saurabhmahajan wrote:1.A collection of 38 poems by Phillis Wheatley, a slave, was published in the 1770's, the first book by a Black woman and it was only the second published by an American woman.

(A) it was only the second published by an American woman
(B) it was only the second that an American woman published
(C) the second one only published by an American woman
(D) the second one only that an American woman published
(E) only the second published by an American woman

This is a standard parallelism question. "[T]he first book by a Black woman" must be parallel to the phrase that follows it. That allows us to eliminate A and B, since those both use the pronoun "it," which makes the structure not parallel. In choice C, "only" in incorrectly placed before "published," modifying that verb, when it should be modifying the book. In D, the placement of "only" is again incorrect (it should go before "the second," not after it) and "one" is unnecessary. E is the correct answer, because it uses "only the second one published by an American woman," which is parallel to "the first book by a Black woman."

Agree with Andrea, only E makes sense here.

grockit_andrea wrote:

saurabhmahajan wrote:1.A collection of 38 poems by Phillis Wheatley, a slave, was published in the 1770's, the first book by a Black woman and it was only the second published by an American woman.

(A) it was only the second published by an American woman
(B) it was only the second that an American woman published
(C) the second one only published by an American woman
(D) the second one only that an American woman published
(E) only the second published by an American woman

This is a standard parallelism question. "[T]he first book by a Black woman" must be parallel to the phrase that follows it. That allows us to eliminate A and B, since those both use the pronoun "it," which makes the structure not parallel. In choice C, "only" in incorrectly placed before "published," modifying that verb, when it should be modifying the book. In D, the placement of "only" is again incorrect (it should go before "the second," not after it) and "one" is unnecessary. E is the correct answer, because it uses "only the second one published by an American woman," which is parallel to "the first book by a Black woman."