Sentence Correction

Whenever you see a sentence correction question that begins with "although," "while," or similar contrast language, generally the answer will depend on MEANING as much as structure.

Here, the contrast that we want to convey is "this play was condemned at the time BUT now it's one of the most famous plays." This suggests that we want parallelism: Although the play was X, now it's Y.

Although Moliere's satirical play Tartuffe was condemned by his contemporaries, he is now considered the writer of one of the most famous French plays of all time.

A)was condemned by his contemporaries, he is now considered the writer of
Here, we don't have a parallel structure. It doesn't make sense to contrast the response to the play in the past with the WRITER in the present.

B)was condemned by his contemporaries, it is now considered
Correct. This has clarity of meaning and a parallel structure.

C)resulted in condemnation by contemporaries, he is now considered to be the writer of
To say that the play "resulted in condemnation" is unnecessarily passive - it doesn't make clear how the action came about. And again, we don't want to contrast the play in dependent clause with the writer in the independent clause.

D)resulted in condemnation of him by contemporaries, it is now considered to be
"Resulted in" - same issue as above.

E) condemned him by his contemporaries, it is now considered
It's not idiomatically correct to say that "his play condemned him." People condemn plays; plays don't condemn people.

The correct answer is B.


** Please add a citation so we know the source of this question. Questions should always be posted with sources and OA's. Thanks!