Neil claimed, and I think we should believe him, that he said “a man” but the radio glitched.

The quote works either way. People just need to fuckin chill.

It “works” in that we know what he meant, but it literally doesn’t work without the “a”.

‘Man’ is often used in the same way as ‘mankind’ which is how I’ve usually seen the quote interpreted. Clearly the preposition ‘a’ makes a very big difference but it still makes sense.

“a” is an indefinite article, not a preposition. Prepositions are how a verb relates to an indirect object. “The bunny hopped over the fence, around a tree, and down a hole.” The italicized words in this sentence are prepositions. In, on, at, near, etc… You get the idea…

Anyway, the quote is kinda contradictory without the “a”. Is it a small step or a giant leap? Oh, it’s a giant leap for mankind, and a small step for a man. Makes so much sense now.