[Grammar] him or himself?

[mokbon]

Hi?

Mr. Leigh extended his band to offer the manager a seat next to (him/himself) in the conference room.

I know the answer is 'him' but am not clear about this.
When its in another clause, should i think it's a different subject from the first subject?

 

[TheParser]

NOT A TEACHER


Hello, Mokbon:


Thanks for your great question. May I add my two cents' worth?

1. I do not understand the rule regarding the same clause, so I hope that someone explains it to me.

2. I may have the answer to why "him" is the "correct" answer in your sentence.

3. Do you know what a "spatial [space] preposition" is? I didn't, either, until someone * explained it.

a. Mr. Leigh extended his hand to offer the manager a seat next to him.

i. Does the preposition "next to" give information as to where the seat is? Yes, the seat is next to ___.

Thus, the "rule" is to use "him," not "himself."

(a) Here are three more examples from a world-famous expert **:

Have you any money on you? (Notice that "on" tells you where in space the money is.)
She pushed the cart in front of her. ("in front of" tells where in space the cart is)

She had her fiance beside her. (You can explain this one without my help. Right?)

HAVE A NICE DAY!

* A user named "Jess" at community.write.com.

** Professor Randolph Quirk and others in A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language (1985), page 360.