Tell that native speaker

1. There is no significance in adding a "the" there. If there is, tell me then what you have gained or how that makes you more grammatically correct.

2. Don't change anything inside quotation marks in editing, as it might not be from the writer himself.

You said you were not sure, in fact, you are very sure there should be a "the". Otherwise, what are we arguing here?

The Chinese example you gave is a general grammatical rule. But, even in Chinese, there are many disputes. I would not go into that area. There is only one criterion for me: what is significance in doing that?

I never doubt your intention. What I found is almost all Chinese are quite obsessed with English grammar, as "I" was in my joke. But, Wenqing,you got take it to the next stage, focusing on ideas, way of thinking, logic etc in your writing. Don't think yourself as an ESL. I am not saying grammar is not important, but beyond certain point, it is quite meaningless. As in the case of "the", if there is no significance, leave it out, because it is a distraction from your main idea.

A good writing strikes a chord in you and makes you think. What makes The Great Gat*****y so great? Certainly not grammar. Who is going to be the judge of grammar? And how far do you want to take it? Don't shut up, please, keep it going.

 

 

 

 

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• let's talk about this offline or discuss it in the future. -非文學青年- ♀ (718 bytes) () 09/23/2012 postreply 17:36:42