求救OG11-12

12. After gradual declension down to about 39 hours in 1970, the workweek in the United States has steadily increased to the point that the average worker now puts in an estimated 164 extra hours of paid labor a year.

(A)           After gradual declension down

(B)           Following a gradual declension down

(C)           After gradual declining down

(D)           After gradually declining

(E)           Following gradually declining

Diction + Rhetorical construction

One of the meanings of
        declension is a decline, but
        declension is rarely, if ever, used in this sense in

the modern era. Replacing declension with decline would be acceptable, but it is preferable to use the participle declining with the adverb gradually: after gradually declining. Declining shows movement in only one direction, so the redundant adverb down must be omitted.

A          Wordy, redundant, and stilted construction uses

the rare declension in place of the familiar decline

B           Construction is wordy and redundant; declension

in the sense of decline is not a familiar or

contemporary usage

C          Declining must be modified by the adverb gradually, not the adjective
        gradual; down is redundant

D          Correct. In this sentence, after gradually

declining is clear, correct, concise, and idiomatic.

E          Phrase must be introduced by a preposition(after), not a participle (following)

The correct answer is D.

其它错误地方已了解，唯独E的解释是什么意思（Phrase must be introduced by a preposition(after), not a participle (following)）？Phrase又是指哪些字？不明了为何用after而不用Following？希望前辈给予指导
                thanks~

after和following的区别在于介词短语和分词的区别

用following表明是和和主句的动词是同时发生的

这和逻辑是矛盾的