Breakdown of Efter at han havde skrevet brevet, vedhæftede han filen.
han
he
skrive
to write
brevet
the letter
have
to have
Questions & Answers about Efter at han havde skrevet brevet, vedhæftede han filen.
Since this lesson is about pronominal adverbs, how could I rewrite this using a word like derefter?
You could split it into two main sentences! Instead of using the conjunction efter at (after), you could say: Han havde skrevet brevet. Derefter vedhæftede han filen. Here, derefter means "after that" (literally "there-after") and links the two actions. Remember that because derefter takes the first position in the second sentence, it triggers the V2 rule and forces inverted word order (vedhæftede han).
Why is it efter at here and not just efter?
Efter by itself is a preposition, which means it must be followed by a noun or pronoun (like efter frokost - after lunch). Because we are following it with a whole new clause that contains a subject and a verb (han havde skrevet...), we have to use the conjunction efter at.
Why is the word order vedhæftede han (attached he) instead of han vedhæftede?
This is the V2 (verb-second) rule in action. The entire first part of the sentence (Efter at han havde skrevet brevet) acts as one big time phrase occupying the first position of the main sentence. To keep the main verb in the second position, the verb vedhæftede must come right after the comma, pushing the subject han further back.
Why do we use havde skrevet (had written) in the first part, but vedhæftede (attached) in the second?