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153
The sun sank below the horizon.
The sky had cleared...
The moon is the heavenly body that moves round the earth.
He sailed round the world.
The use of the definite article with nouns denoting unique objects is similar to the situational use, only
unique objects suggest situations on a larger scale. Nouns denoting unique objects are also similar to proper
nouns, especially to those originated from common nouns, such as the Tower, the Hermitage, the British
Museum.
Though in the majority of cases proper nouns are used without an article, thanks to their origin, various
historical processes and traditional usage, there are a number of proper nouns which are preceded by the
definite article (for more examples see the list in § 194).
Nouns denoting unique objects may be preceded by the indefinite article in its classifying function when
some aspect or phase of the object is meant or the word is used figuratively.
It’s a high sky tonight, big and pale.
The sun shone in an unclouded sky.
Night had fallen and I was guided by a full moon.
She in turn had discovered in Cal Finley a world of which she had never dreamed before.
It has always been a dream of her life.
§ 193. The definite article in its generic function refers the following noun to the whole class of objects of
the same kind.
The lion is the king of the animals.
The trout - oh the trout – he’s the real king of fish.
Only the poet or the saint can water an asphalt pavement in the confident anticipations that lilies will
reward his labour.
Since 1925 Mr Warren has made an outstanding contribution to American letters in the fields of
education, poetry, criticism, and the novel.
The generic article suggests a very high degree of abstraction in a count noun, the next stage of abstraction
being achieved by the absence of the articles, as with the words man and woman when used in a generic
meaning.
Woman is physically weaker than man.
This was more than man can be expected to bear.
Observe the difference between the generic use of the word man without an article (the class as a whole) and
the generic use of the same word with the indefinite article (a representative of the class) in this quotation:
Man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed, but not defeated.
In many cases either the generic definite or the generic indefinite article may be used. The generic definite
article expresses the idea of the whole class, whereas the indefinite article emphasises the idea of any
individual’s belonging to the class, e.g. The horse is a domestic animal. A horse is a domestic animal. The
generic indefinite article is often preferable when a detailed description follows: A person who prepares
somebody else’s writings for a publisher is called the editor. A crane is a large bird with a long neck and beak.
There are certain contexts, however, where the use of the generic indefinite article is logically impossible, as
in:
The tiger is in danger of becoming extinct.
The lion is the king of the animals.