Understanding more complex examples of descendant selectors

Question

I somewhat understand descendant selectors, but the more complex examples are giving me trouble. For example:

#content .alternative p

Should this rule apply to p elements that are descendants of elements E, where E are :

• descendants of element #content and
• are also members of class .alternative

Or should rule apply to p elements that are:

• descendants of element #content
• and are also members of class .alternative?

How about the following rule?

#content .alternative .alternative1 p

Answer 1

About the first question: applies to p elements that are: descendants of element #content and also descendants of elements with class .alternative

The second one is the same, just with an extra level of depth.

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