Nobody knows the trouble I see

JUNE CASAGRANDE

The best question I’ve heard all week comes from Patricia Babineau,

who wants to know whether it’s correct to say, “I appreciate your

taking the time to help,” or whether it would be better to say, “I

appreciate you taking the time to help.”

It seems to me that there are two kinds of people who would be

curious about this: people who take an academic interest in the fine

points of the English language and people who just don’t want to live

in fear of being wrong.

I’ll address the last group first. The answer is: Nobody knows.

Even those who claim to know can’t agree. So, the most important

thing for you to know is that, regardless of whether you choose the

“you” option or the “your” option above, nobody can say with

certainty that you’re wrong because there are just as many people who

would defend your choice.

Here’s my answer: Avoid these constructions when you can, but use

them unashamed when you deem they’re the best choice. For example,

Patricia’s sentence might be clearer and more manageable reworded as,

“I appreciate your help. I know your time is valuable.” But then

again, that might be a departure from what the writer truly wants to

say. Consider whether a simpler sentence would say it as well and, if

so, use that sentence. Otherwise, stick to your guns.

Now for those of you interested in the “why” behind the answer, I

should probably point out that, had Patricia asked me this a month

ago, I would have panicked, filed her e-mail under “Stuff to Figure

Out Later” and conveniently “forgotten” shortly thereafter.

Lucky for me, Patricia caught me on the very week I happened to

get around to reading a 2003 column on the same subject by language

expert James Kilpatrick. The column, by the way, was submitted to me

by reader Allan Raff, who has kindly clipped and mailed many such

useful columns. In an e-mail last year, Allan asked whether I got any

use out of them. A little late I answer: Yup. Still have ‘em all, am

slowly working my way through them and even found a source for new

ones online. Thanks, Allan. Sorry it took me so long to reply.

In his November 2003 “The Writer’s Art” column, Kilpatrick cites

two definitive authorities on questions such as Patricia’s.

“The editors of Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage remark that

grammarians and commentators have been baffled by the construction.

‘They cannot parse it, they cannot explain it, they cannot decide

whether the possessive is correct or not.’ ... In ‘The New Fowler’s,

editor R.W. Burchfield searches for a consistent pattern. He cannot

find one.”

Just so I can claim to have done a little original research, I’ll

point out that the Chicago Manual of Style dances around the subject,

tries to take a position, but says that the matter “requires caution”

and refers readers to “an excellent discussion” in “The New Fowler’s

Modern English Usage.” That brings us full circle to “nobody knows.”

The whole question here has to do with gerunds versus participles.

A gerund is usually a verb ending with -ing but acting as a noun. For

example, in “she enjoys walking,” “walking” is a gerund because it

refers to a thing -- an activity -- and is not acting as a verb in

this sentence. “Enjoys” is the verb in this sentence. A participle is

the final single word within a multiword noun form. In, “She is

walking to school,” “walking” is a participle that combined with “is”

forms a conjugated verb.

So when you say, “I disapprove of Jane’s walking to school,”

you’re dealing with a possessive and a gerund: “Jane’s walking.”

When you say, “I disapprove of Jane walking to school,” “walking”

is a participle, a half-hearted verb.

And the choice between the two, experts seem to agree, is a

judgment call that has more to do with emphasis and aesthetics than

with hard-and-fast rules.

So would I say, “I appreciate Kilpatrick’s not suing me,” or, “I

appreciate Kilpatrick not suing me”?

I would say both.

* JUNE CASAGRANDE is a freelance writer. She can be reached at

[email protected].