OG 16 Question.
A proposal has been made to trim the horns from rhinoceroses to discourage poachers; the question is whether tourists will continue to visit game parks and see rhinoceroses after their horns are trimmed.
While going through the explanation i couldn't understand the following point.Kindly explain the same.
Grammatically the pronoun "their" seems to refer to "tourists" since when a clause starts with a pronoun, the pronoun generally refers to the subject of the preceding clause.
OG sc question query
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- ceilidh.erickson
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Here is the text of the entire question:
In English, it is most often the case that a pronoun will most likely perform the same function as the noun (antecedent) that it replaced. For example: "Aliya bumped into Patricia, so she apologized." Because "Aliya" was the subject of the first clause, it is natural to assume that the "she," which is also a subject, should refer to Aliya. There is ambiguity, but "Aliya" has more claim to the pronoun "she" than "Patricia."
So in the above sentence, "tourists" are a subject, and "rhinoceroses" an object. Thus, the pronoun "their" in conjunction with the subject "horns" seems to point to "tourists." This is nonsensical.
Don't overthink the pronoun-at-beginning-of-clause thing, though. If you think that there's pronoun ambiguity, CHECK THE ANSWER CHOICES!
- if some have the pronoun, and some revert back to a noun, the GMAT is testing pronoun ambiguity
- if they all have the same pronoun, the GMAT isn't testing that
- if answer choices switch pronouns, it's testing pronoun agreement.
Did that help?
Here, the pronoun "their" is ambiguous - it could refer to either "tourists" or "rhinoceroses."A proposal has been made to trim the horns from rhinoceroses to discourage poachers; the question is whether tourists will continue to visit game parks and see rhinoceroses after their horns are trimmed.
A) whether tourists will continue to visit game parks and see rhinoceroses after their horns are
B) whether tourists will continue to visit game parks to see one once their horns are
C) whether tourists will continue to visit game parks to see rhinoceroses once the animals' horns have been
D) if tourists will continue to visit game parks and see rhinoceroses once the animals' horns are
E) if tourists will continue to visit game parks to see one after the animals' horns have been
In English, it is most often the case that a pronoun will most likely perform the same function as the noun (antecedent) that it replaced. For example: "Aliya bumped into Patricia, so she apologized." Because "Aliya" was the subject of the first clause, it is natural to assume that the "she," which is also a subject, should refer to Aliya. There is ambiguity, but "Aliya" has more claim to the pronoun "she" than "Patricia."
So in the above sentence, "tourists" are a subject, and "rhinoceroses" an object. Thus, the pronoun "their" in conjunction with the subject "horns" seems to point to "tourists." This is nonsensical.
Don't overthink the pronoun-at-beginning-of-clause thing, though. If you think that there's pronoun ambiguity, CHECK THE ANSWER CHOICES!
- if some have the pronoun, and some revert back to a noun, the GMAT is testing pronoun ambiguity
- if they all have the same pronoun, the GMAT isn't testing that
- if answer choices switch pronouns, it's testing pronoun agreement.
Did that help?
Ceilidh Erickson
EdM in Mind, Brain, and Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education
EdM in Mind, Brain, and Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education
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Hi
Can you please specify the correct option here as well. Just wondering if there is any rule around if vs whether?
Thanks
Gaurav
Can you please specify the correct option here as well. Just wondering if there is any rule around if vs whether?
Thanks
Gaurav
- GMATGuruNY
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Check my post here:Gaurav Mittal wrote:Hi
Can you please specify the correct option here as well. Just wondering if there is any rule around if vs whether?
Thanks
Gaurav
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Followed here and elsewhere by over 1900 test-takers.
I have worked with students based in the US, Australia, Taiwan, China, Tajikistan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia -- a long list of countries.
My students have been admitted to HBS, CBS, Tuck, Yale, Stern, Fuqua -- a long list of top programs.
As a tutor, I don't simply teach you how I would approach problems.
I unlock the best way for YOU to solve problems.
For more information, please email me (Mitch Hunt) at [email protected].
Student Review #1
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