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Everyone knows BEING is considered redundant but can this be

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pardeepattri
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Everyone knows BEING is considered redundant but can this be [#permalink] New post   22 May 2010, 09:05
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Everyone knows BEING is considered redundant but can this be correct in SC?

Please help, when BEING will be correct in SC section? Give examples.

Thank you.
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SaraiGMAT
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Re: Can BEING be correct on SC section? [#permalink] New post   30 May 2010, 00:51
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Let's take a closer look at what "being" really means; then you'll always be able to tell when 'being' has been used correctly:

Consider the following:

Incorrect: Joe is being a student. (Joe just is a student.)

Correct: Joe is being annoying.

Why does it 'sound wrong' to say that he is being a student, but it 'sounds right' to say that he is being annoying?

What 'being' indicates is a process-- that is, something you can control, can turn on and off. You use 'being' when someone/something is in a process.

Ex. (correct usage): The apartment being renovated will sell quickly in the current market. (=The apartment that is in the process of being renovated...)

If the verb or description is just a state of being (not a process of being), as in, "I am happy," then 'being' doesn't make sense. You cannot say, "I am being happy" because an emotional state is not process that can be turned on and off.

This is why most of the time noun+being is incorrect on the SC.

One last note: You can use 'being' as a subject or object.

Ex. I like being a student.
Ex. Being a student can be fun.

For a list of 'being' phrases that are ALWAYS incorrect on the GMAT, checkout the Modifiers lesson at gmaxonline!

If this helped, kindly give Kudos! :wink:
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parker
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Re: Can BEING be correct on SC section? [#permalink] New post   30 May 2010, 00:24
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Yes--it's definitely rare that "being" occurs in a correct answer, but it can happen. More often than not, using "being" is incorrect because the phrasing is clunky or the intended meaning of the sentence is slightly off. However, when you actually intend to refer to a specific STATE OF BEING, using "being" is ok.

ex:
"Being happy is better than being rich."

That said, given the choice between two grammatically correct sentences--one with "being" and one without--it is better to go for the non-"being" choice ("Happiness is better than riches").

I can't reenter the text here for copyright reasons but take a look at the 12th edition of the OG, SC section number #101 for an instance of the word "being" used in a correct answer choice.
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Re: Can BEING be correct on SC section? [#permalink] New post   30 May 2010, 08:06
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Nice distinction, Sarai!

For OP, notice that the incorrect example above ("Joe is being a student") is incorrect not because of the construction, but because of the intended meaning distinction Sarai discussed. For example, during teacher training sometimes individuals role play both teachers and students. I observed the following situation in my actual life:

Trainee #1: I don't get it! Why is #2 so hard?!
Person Passing By: I thought he was a teacher-- why doesn't he know the answer?
Trainee #2: We're role-playing--he is being a student right now.

Even in this situation, there are better ways to express this thought (He is *pretending to be* a student or *role-playing* a student), but it is technically acceptable. It's what about what you intend to express.
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Re: Can BEING be correct on SC section? [#permalink] New post   22 Aug 2010, 23:41
SaraiGMAXonline wrote:
Let's take a closer look at what "being" really means; then you'll always be able to tell when 'being' has been used correctly:

Consider the following:

Incorrect: Joe is being a student. (Joe just is a student.)

Correct: Joe is being annoying.

Why does it 'sound wrong' to say that he is being a student, but it 'sounds right' to say that he is being annoying?

What 'being' indicates is a process-- that is, something you can control, can turn on and off. You use 'being' when someone/something is in a process.

Ex. (correct usage): The apartment being renovated will sell quickly in the current market. (=The apartment that is in the process of being renovated...)

If the verb or description is just a state of being (not a process of being), as in, "I am happy," then 'being' doesn't make sense. You cannot say, "I am being happy" because an emotional state is not process that can be turned on and off.

This is why most of the time noun+being is incorrect on the SC.

One last note: You can use 'being' as a subject or object.

Ex. I like being a student.
Ex. Being a student can be fun.

For a list of 'being' phrases that are ALWAYS incorrect on the GMAT, checkout the Modifiers lesson at gmaxonline!

If this helped, kindly give Kudos! :wink:


Could you please explain how come being is right is correct in the following GMAT PREP question:

A mixture of poems and short fiction, Jean Toomer's Cane has been called one of the three best novels ever written by Black Americans—the others being Richard Wright, author of Native Son, and Ralph Ellison, author of Invisible Man.

