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Difficulty: Very hardParallel Structure

In her analysis of the agricultural transition in the Neolithic Near East, archaeologist Sarah Stein posits that the shift to sedentary farming was not a sudden revolution. Instead, she argues that this prolonged transition was driven not only by communities adapting to localized climatic fluctuations but also by _______

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

  1. A
    the development of complex regional trade networks by societies.
  2. B
    developing complex regional trade networks among societies.
  3. societies developing complex regional trade networks.Answer
  4. D
    to develop complex regional trade networks within societies.

Answer

societies developing complex regional trade networks.
The correct answer maintains parallel structure by matching the grammatical form of the first element in the 'not only... but also...' construction. The first element, 'communities adapting to localized climatic fluctuations,' consists of a plural noun followed by a present participle phrase. The correct choice, 'societies developing complex regional trade networks,' follows this exact pattern (plural noun + present participle phrase), providing grammatical symmetry.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the parallel trigger and the structure of the first element in the comparison.
The sentence uses the correlative conjunction 'not only... but also...'. The first parallel element following the preposition 'by' is 'communities adapting to localized climatic fluctuations', which consists of a plural noun ('communities') modified by an -ing participle phrase ('adapting...').
Parallel structure requires that elements linked by correlative conjunctions share the same grammatical form.
2
Determine the grammatical structure required for the second element following the preposition 'by'.
The second element must also consist of a plural noun followed by an -ing participle phrase.
This maintains the precise grammatical symmetry established by the first element.
3
Evaluate the answer choices to find the one that matches this grammatical pattern.
The option 'societies developing complex regional trade networks' consists of a plural noun ('societies') modified by the -ing participle phrase ('developing...'), making it the only parallel choice.
Other choices use different grammatical forms such as noun phrases, bare gerunds, or infinitive phrases, which break the parallel pattern.

Key Concept

Parallel Structure
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Topics

Parallel Structure

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