sprawling

[Bushwhacker]

In this sentence:

For the second time, Tamlin crashed on his rump as Vox's browny arm knocked him and Escevar sprawling.

The sentence is understandable except this final sprawling in gerund or as an adjective.

Escevar is indeed sprawling but, what is it saying?

Vox knocks Tamlin and Escevar and the effect is both of them scattered? Which doesn't make a lot of sense because Escevar already lies down on the floor.

Thanks for the assistance

 

[bhaisahab]

In this sentence:

For the second time, Tamlin crashed on his rump as Vox's browny arm knocked him and Escevar sprawling.

The sentence is understandable except this final sprawling in gerund or as an adjective.

Escevar is indeed sprawling but, what is it saying?

Vox knocks Tamlin and Escevar and the effect is both of them scattered? Which doesn't make a lot of sense because Escevar already lies down on the floor.

Thanks for the assistance

It's very difficult to interprete bad writing.

 

[euncu]

It's very difficult to interprete bad writing.

What tips would betray an English text written badly. It matters because we the non-native speakers tend to test their understanding by reading online articles. A text written in good English would reveal how we are good or bad in understanding, serves as a benchmark, while a bad one (the ones that we can not tell if they are good or bad) wastes our time and makes us think how incompetent we are and thus breaks our hopes.

I believe your tips would be very useful.

Thank you for your reply in advance.

 

[bhaisahab]

What tips would betray an English text written badly. It matters because we the non-native speakers tend to test their understanding by reading online articles. A text written in good English would reveal how we are good or bad in understanding, serves as a benchmark, while a bad one (the ones that we can not tell if it is good or bad) wastes our time and makes us think how incompetent we are and thus breaks our hopes.

I believe your tips would be very useful.

Thank you for your reply in advance.

That's a very difficult question. The only way is more and more exposure to the language, finding out how native speakers use the language, asking them for opinions about texts. There are all sorts and levels of writing out there and I know, from my experience with French, that it takes time to distinguish between good and bad writing.

 

[Bushwhacker]

That's a very difficult question. The only way is more and more exposure to the language, finding out how native speakers use the language, asking them for opinions about texts. There are all sorts and levels of writing out there and I know, from my experience with French, that it takes time to distinguish between good and bad writing.

But in this case it seems there is no doubt the writing is at least quite disturbing ;-)

 

[euncu]

Dear Bushwhacker, would you check this link;
Main Page - Gutenberg

On this site you may find a lot of free e-books written in English. And I believe that most of them( maybe all of them) can be considered to be written in good English. Only downside about them is that some (or most) of them might be old dated.(old enough not to violate any copyright laws.) It would be better than struggling with the text written in bad English.

 

[Bushwhacker]

Dear Bushwhacker, would you check this link;
Main Page - Gutenberg

On this site you may find a lot of free e-books written in English. And I believe that most of them( maybe all of them) can be considered to be written in good English. Only downside about them is that some (or most) of them might be old dated.(old enough not to violate any copyright laws.) It would be better than struggling with the text written in bad English.

Yes, I know it. I would easily agree with you. Conrad, Shakespeare, Tolstoy...

Regards

 

[euncu]

Tolstoy...

A good translated one, maybe.

I think, to improve our English, it is better to pick the books that were originally written in English.

 

[Bushwhacker]

A good translated one, maybe.

I think, to improve our English, it is better to pick the books that were originally written in English.

Oh, I was referring simply to great literature. But of course Tolstoy is brilliantly translated into English, isn't it?