word order - Do these adjectives refer to ice?
In this sentence from Wuthering Heights
I declined joining their breakfast, and, at the first gleam of dawn, took an opportunity of escaping into the free air, now clear, and still, and cold as impalpable ice
Do the adjectives "clear", "still" and "cold" refer to "ice" which is used as a comparison to the air? Or is it only the adjective "cold" that refers to ice because it is preceded by a comma which separates it from the adjectives? What if the sentence went like this
I declined joining their breakfast, and, at the first gleam of dawn, took an opportunity of escaping into the free air, now fragrant, and light, and cold as impalpable ice
Would you say that it is clear that "cold" only refers to the phrase "as impalpable ice" or is it possible that a reader would think all those adjectives are like impalpable ice?
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