Shouldn't that be "Did I not slay the dragon, Sir Robert?"?
Well played, sir.Shouldn't that be "Did I not slay the dragon, Sir Robert?"?
Should not that be correct?
It works that way due to word order rules. You can negate did by using did not (didn't), but you cannot negate I with I'nt - there's no such thing. You have to place the negation in its logical place depending on the sentence.I believe the switch is related to the contraction being used in a question.
Didn't I? = Did I not?
I didn't. = I did not.
That kind of use of language is called an Archaism, it's acceptable, but not necessarily desirable depending on the context.Did not I is perfectly acceptable; it's simply older English vernacular. I literally remember the freshman English course I took wherein I had learnt this.
Jesus saith to her: Did not I say to thee, that if thou believe, thou shalt see the glory of God?
~John 11:40