"This presentation is comprised of three topics."
It might not be obvious - the verb "to comprise" is not used widely in daily conversation - but the speaker made a glaring grammatical error.
Imagine your child coming home from school one day and saying, "My homework is included of three assignments." You would recognize immediately that this isn't proper English, and you would correct them immediately.
"To comprise" means "to include" - the two words are synonyms - so saying "is comprised of" makes no more sense than saying "is included of."
Apparently, the speaker didn't realize this. She used a word that she didn't understand and lost credibility when she used it improperly.
Any of the following sentences would have been acceptable.
1. This presentation comprises three topics.
2. This presentation includes three topics.
3. This presentation is composed of three topics.
I prefer the first one. Here, the word "comprise" is used elegantly and effectively. It would have set a good tone for the presentation. I might have listened with actual interest.
Instead, I listened in shock as the speaker made repeated grammatical errors. The presentation was meant to be informational, but I began to doubt how thoroughly she understood the subject. I certainly would not have chosen her to manage in important project or program.
Subjects and Objects
The speaker struggled with proper usage of personal pronouns. To be fair, this is a common problem among English-speaking people. I don't know why the rest of the world understands pronouns more thoroughly than Americans do. Perhaps it underscores a weakness in our educational system.
"You can direct your questions to Paul or I," the speaker offered near the end of her presentation.
The pronoun "I" is always a subject. The subject is the person or thing that performs the action described by the verb. The person or thing that receives the action is the object.
"I will contact Dave." I am doing the contacting (subject), and Dave is being contacted (object). The grammar here is clear and simple.
"Mary or I will contact Dave." Mary and I are the subjects. Dave is the object.
"Mary will contact me." Mary is the subject. I am the object. But because I am the object in this sentence, I need to use the object form of the first person pronoun ("me").
We can't say: "Mary will contact I." This is clearly incorrect. Every able-minded English speaker over the age of four understands this implicitly.
But here is where the personal pronouns become tricky for so many people.
"Mary will contact Dave or me."
This is absolutely correct. Mary, the subject, is doing the contacting. Dave and I are objects. But when I refer to myself as an object, I have to use the word "me." There are NO EXCEPTIONS. (The fact that Dave is also an object makes no difference.)
Many people would say: "Mary will contact Dave or I." But "I" doesn't belong in this sentence, because it's not an object.
"I" is never an object. Never. You can't call I. You can't shake hands with I. You can't have lunch with Mary and I. All of these sentences require the personal pronoun "me".
During the presentation, the speaker should have said:
"You can direct your questions to Paul or me."
It's simple, clean, elegant, accurate, and absolutely correct.
To her credit, the speaker did refer to herself with the correct object pronoun once during the presentation. Once. I was so proud of her in that moment. I can't help it; I love to root for the underdog.
Misuse of Reflexive Pronouns
Unfortunately, an ambiguous comprehension of subjects and objects leads some speakers to make an even sillier grammatical faux pas - misuse of reflexive pronouns. Here's an example, again from the same presentation.
"You can contact Mary or myself if you need a copy of the presentation."
The word "myself" has absolutely no business being in this sentence - NONE - and its usage here is beyond idiotic.
Myself is a reflexive pronoun; its use is reserved for two special cases.
Case 1 - When you are both the subject and the object of the verb:
"I cut myself." - I did the cutting (subject), and I also received the action of cutting (object).
Case 2 - For emphasis of your own preference or opinion:
"I myself prefer wine over beer."
Those are only two times when you can use the word "myself" properly. You cannot ask other people to "contact myself."
Think about it. The only person who can do anything to "yourself" is YOU.
"I treated myself to a massage."
No one else can do this.
"My sister cooked myself dinner."
Again, clearly, no one can do anything to "yourself" except you. So please stop asking people to contact yourself, unless you want yourself to sound foolish and inept.
Bottom Line
People in positions of responsibility, people who give presentations as part of their careers, and people with upper middle class incomes should understand the fundamentals of English grammar. If you don't have the ability to communicate effectively, people will question your abilities in other areas. If you're wondering why you didn't get that big promotion or the project that you wanted, check your pronouns.
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