the christmas carol rudolph the red-nosed reindeer tells the story of a transformation from outcast (rejected by society) to hero by the title character. but why was rudolph an outcast in the first place? the answer is a cause for embarrassment for the reindeer community–it was his red nose!
according to legend, reindeer are responsible for pulling santa’s sleigh (vehicle used to travel over snow) as he travels around the world delivering toys to children on christmas eve; and according to this eponymous (named after) christmas cut (song), nowadays (the current era) rudolph is the most famous reindeer of all.
but it wasn’t always that way. at :40 in the song, it’s explained that, because of his red nose
all of the other reindeer used to laugh and call him names
used to means it happened in the past but not now. to call someone names means to insult or make fun of.
much of what the world knows about rudolph the red-nosed reindeer’s story is from this beloved tv special
as the song explains at :52, that all changed….
one foggy christmas eve
foggy is a weather word. a cloud that is at ground-level is fog. foggy is the equivalent adjective.
visibility is limited when it’s foggy (anneruthman.blogspot.com)
after rudolph’s red nose ends up being precisely what santa needed to guide him through the fog, the other reindeer completely change their tune (changed how they talked about rudolph). the lyrcis say…
then how the reindeer loved him and they shouted out with glee,“rudolph the red-nosed reindeer you’ll go down in history“
glee means great happiness. go down in history means rudolph will be remembered by future generations.
the cast of glee singing with glee
u are probably aware that john denver‘s version of rudolph the red-nosed reindeer is one of many. there are other notable renditions by frank sinatra‘s pal (friend) dean martin, george clooney‘s aunt rosemary clooney; and burl ives, the voice of the snowman/narrator in the famous rudolph the red-nosed reindeer tv special,
burl ives with the snowman he created the voice for and the most famous reindeer of all
additionally, there are popular versions by the doo-wop group the cadillacs and beyonce‘s old group destiny’s child just to name a few. but the vocabulary in the additional lyrics provided by the accompanying kids choir (backup singers–pronounced KWYRE) in john denver’s version make it the best option for this post.
for example at 1:40 in the song we hear that one of the names they used to call rudolph was pinocchio. kind of a stupid insult really; pinocchio’s nose grows when he lies, it isn’t red. rudolph didn’t like it though.
pinocchio’s nose problem is bigger than rudolph’s
other observations that the kids choir makes include:
- rudoph the red-nosed reindeer had a very shiny (bright) nose like a lightbulb, and like a glow worm
- they never let poor rudolph play in any reindeer games like monopoly
- rudolph the red-nosed reindeer you’ll go down in history like columbus.
christopher columbus went down in history, but nowadays people call him names like invader, oppressor and slaver (wikipedia)
so the lyrics emphasize rudolph the red-nosed reindeer overcoming (triumphing over) the prejudice of the other reindeer and becoming a hero. these two tiktoks focus more on the bad behavior of the reindeer community.
@richyrocksenglish visit richyrocks.com & search #rudolph for electrifying #english #vocabulary related to the song/story of rudolph the red nosed reindeer #englishcoach #englishteacher #englishpractice #englishclass #englishlesson #fypシ ♬ Flashing Lights – Kanye West
in the above tiktok recall appears at :02 and means remember. indisputably, at :07 means everybody agrees. however is used at :11 to shift the perspective to the time when rudolph was an outcast in his community because of his red nose. prior to (:12) means before. clutch (:15) means rudolph’s brilliant performance was at a crucial moment, under pressure. delivery (:16) refers to what santa does every year on christmas eve with toys for kids.
santa saw rudolph’s potential from an early age. however, he never stopped the other reindeer from ostracizing him.
peers are equals, other members of your community. shithead is an insult used to call someone stupid, awkward or unpopular. ostracize (:38) is exclude. for being different (:39) is a perfect example of how verbs that directly follow prepositions should be in the -ing form. and at :40 even santa claus emphasizes that santa claus agreed with the reindeer that rudolph’s shiny red nose was shameful (a disgrace)
this tiktok features (presents, spotlights) me as a reindeer to highlight how fickle (variable, inconsistent) reindeer behavior is in the rudolph story…
@richyrocksenglish the other reindeer in the rudolph the red nosed reindeer song/story were not cool. for awesome related #english #vocabulary visit richyrocks.com #englishcoach #englishteacher #englishpractice #englishclass #englishlesson #fyp #xmas #rudolph ♬ You Don’t Know Me (feat. Duane Harden) – Armand Van Helden
the text at :07 in the video says that the reindeer ridiculed rudloph relentlessly. ridicule means make fun of. the first line that the reindeer in the video speaks is a question that uses present perfect 👉🏼 have u seen the glowing red nose that rudolph has?
present perfect is a better option than past tense in this situation because rudolph’s red nose is a circumstance that has existed for many years.
shifty reindeer spread rumors about rudolph’s anatomy
shifty appears in graphics at :17 and again at :21. it describes a person who can’t be trusted or is always looking to deceive and won’t look u in the eye. tiny (:22) means small. cock (:24) is another word for penis. the modal auxiliary verb would represents a hypothetical invitation at :27.
even santa was an asshole about rudolph’s glowing nose. until it saved him one foggy christmas eve
at :45 should, another modal auxiliary verb, implies that black reindeer noses are correct. epic (1:12) is a fashionable way to say something is cool or really important. be careful, there is a tendency to overuse it. and a poser (1:20) is someone who pretends to be something they are not.
this is a good opportunity to mark the difference between story and history. there is a lot of confusion about this for spanish speakers because the spanish word historia covers both english words. story is an anecdote. history is the study of past events. rudolph the red-nosed reindeer is the <em><span story of a christmas hero. as mentioned above, the lyrics conclude that because of rudolph’s heroics, he made history.
the glee of 3 reindeer (NOT 3 reindeers)
finally, u may have noticed that reindeer is almost always an irregular plural (like fish, sheep and shrimp). in other words, reindeer is both singular and plural.
what do u think about rudolph’s transformation from outcast to hero and the reaction of the other reindeer? share your thoughts under leave a reply
