A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year as The Adventures of

Question

A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year as  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  were published,  reveals that Twain provided financial assistance to one of the first Black students at Yale Law School.

(A) A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year as  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  were published,

(B) A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year of publication as  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ,

(C) A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year that  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  was published,

(D) Mark Twain wrote a letter in the same year as he published  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  that

(E) Mark Twain wrote a letter in the same year of publication as  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  that

https://www.nytimes.com/1985/03/14/books/from-twain-a-letter-on-debt-to-blacks.html

A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year that ''The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' was published  in the United States, describes his offer to provide financial assistance to one of the first black students at Yale Law School and suggests that Twain was vigorously opposed to racism.

mikemcgarry · Accepted Answer

I'm happy to help with this. :-)

The first split --- how should the sentence begin? " A letter " vs. " Mark Twain "? The structure "A letter by Mark Twain ..... reveals" is very clear and direct. The structure "Mark Twain wrote a letter .... that reveals" is wordier and less efficient. Right away, we are not disposed toward (D) & (E) . These two also completely flub the comparison, so they are out. The other split revolves around how the comparison is constructed. (The GMAT loves comparisons!) The phrasing in (A) ... in the same year as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were published ... will sound colloquially correct --- this is what many folks would say in ordinary conversation -- but technically, it is 100% illogical. What follows the words "the same year as" should be a year. Here, we would have to say: ...in the same year as the year when The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were published... (correct, but a little wordy) ...in the same year as that in which The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were published... (correct in a way the GMAT would like) Those are both correct, but (A) is wrong. The comparison in (B) is completely ungrammatical and wrong. Only (C) has a grammatically correct version of the comparison. Here, we have a subordinate clause modifying the word "year." This is a perfectly acceptable solution to the comparison, and arguably, the most concise way to express the idea. This is by far the best answer. Does all this make sense? Mike :-)

mikemcgarry · Answer

Dear Umeshpatil , Great questions. I'm happy to help. Yes, the subject is " A letter ", and yes, the clause " written in the same year that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published " is a long clause that modifies the subject. As for the "that" clause --- Whenever we use the word "same" --- the "same man", the "same book", the "same country" --- we have to specify --- the same as what ? One way to do this is to with an "as" clause I am reading the same book as the one he read in a single sitting last week. Another perfectly correct way to express this is with a modifier clause that, by modifying the noun, identifies it. (This is called a restrictive clause, and must begin with the word "that" instead of the word "which" when modifying an object.) I am reading the same book that he read in a single sitting last week. I want to travel to the same country that just liberated Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest. I want to talk the same person who interviewed the politician yesterday. He graduated from high school the same year that Nixon was elected President. All of those are perfectly correct. This is the grammatical structure the clause is following --- " ... the same year that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published ." Does all this make sense? Mike :-)

ExpertsGlobal5 · Answer

Dear Friends,

Here is a detailed explanation to this question-

Meaning is crucial to solving this problem: 
Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended meaning of the crucial part of this sentence is that Mark Twain wrote a certain letter in the year The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published.

Concepts tested here: Subject-Verb Agreement + Meaning + Awkwardness/Redundancy

A:  This answer choice incorrectly refer to the singular noun "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" with the plural verb "were published". Further, Option A alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "the same year as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were published"; the construction of this phrase leads to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that Mark Twain wrote a certain letter in the year The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published.

B:  This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "in the same year of publication"; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that Mark Twain wrote   and published   a certain letter in the year The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published; the intended meaning is that Mark Twain   wrote   a certain letter in the year The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published.

C:   Correct.  This answer choice correctly refers to the singular noun "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" with the singular verb "was published". Further, Option C uses the phrase "in the same year that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published", conveying the intended meaning - that Mark Twain   wrote   a certain letter in the year The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published. Additionally, Option C is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.

D:  This answer choice uses the needlessly indirect construction "Mark Twain wrote a letter...that", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

E:  This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "in the same year of publication"; the construction of this phrase incorrectly implies that Mark Twain wrote   and published   a certain letter in the year The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published; the intended meaning is that Mark Twain   wrote   a certain letter in the year The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published. Further, Option E uses the needlessly indirect construction "Mark Twain wrote a letter...that", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

Hence, C is the best answer choice.

All the best!
Experts' Global Team

smarinov · Answer

C as well.

a) "The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin" is singular so we need "was" rather than "were"
b) "year of publication" sounds awkward.
d) "that" makes the entire sentence chunky - "that reveals that..." awkward and chunky.
e) "that" makes the entire sentence chunky - "that reveals that..." awkward and chunky.

mrsmarthi · Answer

A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were published , reveals that Twain provided financial assistance to one of the first Black students at Yale Law School.

(A) A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were published,  ("The adventures of Huckleberry Finn" is singular(a book) and the verb should be WAS instead of WERE. Out of the game. ) 
(B) A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year of publication as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,  (Awkward sentence formation - Out of the game.) 
 (C) A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published, - My Pick  
(D) Mark Twain wrote a letter in the same year as he published The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that  (Not clear to what THAT is refering to. Also Awkward construction - that reveals that.... Out of the game. ) 
(E) Mark Twain wrote a letter in the same year of publication as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that (Not clear to what THAT is refering to. Also Awkward construction - that reveals that.... Out of the game. )

maddy2u · Answer

IMO C !

