She rang up her daughter and asked for her help in what she described as a little spot of bother.
这句话里,in what she described as a little spot of bother 是不是介宾短语作后置定语,修饰前面的宾语 help? 还是作方面状语修饰前面的动词词组 asked for? 有点糊涂了,请教!
she (主语) rang up (动词短语) her daughter (宾语) and asked for (动词短语) her help (宾语) in what she described as a little spot of bother (什么成分)?
其中 in what (代宾) she (主) described (谓) as a little spot of bother (宾补)。
(asked for) her help in what she described as a little spot of bother
这里介词in后的what从句可以笼统地解释为宾语从句,根据语意,这个what从句的连接词没有疑问含义,进而可以把what从句解释为名词性定语从句,从意义上而非结构上的解释,可以把what理解为融合型关系代词(先行词和关系代词融合一体),可转换为the thing which she described as a little spot of bother,所以,这个what从句在本质上是一个带有限制性定语从句的名词词组,再与其前in搭配,可以构成介词词组。则名词词组的基本构成为:限定词her+中心名词help+后置修饰语in what she described as a little spot of bother。
单纯从结构上看,in what…部分可以解释为名词help的后置修饰语或者你所说的后置定语。如果把女儿的帮助和警察的帮助作为区分,限定性后置修饰语的解释行得通。如果针对于这个特定事件,把介词词组in what…解释为谓语动词asked for的方面状语也没有问题。可能二者没有太大的取舍。
个人理解,仅供参考。