MY LATE SON

Paul Theroux has written many essays, short stories, and novels. I have read The Mosquito Coast twice. I know he has written books about Hawaii.

He published a story in the July issue of Harper's. He titled the story "Incident in the Oriente." This is the story's first sentence:

"We were sitting, heads bowed in prayer, waiting for the local Indians, Secoyas, to come barefoot into the mess container with platters of food."

"We" is the subject of the sentence.

"were sitting" is the main verb. It is in the past progressive form. He could have written "we sat," but he chose, instead, to write "we were sitting."

"heads bowed in prayer" is an absolute phrase since it starts with a noun and is followed with a participle--a past participle. "bowed" is modified by a prepositional phrase, "in prayer," which functions as an adverb.

"waiting for the local Indians" is a participial phrase. "waiting" is the participle, and "for the local Indians" is a prepositional phrase that functions as an adverb since it modifies the participle.

"Secoyas" is an appositive that renames "the local Indians."

"to come barefoot" is an infinitive phrase. I'm not sure what do with it. Infinitive phrases act as nouns, adverbs, and adjectives. I have a sense that this one works as an adverb since it's definitely not a noun, and I don't see how it's an adjective. But, if it works as a noun, then what does it modify? It doesn't modify "waiting" because the "We" are the ones who are waiting, and the "to come barefoot" has to do with the Secoyas. Maybe it does work as an adjective and should modify "Secoyas." I don't know. This is my late son.

"into the mess container" is a prepositional phrase that modifies "to come."

"with platters" is another prep phrase that modifies "to come."

"of food" is a prep phrase that modifies "platters."

But how does that infinitive phrase work? If I were to write, "I am waiting for my friend to laugh at me," then what do I do with "to laugh"? Maybe it's some kind of complement since you're not really waiting for your friend, but you're waiting for your friend to laugh.

This is Theroux's second sentence:

"When Max Moses said grace, as he was doing tonight, his terrifying vitality shone in his bulging eyes."

"When Max Moses said grace" is a dependent clause that works as an adverb. "When" is the subordinating conjunction. "Max Moses" is the subject of the clause. "said" is the main verb, and "grace" is the direct object of the verb.

"as he was doing tonight" is another dependent clause. "as" in the conjunction, "he" is the subject of the dependent clause, "was doing" is the main verb (which is in the past progressive," and "tonight" is an adverb. Theroux uses "as" where many people would incorrectly use "like."

So Theroux opens with two dependent clauses. He makes us wait for his main clause. This is especially interesting since, with his first sentence, he gave us the subject and main verb right away, and then made us wait for his sentence to end by using so many modifiers--things like an absolute, a participial phrase, and all those prepositions.

"his terrifying vitality" is the subject of the independent clause. "his" is a determiner. "terrifying" is an adjective. "vitality" is a noun.

"shone" is the main verb of the indep clause. It is an intransitive verb since it doesn't require a direct object. When "to shine" is transitive--when it requires a direct object (as in "He shined a light")--then it goes "shine, shined, shined." I shine shoes. I shined shoes. I had shined shoes.

When "to shine" is intransitive, though, as it is in the above sentence, the verb goes "shine, shone, shone." I shine with joy. I shone with joy. I had shone with joy.

When I first say Theroux's use of "shone," I thought he had screwed up. Then, however, I looked up "shine" in Garner's Modern American Usage (GMAU) and learned all about it.

"Yet rumbling on in his old smoker's vibrato, he did not raise his voice" is the third sentence in this story.

"Yet" must be some kind of adverb.

"rumbling on" is a participle.

"in his old smoker's vibrato" is a prepositional phrase that acts as an adverb since it modifies "rumbling on."

"he" is the subject of the indep clause.

"did raise" is the main verb. "did" carries the tense, which is past tense.

"not" is an adverb.

"his voice" is the direct object of the main verb.

In just three sentences, Theroux has much variation. When I write sentences, I use simple clauses. I have a one-cylinder style, so I am stuck with verbs and the word "and." Theroux, though, with great economy, uses all sorts of things--prep phrases, absolutes, dependent clauses, infinitives.