A is wrong because of the usage of were (plural but letter is singular)
B is wrong because of usage of as. (As compares two verbs and not nouns)
C is correct !
D is awkward in construction.
E uses wrong usage of as and is also structurally awkward .

Hope this helps

shanmugamgsn · Answer

Hi Mike,

Doesn't this appear to be passive voice?  " A letter by Mark Twain"

mikemcgarry · Answer

No. Passive voice is a quality of verbs, and there's no verb here. If we wrote, " A letter was written by Mark Twain, and the letter said XYZ ." ---- that passive construction is a horrible wordy monstrosity. Consider the same information in active form: " Mark Twain wrote a letter that said XYZ ." --- much more direct, much more powerful. The BIG idea, though, is you need a verb to have passive voice. The phrase " A letter by Mark Twain " has no verb, so by itself, it is not passive. In fact, there's no more concise way to express that information --- re-arranging it would introduce a verb where there is now no verb, and that would make it wordier. Here'a blog on the passive voice: https://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/active-vs- ... -the-gmat/ Does all this make sense? Mike :-)

umeshpatil · Answer

I am convinced why other options are wrong. Can you please elaborate only the answer choice: 
I require little explanation on the below lines.

Simplifying the sentence " A letter written in the same year that X was published  reveals". The part in bold part is a subject of the sentence- "A letter reveals..."

So, " written in the same year that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published  " is modifier of " A letter by Mark Twain ". Correct ?

Coming to my doubt, "Year   that   The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published"

Is the usage of that correct ? As per me modifier should one that indicates the point of time. like " time when X was published "

As you said, I perfectly agree with below usages,
  "in the same year as the year when X was published"
"in the same year as that in which X was published"

nahid78 · Answer

I understand all but C are wrong. But ... the same year  that  
Can anyone please explain the use of this "That"?

sayantanc2k · Answer

It is alright to refer to an year with the pronoun "that".

I played for Bengal cricket team in the the same year that Saurav Ganguly played.... correct. ("that" refers to "year")

rishabhmishra · Answer

i think c is correct but i have a doubt that in c option after year instead of "that" it must be "when" please explain why it is that even when we are referring to time.

sayantanc2k · Answer

"That", "when" or "in which" any of these three could be used to refer to "year".

sayantanc2k · Answer

"As" without "that" would be correct if there were a clause before "as" - then the comparison would be between two clauses:
X was written in the same year as Y was published..........correct.
I drove to the store AT THE SAME TIME AS you  .............. correct ( example from Manhattan SC guide)

But:
X, written in the same year as THAT Y was published, reveals Z...... correct. (comparison is now between the noun   year  and the pronoun  that ).

AshokS · Answer

I was wondering what was wrong with the answer choice B. Most replies simply stated 'B' as awkward. I wanted to understand further, so I did some research and have come up with an explanation which was convincing to me.

The usage "same year of publication as The Adventures...." is incorrect because 'as' is used to compare similar things. Here we are comparing the 'year' with 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' which is a book. I feel a more appropriate usage would have been "same year of publication as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published". Hope this sheds some light on why answer choice B is incorrect.

I also read another query on the usage of 'that' in answer choice C. I would like to quote a text from a reference material which will offer an explanation for the usage of that in the specific location:
 
 "A noun followed by the word 'that' signals a noun modifier. A verb followed immediately by the word 'that' signals the more complex sentence structure 'subject-verb-THAT-subject-verb-object'."

'year' is a noun and the text that follows 'that' is a modifier for the noun 'year'.

CrackverbalGMAT · Answer

Option A  uses the plural ‘were’ which is incorrect. 
‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin’ is singular and we need ‘was’ here.  Eliminate.

Option B  says ‘same year of publication as’. This is incorrect and awkward.  Eliminate.

Option C  is correct for the use of ‘was’.

Option D  has ‘that’ which modifies the book and not the letter. ‘as’ is used incorrectly.  Eliminate.

Option E  is incorrect for reasons mentioned in Option D.  Eliminate.

Option C  is the best choice.

Hope this helps!

egmat · Answer

Hello ppshreya , Thank you for reaching out to us through the PM. A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year that The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published, reveals that Twain provided financial assistance to one of the first Black students at Yale Law School. The above-mentioned is the correct version of this official sentence. In this sentence, the verb-ed modifier " written... " does not modify the immediate, preceding noun " Mark Twain " because this modification is illogical. It is very obvious that a person can NEVER be written. Only " A letter " or any piece of writing can be written. In this case, the noun modifier modifies a slight;y-far away noun because: 1. it only makes sense in modifying a slightly far away noun. 2. The phrase " by Mark Twain " cannot be written anywhere else in the sentence without distorting the intended meaning. Here is one of our most popular articles that describe when a noun modifier can modify a slightly far-away noun and when it cannot. Please go through the same for details, examples, and detailed discussion on many official sentences that use this structure: https://gmatclub.com/forum/noun-modifiers-can-modify-slightly-far-away-noun-135868.html Hope this helps.

Thanks. Shraddha

Hoozan · Answer

EducationAisle  is "were" in (A) incorrect?

EducationAisle · Answer

You are right.  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn  is  a  publication and so,  was  is the correct verb.

A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year as The Adventures of

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A letter by Mark Twain, written in the same year as The Adventures of

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