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Pastimes : SI Grammar and Spelling Lab

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To: Rambi who wrote (1026)	4/1/1998 10:52:00 PM
From: jbe	Read Replies (2) of 4711

"Are you who/whom I think you are?" CONTINUED It just occurred to me that there is yet another reason to prefer "who" over "whom" in the above sentence. It is this. The verb "to think," when used in the sense of "to believe," "to suppose," is an intransitive verb. Hence, it cannot take a direct object! Ta Da!! At the same time, penni, you might start pulling out the reference books again. You can remove the phrases "I think" and "we know" from the sentences you quoted without changing the meaning of the sentences at all. The phrases are indeed redundant. But you can't really remove the "I think" from Alex's question without changing the meaning. "Are you who you are?" just doesn't hack it. The confusion stems from this: the verb "are" already appears to have a subject - "you". Hence, in Alex's view, "who/whom" must be a direct object -- the direct object of "think." But of course it can't be, because "think" cannot take a direct object. So -- back to the drawing board! jbe

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