Dear Ed,

Traditional grammar has the nominative absolute functioning as a modifier
of the entire sentence, or, if the "absolute" label is taken literally, as
a grammatical unit with no grammatical relationship to any particular part
of the main clause.  Most writers use it to set a scene or to present
information in a grammatical form below the level of the clause.  It is a
very effective way to add information to a sentence without putting it
forward as a claim to be contested.

That's a rhetorical or functional explanation, and not a very satisfying
grammatical explanation, I know, but, all things being equal, absolute
phrases can get a nice piece of work done in a sentence and in a paragraph.

Sincerely yours,
Jim

James Vanden Bosch              (616) 957-6592
Department of English           [log in to unmask]
Calvin College                  fax: (616) 957-8508
Grand Rapids, MI 49546          http://www.calvin.edu/~vand
for PureVoice software:         http://www.eudora.com/epro/purevoice.html