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SeroMack Posted 11 years ago
Grammar
Puzzling articles
As I was reading an article on early Christian life, I stumbled across the following passage:
The next chapter is devoted to the spiritual life of a monk. Monk’s life consists of three dimensions: an escape from the world, the fight with the devil and prayer. Escape from the world may mean a change of residence, but also a change in attitude towards life."
I felt a greatly confused looking at how grammatical articles were distributed in the above excerpt.
Ad rem:
1) Why do we omit THE in monk's life?
2) why do we use AN with escape from life and not THE?
3) why do we use THE with fight with the devil instead of an indefinite article (as in the previous sentence)?
4) why do we omit any article before prayer?
5) why in the consequent sentence (Escape from the world may mean a change of residence...) do we omit THE, whereas it was used in the previous sentence?
Could you give me a reliable and comprehensive source on how to use articles? Average web sources do not seem to cover the topic enough.
The next chapter is devoted to the spiritual life of a monk. Monk’s life consists of three dimensions: an escape from the world, the fight with the devil and prayer. Escape from the world may mean a change of residence, but also a change in attitude towards life."
I felt a greatly confused looking at how grammatical articles were distributed in the above excerpt.
Ad rem:
1) Why do we omit THE in monk's life?
2) why do we use AN with escape from life and not THE?
3) why do we use THE with fight with the devil instead of an indefinite article (as in the previous sentence)?
4) why do we omit any article before prayer?
5) why in the consequent sentence (Escape from the world may mean a change of residence...) do we omit THE, whereas it was used in the previous sentence?
Could you give me a reliable and comprehensive source on how to use articles? Average web sources do not seem to cover the topic enough.
Top answer
1) This is an error. An article is required. 2) It is perceived that there are different kinds of escape from the world (different people, different ways to do it), and one monk's like involves one of these.
- 1) This is an error.
- An article is required.
- 2) It is perceived that there are different kinds of escape from the world (different people, different ways to do it), and one monk's like involves one of these.
- ) 3) It is perceived that there is only one (universal) fight with the devil.
- 4) Here "prayer" is an uncountable noun.
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11 Answers
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1) This is an error. An article is required.
2) It is perceived that there are different kinds of escape from the world (different people, different ways to do it), and one monk's like involves one of these. (It says "escape from the world", not "escape from life" as you have written.)
3) It is perceived that there is only one (universal) fight with the devil.
4) Here "p
2) It is perceived that there are different kinds of escape from the world (different people, different ways to do it), and one monk's like involves one of these. (It says "escape from the world", not "escape from life" as you have written.)
3) It is perceived that there is only one (universal) fight with the devil.
4) Here "p
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GPY, thanks for your help.
As for 5) - You're right, the way I asked the questions lacks coherence. Actually, I wondered why do we drop an article (definite or indefinite) in the following sentence:
Escape from the world may mean...
while in the previous one (...an escape from the world...) we used the indefinite article (AN)?
I really appre
As for 5) - You're right, the way I asked the questions lacks coherence. Actually, I wondered why do we drop an article (definite or indefinite) in the following sentence:
Escape from the world may mean...
while in the previous one (...an escape from the world...) we used the indefinite article (AN)?
I really appre
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seroMack Actually, I wondered why do we drop an article (definite or indefinite) in the following sentence:Escape from the world may mean...while in the previous one (...an escape from the world...) we used the indefinite article (AN)?I do not have a terribly satisfactory answer to this. It may be that the author feels the term is used in a more general sense
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So we could use the same indefinite article before escape with the same grammatical success?
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seroMackSo we could use the same indefinite article before escape with the same grammatical success?It's possible. However, for me the second sentence does read slightly more naturally without it.
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seroMackThen my question would be - what grammar rule lies behind itIn the last sentence, "escape from the world" can be treated as countable or uncountable. If it is treated countably then it needs an article (or other determiner). Treated uncountably it does not. This choice is based not on grammatical rules but on author preference or stylistic feel within
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Why is there no article at the beginning of the sentence:
American presidential candidate Robert Kennedy was assassinated in 1968
Why is there no article before bishop?in the sentence:
After becoming bishop, he left France.
American presidential candidate Robert Kennedy was assassinated in 1968
Why is there no article before bishop?in the sentence:
After becoming bishop, he left France.
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seroMackWhy is there no article at the beginning of the sentence: American presidential candidate Robert Kennedy was assassinated in 1968The article can be dropped in the appositive pattern "noun (or noun phrase) describing person + person's name". Another random example: "Two-time world champion Lewis Hamilton says he will have to come back stronger in
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