E. a Black American—the others being Richard Wright's Native Son and Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man

OA is E. I tried using your concept but couldn't apply it well.
Plz help :)
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Re: Can BEING be correct on SC section? [#permalink] New post   23 Aug 2010, 10:43
CaptainM wrote:
SaraiGMAXonline wrote:
Let's take a closer look at what "being" really means; then you'll always be able to tell when 'being' has been used correctly:

Consider the following:

Incorrect: Joe is being a student. (Joe just is a student.)

Correct: Joe is being annoying.

Why does it 'sound wrong' to say that he is being a student, but it 'sounds right' to say that he is being annoying?

What 'being' indicates is a process-- that is, something you can control, can turn on and off. You use 'being' when someone/something is in a process.

Ex. (correct usage): The apartment being renovated will sell quickly in the current market. (=The apartment that is in the process of being renovated...)

If the verb or description is just a state of being (not a process of being), as in, "I am happy," then 'being' doesn't make sense. You cannot say, "I am being happy" because an emotional state is not process that can be turned on and off.

This is why most of the time noun+being is incorrect on the SC.

One last note: You can use 'being' as a subject or object.

Ex. I like being a student.
Ex. Being a student can be fun.

For a list of 'being' phrases that are ALWAYS incorrect on the GMAT, checkout the Modifiers lesson at gmaxonline!

If this helped, kindly give Kudos! :wink:


Could you please explain how come being is right is correct in the following GMAT PREP question:

A mixture of poems and short fiction, Jean Toomer's Cane has been called one of the three best novels ever written by Black Americans—the others being Richard Wright, author of Native Son, and Ralph Ellison, author of Invisible Man.

E. a Black American—the others being Richard Wright's Native Son and Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man

OA is E. I tried using your concept but couldn't apply it well.
Plz help :)



I think the primary issue here is not of the "BEING", here in the above question we are comparing the novel written by one author to the novel written by another author.

In the question Jean Toomer's Cane (novel) has been compared to the Richard Wright (author) which is not correct comparison.

E is correct because novel of Jean Toomer is compared to the novel of Richard Wright and novel of Ralph Ellison.

Hope I'm making some sense! :)
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Re: Can BEING be correct on SC section? [#permalink] New post   25 Aug 2010, 04:30
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CaptainM wrote:
SaraiGMAXonline wrote:
Let's take a closer look at what "being" really means; then you'll always be able to tell when 'being' has been used correctly:

Consider the following:

Incorrect: Joe is being a student. (Joe just is a student.)

Correct: Joe is being annoying.

Why does it 'sound wrong' to say that he is being a student, but it 'sounds right' to say that he is being annoying?

What 'being' indicates is a process-- that is, something you can control, can turn on and off. You use 'being' when someone/something is in a process.

Ex. (correct usage): The apartment being renovated will sell quickly in the current market. (=The apartment that is in the process of being renovated...)

If the verb or description is just a state of being (not a process of being), as in, "I am happy," then 'being' doesn't make sense. You cannot say, "I am being happy" because an emotional state is not process that can be turned on and off.

This is why most of the time noun+being is incorrect on the SC.

One last note: You can use 'being' as a subject or object.

Ex. I like being a student.
Ex. Being a student can be fun.

For a list of 'being' phrases that are ALWAYS incorrect on the GMAT, checkout the Modifiers lesson at gmaxonline!

If this helped, kindly give Kudos! :wink:


Could you please explain how come being is right is correct in the following GMAT PREP question:

A mixture of poems and short fiction, Jean Toomer's Cane has been called one of the three best novels ever written by Black Americans—the others being Richard Wright, author of Native Son, and Ralph Ellison, author of Invisible Man.

E. a Black American—the others being Richard Wright's Native Son and Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man

OA is E. I tried using your concept but couldn't apply it well.
Plz help :)


Hi CaptainM,

Since you cannot add an independent clause (full sentence with a subject and verb) onto the end of the sentence, after the dash, you cannot use the verb "are," and must use a participle (--ing) instead. Generally speaking, you take "being" out of the sentence whenever you can, and in this case there is no way to create the additional info without the "being".

I hope that makes some sense.

Best,
Sarai
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Re: Can BEING be correct on SC section? [#permalink] New post   27 Aug 2010, 07:56
Hi,

I spotted a "being" sentence in OG 10th. Look at question #183 of SC. The problem is not about being, but still it's interesting to see that the final sentence is correct:

Quote:
Archaeologists in Ireland believe that a recently discovered chalice, which dates from the eighth century, was probably buried to keep it from being stolen by invaders.

Here being is correct.

As a sideline, the problem of this question was about "to keep it from".
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Re: Everyone knows BEING is considered redundant but can this be [#permalink] New post   19 Jun 2022, 19:05
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