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Anonymous Posted 10 years ago
Grammar
The job of the writer is to write
Dear Teachers,
I see a sentence:
"The job of the writer is to write."
There wasn't any mention of any writer before. My textbook says: if you use 'the' before a noun, your reader may look for a prior mention of this noun, so use 'a'.
So why 'the writer'? There is something else here. Is it because 'writer' is imagined as a general entity and what is good for that entity flows down to any writer?
Is this a situation where either 'the writer' or 'a writer' is okay? Thanks.
I see a sentence:
"The job of the writer is to write."
There wasn't any mention of any writer before. My textbook says: if you use 'the' before a noun, your reader may look for a prior mention of this noun, so use 'a'.
So why 'the writer'? There is something else here. Is it because 'writer' is imagined as a general entity and what is good for that entity flows down to any writer?
Is this a situation where either 'the writer' or 'a writer' is okay? Thanks.
Top answer
I think "a" should have been used.
- I think "a" should have been used.
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5 Answers
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Are you sure, tamguatlay? Because I have seen literary texts that do this…
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AnonymousIs this a situation where either 'the writer' or 'a writer' is okay? Thanks.I would say both are okay.
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khoffI would say both are okay.So would I, although I would prefer "the".
The job of a writer is to write - the job of any/every writer is to write.
The job of the writer is to write - the job of the typical writer is to write. This one is more common in academic writing.
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