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Assignment 2 Mechanics 1

Assignment for Session Two
Part I
As you did on the self test for this lesson, indicate whether the case of the following italicized pronouns is correct (by writing "C") or incorrect (by providing the corrected form). Prepare your answers in the following format:
1. corrected pronoun form
2. C
3. corrected pronoun form
4. etc.

1. he
2. C
3. C
4. Whom
5. C
6. C
7. C
8. me
9. me
10. me


1. Was it him?
2. The manager complained about us working overtime.
3. My wife made fun of me singing in the shower.
4. Who did they see at the lecture?
5. Who gave the lecture?
6. I asked whom he was, anyway.
7. We ourselves will benefit from the plan.
8. The estrangement between my brother and I began when we were young.
9. The estrangement between my brother and myself began when we were young.
10. I can blame no one but myself.

Part II
In each of the following sentences select the correct pronoun from the choices provided in parentheses and indicate its antecedent. Prepare your answers in the following format:
1. pronoun choice (antecedent)
2. pronoun choice (antecedent)
3. etc.

1. his (his father)
2. his or her (Everyone)
3. his or her (None)
4. their heads (A few of the volunteers)
5. their (Nearly everyone)
6. his or her (every student)
7. his (One)
8. herself (Each)
9. themselves (The supervisors)
10. his (Neither of the men)
11. his (Ted)
12. their (Most young boys)
13. their children (parents)
14. his child (Jack)
15. her (One of the women), her (someone)

1. Either John or his father must give (his/their) testimony at the trial.
2. Everyone taking part in the wedding will be told (his or her/their) duties at the rehearsal.
3. None in this church has turned in (his or her/their) pledge yet.
4. A few of the volunteers for this project need to have (his or her head/their heads) examined.
5. Nearly everyone has (his or her/their) own opinions about what makes good fiction.
6. The instructor will give every student (his or her/their) own class schedule.
7. One should carry a copy of the car's registration in (one's/his or her/their) glove compartment.
8. Each of the sisters will have to decide for (herself/themselves).
9. The supervisors (themselves/theirselves) let out the news about the layoff.
10. Neither of the men was well enough informed about tax laws to prepare (his/their) own taxes.
11. Ted is one of those salesmen who get (his/their) weekly reports in on time.
12. Most young boys, at some time in (his/their) lives, go through the stage of admiring some athlete or actor, hoping someday to be just like (him, them).
13. Jack was only one of the parents who brought (his child, their children) to the meeting.
14. Jack was the only one of the parents who brought (his child, their children) to the meeting.
15. One of the women who volunteered (her/their) time is someone who normally never gets (her/their) hands dirty.

Part III
Rewrite the following sentences, using what you learned in this lesson to make them clear, free of unnecessary pronouns, and consistent in point of view.

1. Jack took the eggs from the crates and he placed the eggs on the floor.
2. The article says for every fifty females born, there are fifty-three males born.
3. Mrs. Jackson gave her daughter a needlepoint kit for Christmas because her daughter liked sewing.
4. The only think I have against milkshakes is that they are fattening.
5. If you want to be a professional writer, you must work awfully hard at it.

1. Jake took the eggs from the crates and placed them on the floor.
2. In this article it says that, for every fifty females born, there are fifty-three males born.
3. Mrs. Jackson gave her daughter a needlepoint kit for Christmas because she liked sewing.
4. The only thing I have against milkshakes is that it is fattening.
5. If one wants to be a professional writer, you must work awfully hard at it.

Optional Writing Assignment for Lesson Two: Pronouns
Put everything you've learned about pronoun case and agreement to the test. Write a short passage (100 words or less) that involves three people doing something together. Only two of the people should be of the same gender. In your passage, try different combinations of compound subjects and objects, and alternate antecedents with pronouns in different cases. For example:

Jerry, Bart and Susan decided to take their dogs to obedience school. Neither Jerry nor Bart knew what he was getting himself into, but Susan had been through this before. Before they arrived, Susan told Bart and Jerry that they needed to keep their dogs on their leashes. But when the car door opened, the dogs jumped out and the guys went chasing after them. Pretty soon, every dog at the obedience school was barking its head off, wanting to get into the fray.

. . . You get the idea.

Mark, Mary, and John were on a mission to get the patenting paperwork completed and submitted before Mark and Mary’s wedding. John and Mark were reading the technical details of how they should document their invention, while Mary was producing the website intended to sell the tanks once the patent was completed. The three of them all did their share of the work, but it was clear that Mark and John were very lost in their understanding of the process. The book Mary found on how to get an idea patented helped the cause.


Instructor Giorgio: Hi, Janine,
Here are my comments on this week’s assignments:

Part I
2. The answer is "our," not "us." In the sentence, "working" is a gerund (a word ending in "ing" that are formed from verbs, but serve as nouns). Pronouns relating to nouns are in the possessive case. Go to the lecture notes section headed "Pronouns with Gerunds" for a more complete explanation. The sentence in the exercise is basically the same as the second example in that section of the notes.
3. The answer is "my," not "me." Again, this is because of the gerund (in this case, "singing" is a noun, not a verb).
6. The answer is "who," not "whom." The pronoun "who" modifies (clarifies) the pronoun "he." Basically, then, this part of the sentence comes down to "who is he?" In the objective case, the word "who" is used. "Whom" would be used if the pronoun was "him."
10. The correct answer is "myself," not me. In this sentence, "myself" is a reflexive pronoun. Reflexive pronouns, like intensive pronouns, refer to a noun or pronoun already in the sentence. In this case, "myself" refers to "I."

Part II
11. The correct pronoun choice is "their" and its antecedent is "salesmen." This is tricky, so read carefully. The phrase "who get their weekly reports in on time" modifies the word "employees," not "Ted." Ted is just one of them, he's not the only one. (look at the lecture notes section headed "Pardon the interruption.")
12. The second pronoun choice in the sentence is "him," with the antecedent being "athlete" or "actor."

Part III
1. Jack took the eggs from the crates and he (YOU DON’T NEED THE “HE.” IT’S CLEAR WHO IS PERFORMING THE ACTION.) placed the eggs on the floor.

Optional Writing Assignment for Lesson Two: Pronouns
You did a great job on this assignment. The pronoun usage was fine. Excellent!

3/5/2006 11:35:01 PM

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