Me, Myself and I

[MatildaTheGreat]

Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that posters are suddenly referring to themselves as myself rather than me or I?

Myself and my partner were going out...

They gave it to myself and dd...

I don’t know why it enrages me so.

What seems odd is people think that asking for something directly is now rude. So "Can you give it to me by Monday" is rude and has to be replaced by "Can you give it to myself by Monday" so everyone can feel happy and unpressured. And another normal practice bites the dust, as we add language to ever growing list of things that have to be sacrificed to save the fragile feelings of the perpetually offended millennials .

Bonkers isn't it lino, I'm sticking with my old rude ways. I read a sentence in The Guardian the other day, "I, myself . . . " made me huff and puff with irritation. I expect better from a journalist who is i) a professional writer ii) presumably submitting edited copy. Standards! Bah.

Checked into a hotel and the receptionist said "the bar is through there for yourself"

horace - I heard GN myself-ing & thought of this too! It was the letters section which I have never managed to decide if it is Grill Graham or Real Graham (or perhaps something else!).

its Grill graham, perhaps we should tweet him!

When I was teaching back in the seventies, I worked with a colleague who wrote a report that said, "Some teachers find his behaviour difficult but I have to say he is not like that with myself".
It still irritates me on both counts forty years later.

BitOutOfPractice a personal bar for each guest, see now that's my kind of hotel

I read a sentence in The Guardian the other day, "I, myself . . . " made me huff and puff with irritation.

But that's okay isn't it? I think in that instance 'myself' is unnecessary but could be there for emphasis. For example - "I myself would never eat meat but many people do".

I think it's right but not entirely sure.

The Guardian sentence is fine. "Myself" is being used for emphasis and is correct usage.

Thanks Daisy - I knew that really. Just started to doubt 'myself'

It's ok grammatically but it's also completely unnecessary. I am myself, definitively. Sloppy.

I’m as pedantic as the next MNer, but I have some sympathy for the cockney use of “You was going” or “Was you going?”, addressed to one person.
In the 18th century, it was usual and indeed, logical, to have the singular form “was” and the plural form “were”, applied in this way. They also said “am I not” instead of “aren’t I”, still abbreviated here in Scotland to “amn’t I”.

However, the cockneys then lose the grammatical high ground by saying “We was...”!
English is endlessly fascinating, and I love reading classic literature and seeing how it has evolved over the centuries.

Babdoc, my ma in law classed herself as Cockney, born within the sound of Bow Bells. She never said 'we or you was'. I didn't realise it was particular to the East End of London. Here in the north of England people say 'I were/we was' and 'he were/they was' and 'was you?' quite regularly.

Being Scottish, I grew up saying 'amn't I' rather than 'aren't I'. Am I not is correct, surely? We say 'she isn't' not 'she aren't'.

I swear it's from The Apprentice!

Who was team leader?
That would be myself Lord sugar.

Inappropriate use of reflexive pronouns is like nails scraping on a blackboard. It puts my hackles up.

I don't hear it much in RL, but it's something I seem to come across whenever I need to speak to call centre staff. Not long ago, I was asked "Does yourself have an email address at all?" WTAF? I was tempted to say "Forget it, I'll get it from some company where staff speak proper English", but I'm frequently criticised for being a pedant, so thought it was just me.

And while we're on the subject, does anyone think that "obviously" is becoming the new "literally", ie pointless and inappropriate adverb introduced for emphasis?

I used to work with a "myselfer". He was a pig ignorant, racist, bullying idiot with a record for assault. It was hugely annoying but I was reluctant to correct him for obvious reasons.

@Babdoc - They also said “am I not” instead of “aren’t I”, still abbreviated here in Scotland to “amn’t I”.

"Aren't I" sounds unbelievably pretentious to me. It makes no sense at all. You contract "is not" to "isn't" so surely the corresponding contraction of "am not" is "amn't"? I'm Irish though.

My neighbour, who arrived in the other day looking for dh, would drive you all mad. He asked "is himself in?"

The worst misuse of language that I keep seeing on here is 'the cat needed fed'. That makes no sense whatsoever. It is the cat needed feeding or the cat need to be fed.

@LinoleumBlownapart Sun 03-Feb-19 10:10:22
What seems odd is people think that asking for something directly is now rude. So "Can you give it to me by Monday" is rude and has to be replaced by "Can you give it to myself by Monday" so everyone can feel happy and unpressured. And another normal practice bites the dust, as we add language to ever growing list of things that have to be sacrificed to save the fragile feelings of the perpetually offended millennials angry.

Can we get that right too please? You mean snowflakes, not millenials. Apparently I'm a millenial but all that pussy-footing doesn't hold with me or anyone else I know.

So, me, myself and I all think it's actually the cat needs to be fed or the cat needed to be fed?

I'm rather enjoying correcting a pedant, not being much of one myself.

Ugh. This has that nails on a blackboard effect on me (or should that be myself?)

@Lakielady "Does yourself have an email address at all?" made me actually snort with laughter. What did you say? "I'm not sure, I'll have to ask myself and get back to you"?

Catself needs to be fedded

It just sounds like someone trying so hard to speak 'proper'; putting a cheap veneer over poor language skills.
Harsh, I know, but true. When I hear people say, "Myself and my partner," it get me, every single time. Like when people write "Should of gone to Specsavers."
It's weird. I don't bat an eye when people say, "We was going down the motorway when suddenly," and that is just terrible English. But it's the 'Myself, my sister, and my partner should of known better," that just sends me over the edge.