[Grammar] Some articles in context

[Kotfor]

Here is an exercise on articles. I have my version of the right answers and the version of the author of the exercise and some of my choices of the articles don't match with those of the author's. Need your opinion. See the text in blue.

Last July, my 65-year-old father was on his daily run. It was an unusually hot day, and he felt a little sick, so he stopped to rest in the shade (author's choice) a shade (my choice). A passerby asked if he needed help, but my father said, "No," figuring he'd be able to get home. Minutes later, another person stopped. The man realized something was seriously wrong and called 911. That stranger saved my father's life. Dad suffered a heart attack and was hospitalized for five days. I cannot thank that passerby enough for getting involved and helping the/a stranger (the author doesn't provide an answer here at all, so, I think either the or a is possible) when it would have been easier to walk away. Now, my father has many years left to enjoy his grandchildren. Let everybody be Good Samaritans when they see the need (author's choice) a need (my choice). A life could depend on it. (I agree that "a life" is possible, but I wonder whether it would also be OK to leave "Life" without an article, that is: Life could depend on it.

 

[Roman55]

I am not a teacher.

The shade. It's a mass noun so you can't say a shade.
A stranger. To the person who stopped, the father was a stranger, not a previously mentioned stranger.
I would say the need, but you could argue a case in favour of 'a need'.
A life. 'Life' in general is not what is meant.

 

[Kotfor]

I am not a teacher.

The shade. It's a mass noun so you can't say a shade.
A stranger. To the person who stopped, the father was a stranger, not a previously mentioned stranger.
I would say the need, but you could argue a case in favour of 'a need'.
A life. 'Life' in general is not what is meant.

1) I see your point. Still, here are some examples which use "a shade"

1) I laid myself down in a shade, and soon after I saw a winged serpent, very large and long, coming towards me, wriggling to the right and to the left, and hanging out his tongue, which made me think he had got some hurt.
2) Yea, who can express the joy of a soul safe shadowed from wrath under the covert of the righteousness of the Lord Jesus! There is also refreshment in a shade from weariness.
3) but a very respectable looking man, (a Moor) of a light olive colour, came out of his gate, and welcomed our masters, saluting them, (as is customary) and seeing us behind, told us to sit down in a shade formed by his wall, and rest ourselves;

2) When you say "a life" you mean "one man's life", right?

 

[Roman55]

I am not a teacher.

I was talking about modern English, not biblical or Shakespearean language.

Yes, 'a life' means the life of one person.

 

[Kotfor]

The third example doesn't fall in either category you have reservations about, by the way.

 

[Roman55]

I am not a teacher.

Your original question was about an exercise on articles. It is a contemporary, non-literary piece of writing, and a shade would be wrong.

 

[SoothingDave]

Somebody "seeing the need" (or "feeling the need") is a standard expression.

 

[Kotfor]

I am just giving you some other examples with "a shade" as we are discussing English in general even though there has been given a certain context. Of course, we need to go deeper. Here is another example "At Esuru town market square, Logan parked their car in a shade under a palm tree. In front of him were a group of bystanders roaming helplessly around a small shopping center." The book from which I have borrowed this sentence was produced in Canada.

Plus, we haven't mentioned another option which is "in shade"... which is also bugging me.

It was an unusually hot day, and he felt a little sick, so he stopped to rest in shade.

You don't have to think that I don't trust you, it's just that I think it's not a matter of trusting in this case.

 

[Kotfor]

Somebody "seeing the need" (or "feeling the need") is a standard expression.

Do you mean it's a set phrase? What or whose need is implied here?

 

[Rover_KE]

I am just giving you some other examples with "a shade" as we are discussing English in general even though there has been given a certain context. Of course, we need to go deeper.

Plus, we haven't mentioned another option which is "in shade"... which is also bugging me.

It was an unusually hot day, and he felt a little sick, so he stopped to rest in shade.

Click here to see how frequently 'in shade' and 'in a shade' are used.

If you always use 'in the shade' you will always be right.

 

[Kotfor]

Click here to see how frequently 'in shade' and 'in a shade' are used.

If you always use 'in the shade' you will always be right.

Indeed, it's a good tool to find out which one is the most frequent. But I really want to understand the reason which makes a speaker choose either "the" or "a" or no article.

 

[Rover_KE]

Do what most English speakers do: use 'in the shade'.

It's not worth spending any more time over.

 

[Roman55]

The book from which I have borrowed this sentence was produced in Canada.

I am not a teacher.

It is from 'The Naked Gods: Africa-the Land of Culture' by the Nigerian author Blessing Abiaka. It is full of unnatural English.