• uniquely-ironic said on Oct 30, 2008....

  I'm no grammer rockstar, but I think you got it right.  If you asked a child "how are you?" they might say "good".  Definately not "well" to the same question.  But that's just my thought.
   
  As for him and me or him and I, I was taught to take out the "him" and see if the sentence sounded right.  If it did, than you had the right word.  Of course that was what I was told 30 years ago, so thing may have changed or I may have been day dreaming in english class.

• Zayda said on Oct 30, 2008....

  Okay, I don't know if I can clarify this in a way that is satisfactory. But, "I don't feel well" is actually correct.
  
  You have to remember that feel as a verb does not simply mean the act of touching something with your fingers.
  
  
  Feel, when used as a verb with an object,  also means the following:
  
  
  to have a sensation of (other than by sight, hearing, taste, or smell)
  
  To feel a headache or to feel a toothache would be an example of this usage of the verb feel.
  
  to be emotionally effected by
  To feel one's chagrin profusely or to feel one's embarrassment keenly
  
  to have a particular sensation or impression of
  To feel oneself objectified or to feel oneself slighted
  In this case, feel is most often used reflexively and followed by a complement or an adjunt.
  
  
  
  Feel, when used as a verb without an object, can mean the following:
  
  
  to perceive a state of mind or a condition of body
  I feel unwell.  I don't feel well. I feel very well.  I feel sad
  
  
  It's the last example in particular that indicates why "well" is the most appropriate choice.
  
  And while a child is likely to respond "good" when you ask him/her how they are feeling (and adults are also likely to respond this way), the response is grammatically incorrect. 
  
  
  How are you feeling?
  
  I feel very well today, thanks.
  
  
  Also techincally, both "feeling" and "feel" can be used as both a noun or a verb:
  
  
  A cat licking the palm of your hand is a very unusual feeling.  (In this case, feeling is a noun.)
  
  I'm feeling unwell today.  (In this case, feeling is a verb.)
  
  The feel of winter is in the air.  (In this case, feel is used as a noun.)
  
  It feels like winter.  (In this case, feels is used as a verb.)
  
  
  

• the_infernal_optimist said on Oct 30, 2008....

  You knew you'd see me here, right? ;-)
  
  I agree with Zayda. "I don't feel well" is the correct way to express that you're feeling ill/off somehow. She explained it more eloquently than I would have, though, so I'll let her reasoning stand as is and just say "What she said!" :)
  
  ~Infernal
  

• ZsuzsiO said on Oct 31, 2008....

  I also agree with previous comments. Another way to look at it is to turn it around and see how it would sound in the negative:
  " - How do you feel?
    - I feel bad."
   
  See, if you look at the answer, I know you will not assume that the child is talking about his health or well being. (did you notice "well being"?).  When we say I feel bad, we mean an emotional state and not a health issue. "I feel bad about this situation". Therefore, when you turn this very same conversation to the positive:
  " - How do you feel?
    - I feel good" - we should assume feeling good is more likely an emotional statement.
   
  I feel bad = I am sad/disturbed/upset
  I feel good = I am happy/calm
   
  We are used to say things like " I don't feel good" or "I feel bad" because, especially when we communicate to children, we are trying to simplify our language. Good and bad are two basic words that even a child can easily relate to anything. However, as our children grow up these simplified sentences should be explained and corrected by us, adults, but instead people just keep using language in this easy and simplified way. Especially Americans.  
   
  As of "him and I" or "him and me" - it is always "him and I".
   
  As much as I know, the word "me" should only be present in sentences (or the part of the sentence that is devided by a comma from the rest of the sentence, therfore it can stand as a sentence in itself) that is only talking about the person who says the sentence:
  "take me"
  "me too"
  "talk to me"
  "forgive me" etc....
   
  The rest of the sentences that include both the speaker and another person or other people is based on the basics:
  "I am / you (all) are / he is / she is/ it is / we are / they are.
  Example:
  "who is? - We are"
  "who is? - Him and I are" etc.....
   
  Taking that English in my second language, I might be wrong about the above, yet in my experience, those who learn a second language are more likely to learn the correct grammar, because it does not come for them naturally and they did not grow up adopting their environment's common mistakes.
  Still, I might be wrong, so I will be checking back  at this one to see more comments.

• nytquill17 said on Oct 31, 2008....

  U-I: that's how I learned it too (the he and I thing) and I'm pretty sure that's how they still teach it.  I had a teacher who used to correct us every time we said "me" though, as if "me" was a non-word like "ain't!"
  
  SuperZ: thanks!  That's exactly what I was looking for.  I never did take any straight-up grammar courses in college, and on top of that it's been quite a few years since I've been around anyone who knew more English grammar than I do!
  
  So if I understand this correctly, the "well" in "I don't feel well" is not actually an adverb the way I was thinking of it.  It's not describing the verb; it's a state of being, as in you can be well or be unwell.
  
  Infernal:  Well I was thinking of you and Zayda when I wrote this ;)  If ed was around a bit more I would've expected him too!
  
  ZsuzsiO: I think you are right with about "well" and "good."  We use "good" as children because it's a simpler word, and since as we grow, everyone understands what we mean when we say it (and most people don't even realize that it's wrong! like me haha) we are never corrected to say "well" instead."
  
  It's not always "he and I" though.  It depends on the sentence.  "He" and "I" are both subjects.
  
  "I went to the store."
  "He and I went to the store."
  
  "Him" and "me" are objects.
  
  "The teacher gave me a special assignment."
  "The teacher gave him and me a special assignment."
  
  Remember that "he" goes with "I" and "him" goes with "me."  An easy way to remember this is that there is only one "ee" sound in each pair of words - this also works for "she and I" or "her and me."  It won't work for "they" or "them" however - in that case you just have to remember that "they" is a subject and "them" is an object.  You could remember that by noting that "them" rhymes with "him" which is also an object.  Or if that is getting to be too confusing then just memorize which is which :)
  
  The easiest way to check if you are using the right pair for the sentence is, as Uniquely said, to write the sentence using ONLY "I" or "me," whichever is correct, and then add back in the other word in the pair.
  
  For example if "I" is correct then you would know to add "he."  If "me" is correct then add "him."
  

• skald said on Oct 31, 2008....

  This is good but I don't feel well. It was I but this is between you and me. Not you and I. 

• nytquill17 said on Oct 31, 2008....

  Skald: you bring up an interesting point by mentioning "It was I."
  
  If someone asks, "Who did this?"  normally I would respond, "Me!"  But if I were responding in a full sentence I would say "It was I" or "I did it," not "Me did it."  On the other hand, saying "It was me" sounds right to me.  But I can't prove that it is.  So is answering "it was me" or just "me!" by itself technically incorrect?  It seems like it is (incorrect I mean), but answering "I!" seems very strange to me.
  

• ZsuzsiO said on Oct 31, 2008....

  I must admit nytquill17 , you are 100% right. The example is perfect. As I said, it is good to check back and keep on learning.  I wish more blogs like this one would be out there, so we all could educate ourselves - thats you all and I......

• fragglesrock said on Oct 31, 2008....

  i ain't to sure about you're grammar question ;)

• skald said on Oct 31, 2008....

  lol  I get your point and if you say it was me, it sounds O.K to me but sometimes when one says something like between you and I, it sounds terribly wrong to me as in my language you have to conjugate much more than in English.  You say about me but not this is about I. I hope you undestand what I mean.   

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