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Stella Adler was one.....

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by sunnyjohn » Tue Aug 09, 2011 6:46 pm
A is wrong because of wrong usage of "who".
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by e-GMAT » Thu Aug 11, 2011 10:45 am
As sunnyjohn pointed out, one of the reasons why choice A is incorrect is the ambiguous use of "who".

Per the meaning of the sentence, Stella Adler actually trained several generations of actors. Now the placement of "who modifier" in choice A creates ambiguity in this meaning since it is not clear what this modifier modifies.

Does it modify "most influential artists in the American theater", implying that many influential artists in the American theater trained several generations of actors and Stella Adler was simply one of them.
OR
Does it modify "one of the most influential artists in the American theater" and hence modifies Stella Adler (notice the presence of linking verb = was, which creates sort of an equation here), implying the intended meaning that Stella trained several generations of actors.

Notice how choice C corrects this error by converting this modifier to a verb-ing modifier. This modifier now extends the idea presented in the preceding clause.
Last edited by e-GMAT on Fri Aug 12, 2011 7:38 am, edited 1 time in total.
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by iongmat » Thu Aug 11, 2011 11:11 pm
e-GMAT wrote: Secondly, choice A is incorrect because of the use of "including..." in the phrase "generation of actors including"

Actors include Marlon and Robert - non sensical. This expression is used to communicate the meaning - X include X1, X2...- where X1 and X2 are parts of X. In this sentence, Marlon and Robert are actors. They are not parts of actors.
Hi e-GMAT, in light of your above comment, could you please suggest how the following is correct:

Bluegrass musician Bill Monroe, whose repertory, views on musical collaboration, and vocal style influenced generations of bluegrass artists, also inspired many musicians, including Elvis Presley and Jerry Garcia, whose music differed significantly from his own.
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by aspirant2011 » Fri Aug 12, 2011 3:53 am
e-GMAT wrote:As sunnyjohn pointed out, one of the reasons why choice A is incorrect is the ambiguous use of "who".

Per the meaning of the sentence, Stella Adler actually trained several generations of actors. Now the placement of "who modifier" in choice A creates ambiguity in this meaning since it is not clear what this modifier modifies.

Does it modify "most influential artists in the American theater", implying that many influential artists in the American theater trained several generations of actors and Stella Adler was simply one of them.
OR
Does it modify "one of the most influential artists in the American theater" and hence modifies Stella Adler (notice the presence of linking verb = was, which creates sort of an equation here), implying the intended meaning that Stella trained several generations of actors.

Notice how choice C corrects this error by converting this modifier to a verb-ing modifier. This modifier now extends the idea presented in the preceding clause.

Secondly, choice A is incorrect because of the use of "including..." in the phrase "generation of actors including"

In this phrase - including could refer to generations or to actors. Context drives this. But as such neither of the two references make sense.

Generations include Marlon and Robert - non sensical.
Actors include Marlon and Robert - non sensical. This expression is used to communicate the meaning - X include X1, X2...- where X1 and X2 are parts of X. In this sentence, Marlon and Robert are actors. They are not parts of actors.
Hi e-GMAT,

what exactly is wrong with option D.........
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by e-GMAT » Fri Aug 12, 2011 7:21 am
Here is choice D (simplified version):
As an actress, one of the most influential artists in the American theater was Stella Adler.

And here is another sentence similar to the one above:
As the king of the jungle, one of the most ferocious animals is the lion.

In both the sentences, the introductory modifier (as a...) modifies "one of the..." instead of the real subject - Stella Adler (or lion).

The correct sentences obviously are:
As an actress, Stella Adler was one of the most influential artists in the American theater.
As the king of the jungle, lion is one of the most ferocious animals.

Let me know if you want me to explain this further.

Payal
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by aspirant2011 » Fri Aug 12, 2011 7:34 am
e-GMAT wrote:Here is choice D (simplified version):
As an actress, one of the most influential artists in the American theater was Stella Adler.

And here is another sentence similar to the one above:
As the king of the jungle, one of the most ferocious animals is the lion.

