It is difficult to the point of impossibility for the average reader under the age of forty to imagine a time when high-quality arts criticism could be found in most big-city newspapers.
重点短语:to the point of (达到……的程度)
解析:
本句难点在于划清句子结构,看到本句话,很容易想到是“it is+adj.+to do”的句式结构,但是要分清to do不定式的正确位置。本句的主句是“It is difficult to imagine a time”,“it”是形式主语,真正的主语是“to imagine a time”。“to the point of impossibility for the average reader under the age of forty”是状语。“when ”是从属连词,引导定语从句“high-quality arts criticism could be found in most big-city newspapers”,定语从句整体修饰“time”。
翻译:
对于年龄低于40岁的普通读者来讲,让他们想象一下当年可以在许多大城市报纸上读到精品的文艺评论简直几乎是不可能的。