Sentence Correction

uwhusky wrote:Despite the fact that parents in Johannson's district may agree that the instruction of moral values should take place in the elementary school classroom

"...that parents in Johannson's district..." is a relative clause modifying fact as an adjective, and everything comes after "...may agree that..." is another relative clause used as predicate noun clause after the verb "may agree".

So what you see is a relative clause with another relative clause embedded in it, and the main clause could be deduced down to:

Despite the fact, it is difficult for them to arrive at consensus concerning what those values are and how they should be taught.

Hi uwhusky - Good that you have brought this point up. However i fear that you are reading too much into the sentence !

Here the main clause - ' it is difficult for them to arrive at consensus concerning what those values are and how they should be taught' - is complete - in other words it has a proper subject and verb. The other part of the sentence starting with 'despite' is not a clause at all. I guess 'despite' is a preposition. So, in strictest sense, we may not be able to apply 'sentence fragment' concept there.

Umm...interesting.

So I guess the question is "despite..." is it simply an adverb or absolute phrase that does not need to be a clause?

uwhusky wrote:Umm...interesting.

So I guess the question is "despite..." is it simply an adverb or absolute phrase that does not need to be a clause?

Hi uwhusky,

This is how i would like to approach -

Option D & E starts with 'Even though' and 'Although' respectively. They - Although & Even though- are subordinate connectors. The reason why we use 'subordinators' is that the thought expressed after 'Even though / Although' cannot be the main thought. So it is subordinated to a main clause. When you say 'main verb', you normally refer to the verb in the 'main clause'.

But Option A and B are different in that I don't see any subordinators; also, it is very clear that it cannot be the main clause. So I will not be too much worried about the verb in there.

Hope it helps

Thank you for your insight, but I think it's important to understand why B is the only one without main verb for further understanding of the construction. It's a good learning opportunity beyond just answering this question.

samarpan_bschool wrote:

uwhusky wrote:Despite the fact that parents in Johannson's district may agree that the instruction of moral values should take place in the elementary school classroom

"...that parents in Johannson's district..." is a relative clause modifying fact as an adjective, and everything comes after "...may agree that..." is another relative clause used as predicate noun clause after the verb "may agree".

So what you see is a relative clause with another relative clause embedded in it, and the main clause could be deduced down to:

Despite the fact, it is difficult for them to arrive at consensus concerning what those values are and how they should be taught.

Hi uwhusky - Good that you have brought this point up. However i fear that you are reading too much into the sentence !

Here the main clause - ' it is difficult for them to arrive at consensus concerning what those values are and how they should be taught' - is complete - in other words it has a proper subject and verb. The other part of the sentence starting with 'despite' is not a clause at all. I guess 'despite' is a preposition. So, in strictest sense, we may not be able to apply 'sentence fragment' concept there.

I totally agree with you that despite is a preposition followed by a noun (fact). So there is no sentence fragment. Furthermore the official answer:

"The options for this sentence present you with a list of different idioms from which to choose. Start with the end: is agree that, agree for, or agree correct? The first is fine, the second is unidiomatic because for doesn't go with agree, and the third is out because that is necessary in order for the sentence to make sense. That leaves (A), (B), and (C). (A) isn't particularly eloquent, but it's not grammatically flawed. (B) is out because Despite the fact doesn't fit with may agree (it can be a fact that they agree, but if we don't know whether they agree, then there's no fact to discuss). (C) is wordy, passive (more on this later), and it doesn't agree with the rest of the sentence; if you're skeptical, try reading it in. Only (A) survives."

doesn't mention that B has a sentence fragment.

Thanks BastiG - On a totally unrelated note can you take a look at this link and let me know your thoughts -
https://www.beatthegmat.com/modern-stati ... 65307.html

Evaluating sentence structure is part of my routine for SC questions. B was the only one without main verb, thus I was under the impression that it was a fragment. I really appreciate samarpan for telling me this information.

Bastig, could you please tell me if you do not agree with my comment, it would be very helpful for me to understand the gap within my approach.

Can anyone explain, how much parents ..is justified . .
However much parents may agree that, ...

kisna_428 wrote:Can anyone explain, how much parents ..is justified . .
However much parents may agree that, ...

This question has more of the Meaning issue.

I will give you an example with similar structure:

- However much Joe studied for GMAT, he scored poorly.

Now, if we try to re-write the sentence as:

- Despite Joe studied for GMAT, he scored poorly.

Do you see the meaning gap?

kisna_428 wrote:Can anyone explain, how much parents ..is justified . .
However much parents may agree that, ...

However much parents in Johannson's district may agree, it is difficult for them to arrive at consensus.
Like although, even though, and whereas, however much serves to introduce a contrasting clause that provides CONTEXT for the main clause.
The key difference is that however much implies TO WHAT EXTENT a contrasting clause is true.
The OA here conveys the following meaning:
Even though parents in Johannson's district may agree to a large extent, it is difficult for them to arrive at consensus.

The SC above is modeled after an official SC that I discuss here:

https://www.beatthegmat.com/og-verbal-re ... 07106.html