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Usage of "Who"-Expert Needed

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by mankey » Fri Oct 28, 2011 5:41 am
Dear All

Please help on this:

"Stella Adler was one of the most influential artists in the American theater, who trained several . ."

In the above sentence, whom does "who" refer to?

Source: OG Problem.

Thanks
Mankey
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Source: — Sentence Correction |

by essaysnark » Fri Oct 28, 2011 6:08 am
Hi mankey--

The comma makes us think that "who" refers only to Stella.

If there were no comma, then "who" could refer to "influential artists" -- but this is a confusing sentence either way.

This is not an "official" answer but it's how EssaySnark sees it!!
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by GMATGuruNY » Fri Oct 28, 2011 6:59 am
mankey wrote:Dear All

Please help on this:

"Stella Adler was one of the most influential artists in the American theater, who trained several . ."

In the above sentence, whom does "who" refer to?

Source: OG Problem.

Thanks
Mankey
The excerpt above is from an INCORRECT answer choice.
One reason to eliminate the answer choice is that the referent of who is unclear: to convey the intended meaning, who must refer to Stella Adler, but a reader might construe that who refers to artists, which is closer.

When you post an incorrect answer choice, please make the situation clear.
Otherwise, BTGers might incorrectly infer that the sentence is correct as written.
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by mankey » Fri Oct 28, 2011 7:24 am
Thanks GMATGuruNY for the quick response. Will remember your advice.

Regards
Mankey
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