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Any recommendations as to how to make that sentence sound a bit more 18th-century-screenplay like?

"me", as in being a male. (kind of like, they got stuck with me as a boy)

"My parents were expecting a girl but me is what they had to resign/conform with"?

EDIT: (A bit more context)

Andrea: Rene Maria Smith. Rene isn't a name that makes justice to you.

Rene: My parents were expecting a girl but me is what they got. It's the name of a destine my parents would've wanted for me.

Andrea: And in my home, I showed up while my mother really wanted a boy.

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  • In my language we often say something like my parents were expecting a girl but it is what it is, based on your example. I wonder what's the way native speakers state such sentence.
    – Schwale
    Commented Feb 25, 2016 at 11:54
  • 18th century England? They didn't have "screens" back then :-)
    – TimR
    Commented Feb 25, 2016 at 12:32
  • TRomano, terrible joke :D
    – jpablobr
    Commented Feb 26, 2016 at 12:24
  • Ustanak, I think it is what it is would still be correct, but I would say it's a much more modern expression, or at least I'd think so. So because of that not really what I was looking for.
    – jpablobr
    Commented Feb 26, 2016 at 12:30
  • "...but me is what they got" - sounds correct when spoken in a Yoda voice!
    – Greg Woods
    Commented Nov 22, 2019 at 17:04

2 Answers 2

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My parents were expecting a girl but I was what they had to resign themselves to

I - because I is the subject of the second independent clause
was - because being born was in the past
themselves - reflexive pronoun indicating your parents
to - one resigns themselves to something not with

My parents were expecting a girl but got stuck with me as a boy
My parents were expecting a girl but only got me

Both are perfectly acceptable and have the same meaning :)

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5

...but got me instead

would be idiomatic.

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