# "Oh beautiful FOR spacious skies..".......why "for"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 15, 2007, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101 "2007-01-15T18:53:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2007, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/21 "2007-01-16T17:22:42Z")
Why would it be more odd to ask God to “shed his grace” upon American than to ask God to “bless” it? Or are you saying that “because it’s awful dang pretty” is a silly reason? (I like that reason better than a lot of other reasons people have offered for why the designated Diety should look favorably upon the US) ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2007, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/22 "2007-01-16T18:06:54Z")
[QUOTE=scotandrsn] That would imply then, that “God shed his grace on thee” is in the past tense? [/QUOTE] No, that’s not an implication of what I said. I’m not saying “shed” should be read in some sense other than the imperative one. Rather, I’m saying that its strange to read the “for” clauses as giving _reasons_ God should do the thing in question. I think “shed” is clearly imperative, and didn’t mean to imply otherwise. I just think the interpretation of “for” given by you and the other person in this thread is probably not right, even given the fact that “shed” is imperative. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2007, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/23 "2007-01-16T23:17:31Z")
What if we look at “God shed His grace on thee” as past tense, rather than future tense? Also consider that “grace” implies receiving something good that you didn’t earn or deserve. Paraphrase it like so: “Wow, nice place you’ve got here. God must really like you, you lucky bastard!” ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2007, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/24 "2007-01-16T23:26:10Z")
[QUOTE=Phase42] What if we look at “God shed His grace on thee” as past tense, rather than future tense? Also consider that “grace” implies receiving something good that you didn’t earn or deserve. Paraphrase it like so: “Wow, nice place you’ve got here. God must really like you, you lucky bastard!” [/QUOTE] That possibility’s already been covered. We can’t read “shed” in the past tense because of the next line: “And crown thy good in brotherhood…” If “shed” were past tense, then “crown” would be as well. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2007, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/25 "2007-01-16T23:37:34Z")
[QUOTE=AHunter3] It’s poetry-grammar. Didn’t any of you folks have to diagram a sentence? In non-poetic, more conventional phrase order: God shed his grace on thee for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, et. al. In poetic reverse-order grammer, therefore: O Beautiful! For spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, et. al, God shed his grace on thee! “For” is to indicate that the list of beautiful attributes comprise the reason why God oughts shed his grace on thee. [/QUOTE] This is not consistent with the punctuation of the poem. Also, “shed” is clearly present tense, as are all the imperative verbs used in the “chorus” lines of the poem. ---
**Author:** ![Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2007, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/26 "2007-01-17T03:22:54Z")
[QUOTE=Phase42] Paraphrase it like so: “Wow, nice place you’ve got here. God must really like you, you lucky bastard!” [/QUOTE] No, that’s the **third** stanza. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2007, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/27 "2007-01-17T08:32:02Z")
[QUOTE=t-bonham@scc.net] And there’s a fair amount of speculation that this poem (or parts of it) originated as a love poem to her lesbian partner. [/QUOTE] Yes, and when Francis Scott Key wrote about “bombs bursting in air”, he was _really_ talking about an orgasm he once had. And let’s not even get into what naughtiness [Irving Berlin](http://wilstar.com/midi/godblessamerica-lyrics.htm) really meant when he wrote “Stand beside her, and guide her”. “White with foam” indeed! ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2007, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/28 "2007-01-17T12:05:16Z")
“God grant that the Dopers give up on this idea that “shed” is present or past indicative!” What is it that I am doing in that sentence? ---
**Author:** ![TheBoard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@TheBoard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheBoard)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2022, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/29 "2022-04-11T23:04:10Z")
Best Beloved, try this out: As you sing, replace the word “for” to “your” throughout the song. It will make more sense like that, and possibly more enjoyable as you sing the song, too, at least it does for me, while also keeping the “or” sound in the tune. America, you are beautiful! ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2022, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/30 "2022-04-12T20:48:40Z")
No, “your” wouldn’t make sense at all. “For” makes perfect sense. ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/31 "2022-04-13T17:47:03Z")
Beautiful with spacious skies, all yours for the low, low price of $24 worth of beads! ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/32 "2022-04-13T20:09:01Z")
You’re on to something there yet the reasons are the why America is beautiful, for her purple mountains, for her amber waves and so on. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2022, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/33 "2022-04-13T20:11:18Z")
Was it ever settled whether it’s good for a deity to shed _anything_ on you? And wasn’t Franz Liebkind actually singing “O beautiful feuer spacious skies”? ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2022, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101/34 "2022-04-16T23:18:44Z")
Shedding viruses, virii, viries, etc… or something … not good. Dandruff - not good. Hair/fur - not good. Dead skin cells - not good. Shedding is right out, thank you very much! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oh-beautiful-for-spacious-skies-why-for/388101.md?page=1)