I am (still) reading
[Metamorphosis](http://bilinguis.com/book/metamorphosis/jp/en/c1/)(from Kafka)
and can't figure out how to parse

> 彼は甲殻 **のように** 固い背中 **を** 下 **に** して横たわり

Translated as

> He lay on his armour-hard back

I suppose the japanese version litteraly looks more like

> He lay on his back hard as a nutshell (or is it "on his hard back which
> looks like a nutshell" ?)

Here is what i don't understand :

  1. How to parse のように ? i know about ように ~ "trying to do something", Aのよう ~ seems/looks like A (exemplification) and the adverbial ように but none of them seems to apply here : am i wrong ?
  2. Does に in 背中を下 **に** して横たわり make 下 into an adverb ? If not what's its meaning ? And if so then see 3.
  3. What's the use of を particle here ? Doesn't 下にして横たわり already have the sense of "to lay on his back" without the 背中を part ?
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2021-04-06T21:15:05.047
85999
2021-04-07T00:57:11.997
2021-04-07T00:57:11.997
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question
particles syntax
How to parse 彼は甲殻のように固い背中を下にして横たわり
1. The main confusion is that Xのように in this context means "like/as X" rather than anything related to "trying to do".

  2. Xを下にして here means "with X facing down". を indicates that the thing which is facing down is 背中, his back.

Breaking this down, we have:

> 甲殻のように固い  
>  As hard as a carapace

> 甲殻のように固い背中  
>  (his) back, as hard as a carapace

> 甲殻のように固い背中を下にして  
>  with (his) back, as hard as a carapace, facing down

> 彼は甲殻のように固い背中を下にして横たわり  
>  lying down with his back, as hard as a carapace, facing down
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2021-04-06T21:50:48.920
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2021-04-06T22:23:34.530
2021-04-06T22:23:34.530
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answer