Just chiming in on the previous point --

One of the motivations behind adopting the term "absolute" for this kind
of phrase was that there is no *required* grammatical linkage between
the absolute and the rest of the sentence; in older grammatical
theories, the absolute wasn't "governed" by anything (it's modeled, I
think, on a Latin construction about which the same kind of argument was
made). 

That having been said, absolute phrases seem so similar to participial
phrases that readers are probably more comfortable with them if they
*do* include a linker, especially those readers who are conscious of --
or have been sternly admonished to -- avoid dangling modifiers. I know
that it takes me some time in my grammar classes to get the majority of
students to see a distinction between absolutes and participials (and
I'm not sure that the time needed is well spent). Of course, if the
first sentence of this paragraph didn't bother you, the perceived
similarity might not have that strong an effect.

Bill Spruiell
Dept. of English
Central Michigan University

-----Original Message-----
From: Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Kathleen M. Ward
Sent: Wednesday, February 07, 2007 1:29 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Absolutes

I think the problem may not be one of "grammar," strictly speaking,  
but of a required mental jump for the reader.

If you think about it, the relationship between "clock" and "digits"  
seems clear.  But you have to think about it.

Would you consider

I glanced at my clock, its digits glowing florescent blue in the inky  
darkness of my room.

a better sentence?  If so, I think what is missing is an expressed  
link between the absolute construction and the main clause.

Kathleen Ward
UC Davis
On Feb 7, 2007, at 10:21 AM, Michael Kischner wrote:

> The following sentence is offered in a textbook as an examples of a  
> student's successful use of an absolute phrase:
>
> "I glanced at my clock, digits glowing florescent blue in the inky  
> darkness of my room."

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