Sentence Correction

Byron possessed powers of observation that would have made him a great anthropologist and that makes his letters as a group the rival of the best novels of the time.
(A) makes his letters as a group the rival of
(B) makes his letters as a group one to rival
(C) makes his letters a group rivaling
(D) make his letters as a group the rival of
(E) make his letters a group which is the rival of

OA is D.But I think it should be A.Because 'Byron possessed powers of observation' is a quality that 'makes' his letters ......

COMMENTS !!!

powers that make -
powers thas the quality that make his letters.....
yes byron wrote letters but his powers make his letters ....some kind special

Would have indicates plural subject
Powers is plural
Bryams powers make is correct ..so eliminate A/B/C


Letters a group which is rival …letter is not a group eliminate E

D is apt ….

I am new to GMAT and just starting...

I think it is not about 'powers'. It is about 'observation' which is closer to 'that'. This eliminates last d&e. Among first only C is a clear choice.

OA is D...

Yes..OA is D

Just a reminder. Saw a comment regarding "observation" as the subject and, therefore, makes i/o make as the verb.

A noun/pronoun/noun phrase/etc. that follow a preposition (of) can't be the subject of the sentence.

Why can't it be (E)...i haven't understood.

Can anybody explain why answer E is wrong besides being wordy.

which source this come from

if d is correct, "make st as st" is correct. I do not understand, the idiom is "make st st" there is no "as"

Byron possessed powers of observation that would have made him a great anthropologist and that makes his letters as a group the rival of the best novels of the time.
(A) makes his letters as a group the rival of
(B) makes his letters as a group one to rival
(C) makes his letters a group rivaling
(D) make his letters as a group the rival of
(E) make his letters a group which is the rival of

James_83 wrote:Can anybody explain why answer E is wrong besides being wordy.

Make his letters "a group" vs. "as a group"
Using "a group" here actually means that Byron's powers manifests in the form of organization - where his power is the power to make his letters come together.
The "as" serves here as a preposition and takes the meaning "in the capacity of," an important word that defines the relationship between "his letters" and "a group."

"a group which"
Which refers to group, not letters or a group of letters because it must replace a noun. Which cannot replace a sentence or idea and is usually preceded by a comma.

"group which is the rival of"
This phrase presents a group as the rival to the best novels of the time.
The idea, of course, is that the "letters as a group" rival "the best novels of the time."

I don't know if this helps at all, but if this is off in any way, please let me know-- I'd rather swallow a little pride now and learn in the forum than on test day.