Date:    Thu, 7 May 1998 11:59:15 -0400
<br>From:    Robert Ness <ness[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]DICKINSON.EDU>
<br>Subject: <No subject given>
<br>
<br>A student of mine writes the following;"She is one of, if not thee main
<br>character in the novel." The mispelling of the definite pronoun arises
<br>from its stressed pronounciation, right? What do you make of this? Is the
<br>stressed THE a survival of the Old English instrumental? I seem to recall
<br>that the slightly stressed forms in "the sooner, the better" are similarly
<br>explained, though I cannot imagine what instrumentality is involved.
<br>