Definite article (sometimes silent in English?)
Why is the definite article used and in Spanish where it's silent in the English sentence? For example, "Algun dia viajaran los hombres a la Luna" means "Some day men will travel to the moon". So why in English, we say just "men" and in Spanish the definite article "the" is used? I notice that sometimes they are "silent" in English and wondered why because I would not have "los" in front of hombres in this sentence since I just want to say "men" and not "the men".
1 Answer
Basically the definite article works that same in Spanish as in English except that Spanish also tends to use it when when the noun stands for a general classification.
The los in your sentence does not mean that we are speaking about specific men as "the" would in English, but rather men as in mankind. The men is representing a larger, abstract, general classification.
With abstract nouns and nouns used in a general sense: In English, the article is often omitted with abstract nouns and nouns that refer more to a concept than a tangible item. But it still is needed in Spanish. A few examples might help clarify: La ciencia es importante. (Science is important.) Creo en la justicia. (I believe in justice.) Estudio la literatura. (I study literature.) La primavera es bella. (Spring is beautiful.)
