Breakdown of Impuissant, je ne fais que m'acharner sur la machine.
je
I
sur
on
ne
not (used before the verb)
faire
to do, to make
Questions & Answers about Impuissant, je ne fais que m'acharner sur la machine.
Why is there no pas in je ne fais que?
This is the aspectual periphrasis you are currently learning, which means 'to do nothing but' or 'to only do'. Just like the restrictive ne ... que (which means 'only'), it does not use pas. The formula is always ne faire que followed directly by an infinitive, which in this sentence is m'acharner.
Why is the reflexive pronoun m' used in m'acharner instead of leaving it as the dictionary form s'acharner?
Even when a reflexive verb is used in its infinitive form after another verb (like fais), its reflexive pronoun must still agree with the subject performing the action. Because the subject of the sentence is je, the pronoun changes to me (which contracts to m' before a vowel), resulting in m'acharner.
Does s'acharner sur just mean 'to struggle with'?
It is actually much stronger! S'acharner implies a relentless, fierce, or even desperate persistence. When paired with the preposition sur, it means you are stubbornly attacking, obsessing over, or battling a specific target. Here, it gives the vivid image of someone desperately and fruitlessly fighting against the machine.
If a woman is speaking, does impuissant need to change, even though it is separated from the subject by a comma?