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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Teaching
Should a grammatical error in a popular song used as a motivational tool in language teaching be corrected?
There is a popular song, the lyrics of which are good for analysis of grammatical construction. It can be used as a motivational tool in language teaching, with focus on grammar, particularly subject-verb agreement. There is a line in it, however, in which a grammatical error has evidently crept in. This song I talk about is John Lennon's world famous hit "Imagine," which has captured the hearts of millions of listeners, including mine. Take note of the first line of its second stanza:
Imagine there's no countries.
It isn't hard to do.
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion, too.
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace.
In my humble opinion, Lennon must have written "Imagine there's no country" or "Imagine there are no countries" instead, must he not?
Other recording artists have even revived this so-called timeless classic, an all-time favorite song, the "minimal grammatical impairment" of which has "seemingly been justified" by its stunningly beautiful melody.
If a language teacher wants to use this familiar song or any other song as a motivational tool in language teaching, he/she must first correct any grammatical error in it before he/she presents to the class, should he not? Ironically, by doing so, he/she is most likely to be accused of messing the line/s of the song, although in reality he/she simply wants the students to recognize what is grammatically correct. Am I right?
Imagine there's no countries.
It isn't hard to do.
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion, too.
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace.
In my humble opinion, Lennon must have written "Imagine there's no country" or "Imagine there are no countries" instead, must he not?
Other recording artists have even revived this so-called timeless classic, an all-time favorite song, the "minimal grammatical impairment" of which has "seemingly been justified" by its stunningly beautiful melody.
If a language teacher wants to use this familiar song or any other song as a motivational tool in language teaching, he/she must first correct any grammatical error in it before he/she presents to the class, should he not? Ironically, by doing so, he/she is most likely to be accused of messing the line/s of the song, although in reality he/she simply wants the students to recognize what is grammatically correct. Am I right?
Top answer
-- No. It is common to begin an assertion with "there's", even when followed by a plurality of some sort, when a concept (here, a concept of 'no countries') is being promulgated. If you present that line as a 'grammatical error' to students, you are doing everyone - John Lennon, your students, and the language - a disservice.
- -- No.
- It is common to begin an assertion with "there's", even when followed by a plurality of some sort, when a concept (here, a concept of 'no countries') is being promulgated.
- If you present that line as a 'grammatical error' to students, you are doing everyone - John Lennon, your students, and the language - a disservice.
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2 Answers
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In my humble opinion, Lennon must have written "Imagine there's no country" or "Imagine there are no countries" instead, must he not?-- No. It is common to begin an assertion with "there's", even when followed by a plurality of some sort, when a concept (here, a concept of 'no countries') is being promulgated. If you present that line as a 'grammatical error' to students, you ar
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What a nice answer, Mister Micawber! I have really learned a lot from you. Now, with all confidence, I can sing John Lennon's "Imagine," without thinking anymore about the "seeming grammatical error" in it. Thank you very much for your very good explanation. I look forward to learning more about the English language from you. *** bless you, sir.
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