that brother of Jane's

[azz]

a. I am thinking of that brother of Jane's who is a pilot.
b. I am thinking of that brother of Jane who is a pilot.

c. I am thinking of the brother of Jane's who is a pilot.
d. I am thinking of the brother of Jane who is a pilot.

Which are grammatically correct?

I am sure that (a) is correct.
I have strong doubts about (c).
I think (b) and (d) are grammatical but uncommon.

The sentences are mine.

Many thanks

 

[Barque]

They all seem fine. The ones with "Jane's" sound better to me.

I don't know why you feel a is OK but c isn't. They're practically the same.

 

[teechar]

Let's simplify those sentences a bit.
1- A brother of Jane's is a pilot.
2- A brother of Jane is a pilot.

azz, which one sounds okay to you?

 

[Tarheel]

I'm thinking about Jane's brother -- the one who is a pilot. I'm thinking I would like to be a pilot too.

 

[azz]

Thank you all so much,

Teechar, once again, I have to admit that 'a brother of Jane's' sounds much better, but I am not sure 'a brother of Jane' is incorrect.

Many thanks.

 

[Tarheel]

@azz What kind of context would you say any of those sentences in?

 

[azz]

Thank you Tarheel.

Jane's brother is coming to the party.
Oh no! I hate him.
You do? He's nice to everyone.
Oh! I was thinking about that brother of Jane's who is a pilot. I thought he was the one you were talking about. Jane's other brother is nice.

I use (a) in these contexts. Apparently (c) can be used to, and (b) and (d) are incorrect.

Many thanks

 

[Tarheel]

Thank you Tarheel.

Jane's brother is coming to the party.
Oh no! I hate him.
You do? He's nice to everyone.
Oh! I was thinking about that brother of Jane's who is a pilot. I thought he was the one you were talking about. Jane's other brother is nice.

I use (a) in these contexts. Apparently (c) can be used to, and (b) and (d) are incorrect.

That's a stretch. If I were you I would stick with Jane's brother.

 

[emsr2d2]

Jane's brother is coming to the party.
Oh no! I hate him.
You do? He's nice to everyone.
Oh! I was thinking about that brother of Jane's who is a pilot. I thought he was the one you were talking about. Jane's other brother is nice.

The problem is that no native speaker would ever utter that line. There's no need to reiterate that it's one of Jane's brothers being discussed. That's clear from the first line. In real life, a native speaker would say something like these:

Oh! I was thinking about the/her brother who's a pilot.
Oh! I was thinking about the one who's a pilot.
Oh! I was thinking about the pilot.
Oh! I thought you meant the pilot.