复杂的主语从句的拆分和理解 例45

例45　However, whether such a sense of fairness evolved independently in capuchins and humans, or whether it stems from the common ancestor that the species had 35 million years ago, is, as yet, an unanswered question.

【结构分析】这句话两个主语从句并列，分别是第一个主语从句whether such a sense of fairness evolved independently in capuchins and humans，第二个主语从句whether it stems from the common ancestor that the species had 35 million years ago，其中第二个主语从句其中有定语从句that the species had 35 million years ago，后面是主干is an unanswered question。

【亮点回放】此句话的亮点在于两个超级主语从句whether的并列，第二个whether主语从句还有定语从句，主语从句套上定语从句很棒。

【核心词汇】

a sense of fairness　公平意识

evolved in　起源于

independently　各自地

stems from　起源于

common ancestor　共同祖先

species　物种

unanswered question　悬而未决的问题

【参考译文】然而，这种公平意识是否由猴子和人的祖先各自演化而来，或者这种意识是否由这些物种在三千五百万年前共同拥有的祖先遗传而来，是个悬而未决的问题。