Kent,
Despite what generations of well-meaning teachers have tried to drum
into us, linking verbs (be, become, etc.) in our language take as their
complements object-case pronouns. "It's me" is perfectly standard
English and is what almost everyone says. Your example ("I don't want to
become him"--never "I don't want to become he") shows just how
artificial the old prescription is.
Dick "I've got to be I" Veit
________________________
Richard Veit
Department of English, UNCW
Wilmington, NC 28403-5947
910-962-3324
-----Original Message-----
From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Kent Johnson
Sent: Saturday, October 30, 2004 1:23 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Horton hears a Who
Johanna,
If "to become" can't take an object, what do we make of the very
reasonable sounding construction, "I don't want to become him"? (I don't
mean an elided "*like* him," but more like the pauper objecting to
becoming the prince, for instance).
Should such a statement properly be, "I don't want to become he"? That
sounds funny, doesn't it?
And I don't mean to beat an objective horse, but I still don't
understand what we are supposed to do with that "who." I know about how
the who/whom question is determined be the pronoun's function within the
clause, and I try to teach my composition students the principle as best
I can, when the need arises. But normally when one recasts a relative
clause, it makes perfect sense. In this case, I still don't quite see
how we can accept the sentence essentially saying, "Return without delay
to become you truly are he."
Kent
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