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Difficulty: HardSubject-Modifier Agreement

In 539 BCE, the Persian king Cyrus the Great conquered Babylon, establishing one of the largest empires in ancient history. A baked-clay artifact discovered in the ruins of Babylon in 1879, _______

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

  1. A
    the king’s conquests and policies of religious tolerance are detailed in a cuneiform declaration on the Cyrus Cylinder.
  2. B
    the cuneiform declaration on the Cyrus Cylinder details the king’s conquests and outlines his policies of religious tolerance.
  3. the Cyrus Cylinder features a cuneiform declaration that details the king’s conquests and outlines his policies of religious tolerance.Answer
  4. D
    scholars have translated the cuneiform declaration on the Cyrus Cylinder, which details the king’s conquests and policies of religious tolerance.

Answer

the Cyrus Cylinder features a cuneiform declaration that details the king’s conquests and outlines his policies of religious tolerance.
The introductory phrase 'A baked-clay artifact discovered in the ruins of Babylon in 1879' describes the Cyrus Cylinder. Standard English conventions require that an introductory modifying phrase be followed immediately by the noun it logically modifies. Therefore, the subject of the main clause must be 'the Cyrus Cylinder'. The option stating that 'the Cyrus Cylinder features a cuneiform declaration' correctly places the logical subject immediately after the modifier.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the introductory modifying phrase and its logical subject.
The introductory phrase is 'A baked-clay artifact discovered in the ruins of Babylon in 1879'. This modifier describes a physical object, which is the Cyrus Cylinder.
Determining the logical subject of the modifier tells us which noun must immediately follow the comma.
2
Evaluate the grammatical subjects at the beginning of each option.
Only the option starting with 'the Cyrus Cylinder' correctly aligns the physical artifact modifier with the physical artifact itself. Options starting with 'the king's conquests', 'the cuneiform declaration', or 'scholars' create illogical modifier relationships.
Standard English conventions require that a modifying phrase be placed immediately adjacent to the noun it modifies to prevent dangling or misplaced modifiers.

Key Concept

Subject-Modifier Agreement
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Topics

Subject-Modifier Agreement

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