"man merkte es ihm an" -- one remarked to him -- or one noted about him?

[edmont]

Does "man merkte es ihm an" mean people commented to Karl -- or does it mean they noticed something about Karl?  Could it mean either?
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In seinem Schlußwort ging Karl nicht auf die gestellten Fragen ein, im Gegenteil, man merkte es ihm an, daß er mit diesen Fragen ein schweres Problem lösen mußte. Er wies darauf hin, er hätte ja eine Broschüre geschrieben und dort wäre alles enthalten.
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Thank you for any assistance.

[Adrox98]

"man merkte es ihm an" means that they noticed something about him

[tiorthan]

Basically, what the sentence actually, factually, expresses is that the author of the text got the impression that the questions are a difficult problem for Karl and that other people have noticed that as well.

You know the "they" that conspiracy theorists use that doesn't really refer to anyone in particular? That's what "man" is in this sentence. 

[edmont]

Adrox98 and tiorthan, thank you both!  tiorthan, nice unfolding of what was being said.