"...to become senator" or "...to become a senator"
English translation: depends....
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18:32 Nov 15, 2004
English to English translations [Non-PRO] Art/Literary - Linguistics / usage
English term or phrase:"...to become senator" or "...to become a senator"
Which of the two sentences is correct?
"They helped him to become senator and supported him."
OR
"They helped him to become a senator and supported him."
Bonus question: Does "senator" have to be capitalized?
The general context involves a British textbook discussing American politics (the sentence is not in the textbook).
Explanation: Speaking as an American....
"They helped him to become a senator" tells me that it is not important WHERE is was a senator (Rhode Island? California?)
"They helped him become senator" is somehow incomplete, "They helped him become Senator from California" would be closer to the usage I have heard.
Caps like that too. Explicit title, caps, general no caps.
I would really like to thank all of you for your help! My step-daughter was impressed with the discussion that ensued from her 'simple' question. I also thought that "to become senator" is not necessarily wrong (maybe Richard is right and I need to spend back at home), but somehow incomplete; "to become a senator" would probably sound more natural in this particular context. Before asking, I checked Google with her - there were about three times as many instances with "a" as without.
In spite of that, there were enough examples of "to become senator" that I don't think that it is wrong per se. The rules seem a bit vague, but existent.
A special thanks also goes out to Annika for her great explanation on capitalizing (I wish I could award more points). Again, thank you all for the lively discussion and for taking the time to share your opinions! :-) 4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer
Allow me to insist that the spelling in this case is not at all an indication that the intended readership is British or whatever. It is simply the spelling that is taught at German schools. Also, "becoming senator" is *always* about a specific election
...German speakers to omit the article in all cases. Having said that, I would be more worried about her political ethics than her English. Also, she has written "favour", and so clearly this is intended to be non-US English.
Given the context, I think it is worth noting that we are probably dealing with an established senator rather than one who has just won an election; so the reasons used to justify "become senator" hardly apply. It is also good to correct the tendency of..
Richard, I raised my eyebrows too, when I read that part of the sentence; she said she had been a little lazy - but at least she admitted it! I am always willing to help, if she has at least tried to understand it herself; but I refuse to do the thinking for her. I think my step-daughter's English is actually pretty good, considering that I showed up when she was five (or in spite of that fact). ;-)
So, to expand the context, it's an answer written by a 16 year old German girl for her English class in Germany:
"I think the senator should vote against the president's plan because that's what the industrialists want him to do. They helped him to become senator and supported him. And they told him that they will support him in future if he votes in their favour. He probably won't be in the Senate anymore if he doesn't get their support. [...]"
It was marked wrong in her paper and she asked me what I thought and to have you (the ProZ) review it. :-)
What's "supported him" doing there? It looks as though it should either go before "helped him" or have something more, e.g. "supported him in office". It makes it hard to interpret the context.
Explanation: Speaking as an American....
"They helped him to become a senator" tells me that it is not important WHERE is was a senator (Rhode Island? California?)
"They helped him become senator" is somehow incomplete, "They helped him become Senator from California" would be closer to the usage I have heard.
Caps like that too. Explicit title, caps, general no caps.
My thoughts from the USA.
jccantrell Local time: 02:31 Native speaker of: English PRO pts in category: 31
Grading comment
I would really like to thank all of you for your help! My step-daughter was impressed with the discussion that ensued from her 'simple' question. I also thought that "to become senator" is not necessarily wrong (maybe Richard is right and I need to spend back at home), but somehow incomplete; "to become a senator" would probably sound more natural in this particular context. Before asking, I checked Google with her - there were about three times as many instances with "a" as without.
In spite of that, there were enough examples of "to become senator" that I don't think that it is wrong per se. The rules seem a bit vague, but existent.
A special thanks also goes out to Annika for her great explanation on capitalizing (I wish I could award more points). Again, thank you all for the lively discussion and for taking the time to share your opinions! :-)
The translation workplace 
peer agreement (net): +6
