usage.english) > I can't find the recent thread about 'than I' v. 'than me,' but that > may be as well. It has probably sharpened my sensibilities, though, > so it's not surprising that I stumbled over this, posted a few > minutes ago in another group: > "I asked him to post here as there are more knowledgeable people > here than I am." Interesting. You can't add the "am" (though you don't need to). Also, the "am" works if you reorder the words: "I asked him to post here as there are people here more knowledgeable than I am" (since now there's an implied "who are"). Here's an example of real ambiguity, though not because of pronouns: [Rose was superstitious.] "She was devoted to the tea leaves, and because Nan could read the cards, Rose respected her more than anyone else on the block." Jeffrey Ford, "Botch Town", an otherwise well-written story -- Jerry Friedman Jerry Friedman wrote... >> I can't find the recent thread about 'than I' v. 'than me,' but >> that may be as well. It has probably sharpened my sensibilities, [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Interesting. You can't add the "am" (though you don't need to). <slight boggle> > Also, the "am" works if you reorder the words: > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Here's an example of real ambiguity, What struck me when I'd finally parsed the sentence was that there's no ambiguity at all. I suppose you could call it a hairpin garden path. Ambiguity can of course arise by virtue of pronominal error: 'Nobody loves you more than me,' when what was meant was 'Nobody loves you more than I,' which explains your next remark. SignatureNoel > though not because of pronouns: > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Jeffrey Ford, "Botch Town", an otherwise well-written story > Jerry Friedman wrote... > >> I can't find the recent thread about 'than I' v. 'than me,' but [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > > <slight boggle> Well, you can add it--someone did. I meant that with the "am" it's not standard English in my book. The "I" has "people" to contrast with but the "am" has nothing. Also, maybe my "though" should have been "fortunately". > > Also, the "am" works if you reorder the words: > [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > What struck me when I'd finally parsed the sentence was that there's > no ambiguity at all. Which sentence, "more knowledgeable people" or "respected her more"? > I suppose you could call it a hairpin garden > path. Ambiguity can of course arise by virtue of pronominal error: [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > > Jeffrey Ford, "Botch Town", an otherwise well-written story Sort of. Once I noticed this slip, I started noticing others. I still liked the story. -- Jerry Friedman [...] > "I asked him to post here as there are more knowledgeable people here > than I am." The tangle may derive from, as some put it, swapping horses mid-stream. In any event, what was likely wanted is: "I asked him to post here as there are people here more knowledgeable than I am." Stripped down, and with the modifier converted to one word (of somewhat differing meaning) for analytic simplicity, the original, expanded, says "There are wiser people here than I am [wise]," which doesn't read well. The correct casting, expanded, is "There are people here [who are] wiser than I am [wise]." Sidebar: Once upon a time, "than" had a temporal sense, so the old reading of "than I am" would have amounted to "then I come [in sequence]". SignatureCordially, Eric Walker, Owlcroft House http://owlcroft.com/english/ [...] > "I asked him to post here as there are more knowledgeable people here > than I am." The tangle may derive from, as some put it, swapping horses mid-stream. In any event, what was likely wanted is: "I asked him to post here as there are people here more knowledgeable than I am." Stripped down, and with the modifier converted to one word (of somewhat differing meaning) for analytic simplicity, the original, expanded, says "There are wiser people here than I am [wise]," which doesn't read well. The correct casting, expanded, is "There are people here [who are] wiser than I am [wise]." Sidebar: Once upon a time, "than" had a temporal sense, so the old reading of "than I am" would have amounted to "then I come [in sequence]". SignatureCordially, Eric Walker, Owlcroft House http://owlcroft.com/english/ |
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