Dangling participles sound more painful than they actually are. A dangling participle is simply a type of dangling modifier, and a participle is a type of verb ending in -ing (and sometimes -ed) which must be used with care. The word ‘having’ in this sentence is a participle: ‘Having owned this dog for seven years, I would like to think that you have had a chance to observe him in many situations.’
At first glance, nothing may seem amiss, but the point of the sentence is that the person identified as ‘you’ is the one who has owned the dog for seven years; yet the sentence construction (syntax) implies that the writer is the one who has owned the dog. This confusion is remedied by explicitly referring in the modifying phrase to the second person: ‘Because you have owned this dog for seven years, I would like to think that you have had a chance to observe him in many situations.’
Here is a simpler example: ‘Flying south for the winter, I saw a huge flock of swallows.’ The modifying clause (flying south for the winter) does not modify the subject of the sentence (I). I was not flying south, the birds were.
And another classic: ‘Flitting gaily from flower to flower, the football player watched the bee.’ Please find your own solution to this one.
The cases I see most often relate to the academic writing of the students I have as clients. The culprits are most often the participles ‘considering’ and ‘focusing’. Difficulties frequently arise from the misuse of these two common participles, which often end up dangling.
E.g. ‘While still focusing on the Greeks, the Persians were also a major civilization in antiquity.’ Do you see the problem here? As the Persians built their civilization, do you think they were ‘focusing’ on Greece? That is, were they ‘looking at’ the Greeks when they were building Persia? Here is the revision the student made: ‘While still focusing on the Greeks, we must admit the Persians were also a major civilization in antiquity.’
It is easy to fall into the trap of having dangling participles (modifiers) in your work. They can be easily overlooked and reduce the clarity of your writing. The more you look at examples of dangling participles, the more you will be able to spot them and remove them from your own writing.
Contact me should you require a review of your writing. Avoid embarrassing and costly errors and communicate more effectively with Proof Perfect NZ. Email renellj@proofperfect.co.nz or call 029 1230 158.