“They watched him wide-eyed, drooling slightly.”
This is what Leïla Slimani wrote in “The Confession” in the 2/18-25/19 edition of my beloved New Yorker.
I want to believe that “They” are the ones who were wide-eyed and drooling (slightly). But what if they were actually watching him? Him wide-eyed! Him drooling! (Slightly.)
Maybe I’m splitting hairs, but think about it. Someone says to you, “They watched him drooling.” What do you think? Who’s drooling?
English Is A Complicated Language 