ESL General English Grammar Questions

Re: Need help for "Go down, Moses"

CalifJim — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:08:26 GMT

Which part of it seems to be troubling you? It's a description of a black man's head (possibly a woman's), comparing it to a bronze work of art. His hair has been altered with hair products (chemicals for straightening hair, I suppose) and a razor, which has made it appear sculpted. (I'm having trouble imagining "a single neat-ridged sweep", but other than that, it seems fairly straightforward.)

Need help for "Go down, Moses"

Cadzao — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:11:30 GMT

"The face was black, smooth, impenetrable; the eyes had seen too much. The negroid hair had been treated so that it cover the skull like a cap, in a single neat-ridged sweep, with the appearance of having been lacquered, the part trimmed out with a razor, so that the head resembled a bronze head, imperishable and enduring."

(William Faulkner, "Go Down, Moses")

Please do me a favor and rephrase the above paragraph.

Thank you so much in advance.

Cadzao