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Human beings like a prospect from which they can survey a landscape, and at the same time they enjoy a sense of refuge. A cave on the side of a mountain, a child’s tree house, and the king’s castle are situations with appeal. Protection afforded by an overhang of some sort (trees, cliff face, roof) is preferred, along with a sense of being “safe” from observation or attack from behind. The most attractive landscapes tend to combine some of these elements, in pictures as much as in reality. In fact, most landscape representation in the history of painting places the implied viewer at some desirable vantage point — a cliff edge, perhaps, typically looking down into a valley.

Q. I was wondering what would be looking down into a valley. Would the implied subject of "looking down ~" be the "implied viewer" or the "vantage point", which rephrased as a cliff edge in this sentence?

Kinam99
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    The cliff edge is "looking down into the valley". – Hot Licks Nov 17 '19 at 01:26
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    I read that sentence to mean the implied viewer is looking down into the valley (from the cliff's edge), but it's possible that it's the cliff's edge looking down into the valley – Arm the good guys in America Nov 17 '19 at 01:46
  • @KannE I added the entire paragraph. – Kinam99 Nov 17 '19 at 22:55
  • it's still ambiguous and poorly written – Arm the good guys in America Nov 18 '19 at 03:00
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    I think it's pretty clearly the cliff edge that is looking down into the valley, but you could argue it's ambiguous. Both interpretations would be grammatically correct. –  Nov 18 '19 at 05:28
  • // - a cliff edge, perhaps, typically looking down into a valley.// With the commas, it could be interpreted as linking to the viewer; if comma wasn't there, it would surely link to the cliff alone. – Ram Pillai Dec 18 '19 at 06:43
  • Looking over a valley is also a nice place for a vantage point. – Xanne Aug 14 '20 at 08:46
  • What is the source of this quote? I cannot find the entire quotation 'as is' anywhere, but parts of it can be found scattered around the Innernette. The beginning of the quote is often attributed to a Denis Dutton. – Joachim Apr 16 '23 at 11:25

2 Answers2

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According to www.merrian-webster.com/dictionary/look we see within the section intransitive verb, (definition 3) "look" can be something that an inanimate object can do. With that I say that the cliff is looking down...

AdvenJack
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    I agree with that, and it's even more true of the related word overlook. Both 'look' and 'overlook' are used for natural features and ruins which will only occasionally have a person, or even an animal or bird, using their eyes from that place. – BoldBen Apr 11 '21 at 10:38
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In the sentence as it stands a cliff edge, perhaps, typically looking down into a valley is in apposition to "some desirable vantage point". And thus, expanded:

In fact, most landscape representation in the history of painting places the implied viewer at some desirable vantage point , for example, a cliff edge, perhaps, that typically is looking down into a valley.

at some desirable vantage point, for example, a cliff edge, perhaps, typically looking down into a valley. is an adjectival phrase modifying "viewer".

Greybeard
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