give the families and Oxford the closure that they need

[GoodTaste]

The building that police found the suspects in a commercial building that houses artwork, according to White. The police chief said that the couple was "aided" getting into the building, and that the party responsible for allowing them in may also face charges.

White added that he was "surprised" that the found the suspects in that location. He added that the department was going to "use as much personnel as necessary to give the families and Oxford the closure that they need."

Source: The Hill

To give a school the closure is understandable. But to give families the closure sounds odd. A family can open its door or close it freely without authorization from government. So I guess that such closure is guarded by police (police protect the families). Am I on the right track?

 

[5jj]

No.

closure - the feeling that an unpleasant experience has ended or been settled

bring/achieve closure: The investigation should bring some closure to the relatives of those who have died.

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[emsr2d2]

In this context, it's actually more natural to say that the families have been given closure. It's less common to say that a whole town/city has been given closure. However, here we can take it to mean everyone who lives there.

 

[GoodTaste]

In this context, it's actually more natural to say that the families have been given closure. It's less common to say that a whole town/city has been given closure. However, here we can take it to mean everyone who lives there.

I notice that you don't use an article before "closure". So is my sentence "To give a school the closure is understandable" ungrammatical? Should I remove the?

 

[emsr2d2]

Yes. The phrase is "to give [someone] closure" (no article). It's used in the original "giving XXX the closure it needs" because they're referring to a specific closure.

 

[tzfujimino]

So is my sentence "To give a school the closure is understandable" ungrammatical?

What do you mean when you say "to give a school (the) closure"?

 

[emsr2d2]

The important words when deciding (in this case) whether to use "the" are "it needs".

This gave the school closure. (Complete sentence; no article required)
This gave the school the closure it needs. (Complete sentence; article required)

 

[Tdol]

Schools where gun crimes occur will need closure to get over the horrors.

 

[GoodTaste]

What do you mean when you say "to give a school (the) closure"?

Both teachers and students were shocked by the gun incident and need time to go out of the stupor. Also see Tdol's reply.

 

[tzfujimino]

I think Tdol's "closure" is used in the sense of #2 here:

closure noun - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com

Definition of closure noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com

What about yours? Do you mean #2 above when you say "to give a school (the) closure"?

 

[GoodTaste]

I think Tdol's "closure" is used in the sense of #2 here:

closure noun - Definition, pictures, pronunciation and usage notes | Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary at OxfordLearnersDictionaries.com

Definition of closure noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com

What about yours? Do you mean #2 above when you say "to give a school (the) closure"?

I meant #3. And I thought Tdol picked up #3 as well.

 

[SoothingDave]

It's talking about psychological closure. Not about buildings being locked or schools being closed.

 

[Tdol]

I meant meaning #3- I was talking about recovering from trauma rather than shutting the place up.

 

[emsr2d2]

Everyone's who's responded has been talking about psychological closure. I didn't realise that anyone thought the piece referred to physical closure of schools or businesses.

 

[tzfujimino]

I'd like to apologize any confusion caused. (I misread Tdol's comment.)