GDW26-20

answer09

In 1981 children in the United States spent an average
of slightly less than two and a half hours a week doing
household chores; by 1997 they had spent nearly six
hours a week.
A.
chores; by 1997 they had spent nearly six hours
a week
B.
chores; by 1997 that figure had grown to nearly
six hours a week
C.
chores, whereas nearly six hours a week were
spent in 1997
D.
chores, compared with a figure of nearly six hours
a week in 1997
E.
chores, that figure growing to nearly six hours a
week in 1997
答案是b但是b的这个时态我真是搞不懂，请高人指点

qurssrou

应该是吧 前后两句好像确实没什么逻辑联系

sererse

也就是"迄今为止"是用现在完成时
而到1997年为止,是过去的过去,就用过去完成时??
而之前那个1981是幌子???

qurssrou

ManhattanGMAT Staff 对于1997在1981年后却用过去完成的解释：
in this case, 1981 is actually, irritatingly enough, irrelevant. the only relevant places on the proverbial timeline are (a) when the number of hours started growing (this is the 'earlier event' or FIRST time marker), and (b) 1997 (the SECOND past time marker). because 1997 is in the past, and the 'arrow of relevance' points to / stops at 1997, you use the past perfect.
if we were talking about a modern statistic instead ("as of today, the number has grown to..."), then we'd use the present perfect.