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Difficulty: HardSubject-Modifier Agreement

Although she did not live to see the final decipherment of the ancient Aegean script known as Linear B, classicist Alice Kober played a vital role in its decoding. Having painstakingly recorded and analyzed grammatical patterns on thousands of index cards, _______

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

  1. A
    Kober's grammatical grid was established, which eventually enabled Michael Ventris to decipher the language.
  2. B
    Michael Ventris was eventually enabled to decipher the language using a grammatical grid established by Kober.
  3. Kober established the grammatical grid that eventually enabled Michael Ventris to decipher the language.Answer
  4. D
    the final decipherment of the language by Michael Ventris was built upon a grammatical grid that she established.

Answer

Kober established the grammatical grid that eventually enabled Michael Ventris to decipher the language.
The correct option correctly places 'Kober' as the subject of the main clause immediately following the introductory modifying phrase. Since she is the person who recorded and analyzed the grammatical patterns, this structure conforms to Standard English rules of subject-modifier agreement.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the introductory modifying phrase and determine its logical subject.
The introductory phrase is 'Having painstakingly recorded and analyzed grammatical patterns on thousands of index cards.' The logical subject who performed this action is classicist Alice Kober.
An introductory modifier must immediately precede the noun it logically describes to avoid a dangling or misplaced modifier.
2
Evaluate the options to find the one where the subject immediately following the comma is the logical subject ('Kober').
Only the option beginning with 'Kober' correctly aligns the subject with the modifier. The options beginning with 'Kober's grammatical grid,' 'Michael Ventris,' or 'the final decipherment' create dangling or misplaced modifiers because these nouns cannot logically record and analyze cards.
Ensuring standard English modifier agreement rules requires the subject of the main clause to be the agent of the action described in the modifying phrase.

Key Concept

Subject-Modifier Agreement
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Topics

Subject-Modifier Agreement

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