My Ans : D

A : there is only 1 event happening, so had is incorrect.
B : we need killed and not having killed; having killed would reqire another action.
C : killing... had left - not parallel. We need killing... leaving
E : killing... left smoldering - not parallel.

Don't you think in option "D" the use of comma before and alters the meaning and therefore parallelisum is bet'n w Burnt and left not Killing and left

follow the structure and identify the difference

A sentence such as a,b,c and d&

A sentence such as a,b,c ,and d -

IMO E

more explaination please. thank you

Can you tell me the correct answer please?

OA is D

SmarpanGamt wrote: follow the structure and identify the difference

A sentence such as a,b,c and d&

A sentence such as a,b,c ,and d -

IMO E

more explaination please. thank you

I think both of them have the same meaning. These are stylistic differences. Some prefer the former while others prefer the latter. You shouldn't read too much into it.

As far as parallelism is concerned, parallel structures should ideally emerge from the logic of the sentence and not from grammatical structure alone.

Following parallel structures can be made in the given question -

1) Option D
Bush fires swept..coast of Australia -
a) killing at least 69 people
and
b) leaving thousands of homes and acres of farmland smoldering.

2) Option E
Bush fires -
a) swept ... coast of Australia, killing at least 69 people
and
b) left smoldering thousands of homes and acres of farmland.

Now, we need to decide which of the two are most logically parallel. (and these need to be independent 'cause they are joined by and)

What I gathered from the sentence was that the effect of bush fires sweeping the coast of Australia was twofold,
1) it killed at least 69 people
2) it left thousands of homes and acres of farmland smoldering.

This led me to choose option D.

In option E, swept... and left... to not look independent, rather they seem to be cause and effect, thus considering them parallel seemed wrong to me.

Moreover,
left smoldering thousands of homes and acres of farmland in option E is an awkward construction.

left thousands of homes and acres of farmland smoldering would have been far better.

Hi SmarpanGamt

Actually, I'm not really sure but that was something I did not have to look for in this question because all 5 options have ',and.....' so we can do without worrying about that.