In both the sentences, the introductory modifier (as a...) modifies "one of the..." instead of the real subject - Stella Adler (or lion).

The correct sentences obviously are:
As an actress, Stella Adler was one of the most influential artists in the American theater.
As the king of the jungle, lion is one of the most ferocious animals.

Let me know if you want me to explain this further.

Payal
got it, thanks a lot :)
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by e-GMAT » Fri Aug 12, 2011 7:41 am
iongmat wrote:
e-GMAT wrote: Secondly, choice A is incorrect because of the use of "including..." in the phrase "generation of actors including"

Actors include Marlon and Robert - non sensical. This expression is used to communicate the meaning - X include X1, X2...- where X1 and X2 are parts of X. In this sentence, Marlon and Robert are actors. They are not parts of actors.
Hi e-GMAT, in light of your above comment, could you please suggest how the following is correct:

Bluegrass musician Bill Monroe, whose repertory, views on musical collaboration, and vocal style influenced generations of bluegrass artists, also inspired many musicians, including Elvis Presley and Jerry Garcia, whose music differed significantly from his own.
Thanks iongmat for bringing this up. My explanation above is applicable if the construction was "who include" or "that include". But this sentence uses the construction "including...", which is actually used to present examples. I have edited my response and have deleted this comment. Thanks once again.
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by krishp84 » Sat Aug 13, 2011 7:42 am
e-GMAT wrote:Notice how choice C corrects this error by converting this modifier to a verb-ing modifier. This modifier now extends the idea presented in the preceding clause.
Questions to e-GMAT - When does ING form modify the subject of the touching clause and when does it not modify ?
Any specific examples please....

Does ING form act as a modifier in ways other than modify the subject of the touching clause?
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by bubbliiiiiiii » Tue Aug 16, 2011 12:44 am
I am answering the queries as I have recently attended a session on ing forms from E-GMAT. It was fabulous.
When does ING form modify the subject of the touching clause and when does it not modify ?
The -ing form modifies the previous clause (subject-verb pair) when preceeded by a COMMA.

Clause+COMMA+-ing.
Does ING form act as a modifier in ways other than modify the subject of the touching clause?
When -ing is not preceeded by a comma it modifies the noun/phrase it touches.

NOUN/PHRASE + -ing form.

@E-GMAT, please correct if I misinterpreted the concepts.
Regards,

Pranay
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by aspirant2011 » Tue Aug 16, 2011 6:25 am
bubbliiiiiiii wrote:I am answering the queries as I have recently attended a session on ing forms from E-GMAT. It was fabulous.
When does ING form modify the subject of the touching clause and when does it not modify ?
The -ing form modifies the previous clause (subject-verb pair) when preceeded by a COMMA.

Clause+COMMA+-ing.
Does ING form act as a modifier in ways other than modify the subject of the touching clause?
When -ing is not preceeded by a comma it modifies the noun/phrase it touches.

NOUN/PHRASE + -ing form.

@E-GMAT, please correct if I misinterpreted the concepts.
in addition to what bublii said, there is one exception to the above rule i.e with the case of including, whether including is preceded by a comma or not, it always modifies the part to which it touches............
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by bubbliiiiiiii » Tue Aug 16, 2011 6:37 am
Thanks aspirant for the add on. :)
Regards,

Pranay
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by e-GMAT » Tue Aug 16, 2011 11:41 am
bubbliiiiiiii wrote:I am answering the queries as I have recently attended a session on ing forms from E-GMAT. It was fabulous.

@E-GMAT, please correct if I misinterpreted the concepts.
Yes Pranay, your interpretation is absolutely on the mark. :)
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by e-GMAT » Tue Aug 16, 2011 11:44 am
aspirant2011 wrote: in addition to what bublii said, there is one exception to the above rule i.e with the case of including, whether including is preceded by a comma or not, it always modifies the part to which it touches............
Yes, that is also correct. "including" is an exception to typical comma + verb-ing structures. It always modifies a noun. Now it may modify the closest noun or it may modify slightly far away noun. Review the post below for more details on this concept.
https://www.beatthegmat.com/include-vs-i ... tml#396918
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