Once upon a time, there was a grandfather...

[tzfujimino]

Hello.
'Once upon a time, there was an old man ...' is often used in storytelling.
Is 'Once upon a time, there was a grandfather ...' possible?

(I know they don't mean the same, but the problem is that we have exactly the same Japanese word for 'a grandfather (grandmother)' and 'an elderly/old man (woman)'. We use the word in storytelling.)

Thank you.

 

[SoothingDave]

If he had kids who had kids, yes. But yes, "grandfather" does tend to make one think of an older man.

 

[Rover_KE]

Many a grandparent is under 30.

 

[Barb_D]

Many? A baby at 15, who had a baby at 14?

In any case, if you used "grandfather" instead of simply "old man" I would expect his children/grandchildren to figure in the story somehow.

 

[Tdol]

Many a grandparent is under 30.

In real life, but less so fairy tales.

 

[emsr2d2]

Many? A baby at 15, who had a baby at 14?

It depends on your definition of "many" but unfortunately in quite a lot of areas of the UK, the daughter of a teenage mother is very likely to go on to become a teenage mother herself. Perhaps not 14 or 15, but certainly 16-year-old mothers are more common than most of us think is sensible/acceptable. A few months ago, a 13-year-old girl and her 11-year-old boyfriend had a baby. :shock:

 

[lotus888]

Teen pregnancy is a big problem in the U.S. as well -- although a grandparent at 30 would be rare.


--lotus