[Grammar] has in the past inhibited

[Flogger]

Hello,

I am struggling to understand the function of the phrase "in the past" in the below sentence. It seems that it acts as an adverbial preposition phrase (I'm not sure about the exact term), but the question is why it has been used with the present perfect tense? If the author wanted to stress on the past, why they did not use the past perfect tense like "had in the past inhibited"?

Nevertheless, the general unfamiliarity of 20th-century audiences with Baroque poetry and dramaturgy, which often appear stilted and artificial, has in the past inhibited their appreciation among nonspecialists.

Thank you in advance

 

[jutfrank]

I don't really understand where your question comes from. The phrase in the past means exactly that: in the past. It modifies inhibited.

The phrase is very commonly found with, and ideally suited to use in present perfect sentences. There's no reason whatsoever to think that past perfect is appropriate from the context we have here: in the past appears to mean 'in the past relative to the moment of reading'. If it doesn't, please provide further context to show that.

You must remember to provide information about the source of any sentences you post. Thank you.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Flogger, it might help you if you notice that you can remove the words "in the past" without changing the meaning of the sentence.

(There might be a context that makes those words more relevant, but even then, the literal meaning would be the same without them.)