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I heard an announcer this morning on the radio make the save, "in not-too-distant a future". One could tell that he realized he had left the out of the phrase, "in the not-too-distant future". How does a in that position make it more grammatical, but, "in not-too-distant the future" sounds really wrong? And, I note that "in a not-too-distant future" has a spectulatively different meaning than "in the not-too-distant future".
Emmett
I'd start here: I think it's proper to hyphenate the phrase in "a/the not-too-distant future", but not in "in not too distant a future". In the first usage "not-to-distant" is an adjective; in the second it's an adjective phrase and doesn't call for hyphenation.
I hoped that would reveal the answer to your question. But having said it, I can't see that it changes anything. How is "not too distant a future" correct and "not too distant the future" wrong? My only theory is that they're both equally ungrammatical but that the former construction has been around long enough that we're used to it. I'm not saying I like that theory, mind you.
This is one way to see how they work: 'the' is an empty attribute whose role is to announce that there are concrete attributes to come; 'a' is a selector whose role is to select any entity that fits whatever set of attributes applied.
'Not too distant the future' is wrong because the attributing is already accomplished by 'not too distance' --'the' as announcer therefore is superfluous.
'Not too distant a future' is ok because 'a' is only an entity selector.
'The not too distant future' is ok with 'the' playing its role as attributes announcer.
'A not too distant future' is same as 'Not too distant a future'
I agree with RobertB. I think my simple mind would like to say that "a" is general and "the" is specific. "Here is a house" vs "Here is the house." "Here is a car" vs "Here is the car." I don't even need to explain the difference. To say either "a not too distant future" or "not too distant a future" may both be grammatically correct and may mean exactly the same thing, but it makes my mind go "sci-fi" and start thinking of the future in a parallel universe where it is different from "the" future right here where we live. Or I guess it could just be a hypothetical future (that may be what the announcer actually meant) but not "the" future.
The concepts of 'the' as announcer and 'a' as selector will still work where no concrete attributes appear ('The future', 'A future'): 'the' then implies that the unnamed attributes are or should be already well-known, and 'a' selects any entity from an unrestricted universe.
And they fit with your point, Dick, about 'a' inspiring a sci-fi sense, whereas 'the' not: the former implies multi-futures to choose from, the latter a future already pinned down to earth by a bunch of attributes.
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Grant Barrett
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