Although quite powerful in his time, the 16th century Russian czar Ivan the Terrible seems to us as a remote and barely visible historical figure.
A) to us as a remote and barely visible historical figure
B) to us to be as a remote and barely visible figure of history
C) to us a remote and barely visible figure of history
D) to us a remote and barely visible historical figure
E) to us to be a remote and barely visible historical figure
Although quite powerful in his time, Ivan the terrible seems to us.. (what?)
He seems to us a remote and barely visible historical figure.
He seems very young.
We can use "seem" as a linking verb ( like the sentence in question )
It is used when we want to say that someone or something gives the impression of having a particular quality
The usage of seems to us as is wrong. Eliminate A and B.
C) to us a remote and barely visible figure of history- Eliminate C
We can also use “seem” with an infinitive
I seem to be the only person here.
Can to+be be removed in this sentence?
It would read- I seem the only person here. This is clearly wrong.
In places where to+be can be removed without altering the meaning of the sentence, avoid using the infinitive form.
In Option E- to+be is unnecessary and redundant. Option D corrects that error.