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655-705 (Hard)|   Pronouns|      
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Abhi077
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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head sha 06 May 2020, 15:48
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C
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65% (hard)

Question Stats:

45% (01:30) correct 55% (01:37) wrong based on 336 sessions

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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

A. After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

B. After obtaining his freedom from his master and shaving his head, an undyed pileus has to be worn by the slave instead of his hair.

C. A slave has his head shaved after he obtains his freedom from his master and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

D. A slave obtains his freedom from his master, shaving his head and wearing instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

E. A slave, when shaving his head and instead of his hair wearing an undyed pileus, obtains his freedom from his master.

Source- GMATWhiz
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C
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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head sha 08 May 2020, 01:29
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A. After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

The He in 'he has his head shaved' can refer to both the master or the slave right? That's why A is incorrect? Abhi077 generis, hazelnut
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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head sha 08 May 2020, 07:12
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TarPhi
A. After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

The He in 'he has his head shaved' can refer to both the master or the slave right? That's why A is incorrect? Abhi077 generis, hazelnut
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Yes, that's accurate.

It is not clear “he” and “his” are referring to the slave or the master.

We can interpret two possible scenarios here :

1: After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, the slave has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus

2: After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, the master has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus
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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head sha 03 Jun 2022, 00:20
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Abhi077
TarPhi
A. After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

The He in 'he has his head shaved' can refer to both the master or the slave right? That's why A is incorrect? Abhi077 generis, hazelnut

Yes, that's accurate.

It is not clear “he” and “his” are referring to the slave or the master.

We can interpret two possible scenarios here :

1: After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, the slave has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus

2: After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, the master has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus
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If there is an independent clause + dependent clause, then the pronoun in the dependent clause refers to the first noun in the independent clause.
so by this logic, he has his head shaved is referring to the slave

Also in Option C, meaning is coming to be -
A slave has his head shaved after he does X and Y.

Kindly clarify my doubt.
Thanks
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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head sha 26 Aug 2023, 01:58
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I would ignore this question entirely

C can be interpreted as

A slave has his head shaved after he obtains his freedom from his master and (after he) wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

This would be change of meaning. By all means, C is incorrect

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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head sha 13 Jan 2024, 10:30
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After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus.

Option Elimination -

A. After a slave obtains his freedom from his master, he has his head shaved, and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus. - "he" and "his" can refer to "slave" or "master." Ambiguous. Wrong.

B. After obtaining his freedom from his master and shaving his head, an undyed pileus has to be worn by the slave instead of his hair. - as if "undyed pileus" obtained the freedom. Wrong.

C. A slave has his head shaved after he obtains his freedom from his master and wears instead of his hair an undyed pileus. - ok.

D. A slave obtains his freedom from his master, shaving his head and wearing instead of his hair an undyed pileus. - Comma + ING modifies the verb in the preceding clause. So, "shaving" here modifies "obtains," meaning the "obtaining" and "shaving" are happening simultaneously, as against the intended meaning he is first he gets the freedom and then does the rest. Wrong.

E. A slave, when shaving his head and instead of his hair wearing an undyed pileus, obtains his freedom from his master. - meaning as if "when he shaves his head..." he gets freedom. Wrong.
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