His studies of ice-polished rocks in his Alpine homeland, far outside the range of present-day glaciers, led Louis Agassiz in 1837 to propose the concept of an age in which great ice sheets had existed in now currently temperate areas.
His studies of ice-polished rocks in his Alpine homeland, far outside the range of present-day glaciers, led Louis Agassiz in 1837 to propose the concept of an age in which great ice sheets had existed in now currently temperate areas.
(A) in which great ice sheets had existed in now currently temperate areas (B) in which great ice sheets existed in what are now temperate areas (C) when great ice sheets existed where there were areas now temperate (D) when great ice sheets had existed in current temperate areas (E) when great ice sheets existed in areas now that are temperate
good question,in在此做介词,what引导名词性从句,in+what从句就起状语作用,这样理解没有问题。
另外从本质上理解,前面我说的直接把what替换为which是为了便于理解in what are now temperate ereas是状语从句引导词。如果真的要把定语从句还原为陈述语气直接替换which还是有点纰漏的,因为没有补出先行词。如果要还原的话必须以what= that which来替换,that作为先行词(曾有题目出迷惑选项把what替换成that which,而that which的表达不简洁也不符合习惯,所以要直接用what),即 in which great ice sheets existed in that which are now temperate areas.进一步还原定语从句就只要把关系代词which省略掉就可以了,即that are now temperate areas. 所以关于这里的what用法,有的字典解释为代词,有的字典解释为连词。根本上来讲,是因为what由that which两个词构成。(有点绕弯了)
版主,再有一个问题。。。 就是,如果把in what替换成in which,那后面这个地点状语从句应该是如何用陈述语气表达呢?我老是组织不过来。。。因为如果这是一个起状语作用的从句,那something in what are now temperate areas也应该可以像something in which great ice sheets existed 一样,可以还原成陈述语气表 达,即,great ice sheets existed in something。但我不知道,something in what are now temperate areas该做如何表达呢?