All through his night’s vigil, stretched on the floor with Issa

[hhtt21]

" All through his night’s vigil, stretched on the floor with Issa one step above him on the bed, he had been tormented by images of his guest’s martyred limbs, and the realization of his own inadequacy."

I cannot understand how this sentence be formed. Should not it be stretching on the floor, instead of stretched on the floor?
Is the a inverse sentence?https://books.google.com.tr/books?i...the realization of his own inadequacy&f=false

Thank you.

 

[emsr2d2]

No. He wasn't "stretching" (which suggests movement), he was "stretched/stretched out", indicating a stationary position but one in which his body was extended to its full length.

 

[hhtt21]

No. He wasn't "stretching" (which suggests movement), he was "stretched/stretched out", indicating a stationary position but one in which his body was extended to its full length.

But I cannot understand the sentence's structure? Why isn't there a subject before the verb stretch?

Thank you.

 

[hhtt21]

It seems that grammatically it is a complex or a complex-compound sentence, so can I divide it simple to understand parts as in this: All through his night’s vigil, he had stretched on the floor with Issa one step above him on the bed. He had been tormented by images of his guest’s martyred limbs, and the realization of his own inadequacy.

Thank you.

 

[GoesStation]

But I cannot understand the sentence's structure? Why isn't there a subject before the verb stretch?

The clause beginning "stretched on the floor" is, I believe, an adjective phrase modifying the subject, "he".

 

[hhtt21]

No. He wasn't "stretching" (which suggests movement), he was "stretched/stretched out", indicating a stationary position but one in which his body was extended to its full length.

I do not know their grammatic name of their class but I think stretch is one of them and I think that they do not refer to any movement. To wait, to lie, to sleep are one of this class in addition to stretch. Example:"He was lying dead" do not refer to movement.

Thank you.

 

[GoesStation]

The verb stretch suggests movement. The adjective "stretched" does not.

 

[Tdol]

Opening thread after a request.

 

[hhtt21]

No. He wasn't "stretching" (which suggests movement), he was "stretched/stretched out", indicating a stationary position but one in which his body was extended to its full length.

Can we say that for some verbs such as stretcht, the past participles are introduces immobilities, where as the present participles introduces motions?

 

[YAMATO2201]

Can we say that for some verbs such as stretcht, the past participles are introduces immobilities, where as the present participles introduces motions?

a) The baseball catcher stretched for the wild pitch and caught it. (not an immobility)

The "stretched" in that sentence is not a past participle.

 

[Tdol]

If someone is stretched on the rack, it is a motion.

The "stretched" in that sentence is not a past participle.

No, but we could equally use has/had stretched in a similar case. The fact that this is the simple past does not disprove the idea about immobility.