this が複数形にかかる理由
慶大の問題です。
People differ in the color of skin, eyes, hair, in stature, bodily proportions, and in many traits.Some of us have blue eyes, some have prominent and others flat noses, some are tall and others short.We do not suppose that every person with blue eyes belongs to a different race from everybody with brown eyes. It happens, however, that blue eyes are very common in most parts of the United States but rather rare in most parts of Mexico. It is this and similar differences which make it possible to say that the inhabitants of the United States are in general racially distinct from the inhabitants of Mexico.
この文章の
It is this and similar differences which make it possible to say that the inhabitants of the United States are in general racially distinct from the inhabitants of Mexico.
の文ですが、
this and similar differences
の箇所ですが、
私はthisを代名詞と判断したのですが、
参考書には
「thisは単数形の、theseは複数形の名詞にかかるのが約束ですから、this differences とは言えませんが、ここはsimilarによって、「これと同種の〈相違〉」が追加されていますから複数形でよいのです。」
とあります。
そうなると
this (differences)
and
similar differences
という解釈をするのでしょうか。
しかし、
this similar differences
であれば
similar(同種の)
がthisとdifferencesの間にあるから、分かるのですが、
this differences
だけでは（同種の）という意味は追加されていないのではないでしょうか。
