OFFICIAL EXPLANATIONgeneris wrote:
Project SC Butler: Day 146: Sentence Correction (SC2)
Choreographer and dancer Savion Glover aims to restore the African roots of tap dance by eliminating hand gestures and
he returns to a focus on the feet as the primary source of movement.
A) he returns to a focus on the feet
B) return to a focus on the feet
C) returning to the feet's focusing
D) returned to the feet as a focus
E) returning that the feet be the focus
This question is challenging because our first instinct is to find something parallel to
by eliminating, which is followed by the parallelism marker
and.If
returns were changed to its participle
returning, we would have a logical choice, this way:
Savion Glover aims to restore ... by eliminating hand gestures and [by] returning to a focus on the feet as the primary source of movement. No such option exists. We have to rethink our approach and find a different parallel construction.
The verb we must use is
to restore. The mechanical POE is followed by analysis.
THE OPTIONSQuote:
A) he returns to a focus on the feet
•
[he] returns and
eliminating are not parallel
Eliminate A
Quote:
B) return to a focus on the feet
• correct. The verb
return is parallel to the verb
restore that appears earlier in the sentence
• Both
restore and
return are "bare" infinitives-- just infinitives without the "to."
• the word TO [from "to restore"] applies to both verbs. That is, TO carries over to
return• see "splitting the verb" below
Keep B
Quote:
C) returning to the feet's focusing
• illogical
--
the feet's focusing implies that the feet themselves are focusing.
Feet don't focus.
•
In the sentence, option C makes no sense.
Glover aims to restore the African roots . . . by eliminating hand gestures and returning to the feet's focusing as the primary source of movement.How could
the feet's focusing be paired with "AS the primary source of movement"? That phrasing is nonsensical.
Eliminate C
Quote:
D) returned to the feet as a focus
• there is no such (verb) thing as
to returned.The bare infinitive in TO RETURN is always just
return.
•
returned is past tense. Nothing in the sentence suggests that a verb tense change is appropriate.
Eliminate D
Quote:
E) returning that the feet be the focus
•
returning that is unidiomatic
• the correct idiom is
returning TO•
returning that the feet be the focus is literally indecipherable. The phrase does not say anything.
The correct answer is B.ANALYSIS• First impression of what the sentence means?When we first read this sentence, it seems to mean that Savion Glover intends to restore the African roots of tap dance by doing two things.
The first thing seems to be
by eliminating hand gestures.The next thing we read should be parallel.
We find, though, that the second thing is phrased
and he returns to a focus on the feet.The word
returning would be fine if the sentence were phrased this way:
...by eliminating hand gestures and [by] returning to a focus on the feet.Problem: The two options that use "returning" are incorrect. Option C is illogical (feet do not focus) and (E) is unidiomatic.
No answer choice offers an option similar to the corrected version that I suggested.
Now we must rethink the construction of the sentence.
• find the verb-- All the answer choices are verbs or verbals. We must find a verb that we can pair with some form of
return.
-- [by] "
eliminating" does not work.
-- remaining:
aims and
to restoreAims won't work. To maintain parallelism, we would need to use
returns.Only (A) includes
returns, but we already know that (A) is faulty.
To restore is the winner.
--
We have a "split verb."Glover aims
→→
to restore (the African roots . . .)
AND
→→
[to] return to a focus on the feet.
• "Splitting" the verbSplitting the verb is very common on the GMAT.
-- A verb that consists of more than one word (
to restore) can be split into parts.
-- The first part of the verb (TO) is
mentioned only once: TO RESTORE.
Although it is mentioned only once,
to distributes or applies to
both of the second parts of the verb phrases (
restore and
return, respectively.)
Glover wants to do two things: to restore the African roots of tap . . . and [to] return to a focus on the feet.
The answer is B.
COMMENTSI like this sentence because verbs that can (or must) take an infinitive are common on the GMAT.
When
aim is used as a verb that means "the intention to achieve something," aim must be followed by an infinitive.
If the verb aim means "point or direct [something] at a target," such as a camera, then an infinitive does not follow.
In a sentence using
aim in the second sense, an infinitive could follow the noun, although the construction is hella awkward:
I will aim the camera to capture the entire scene.
-- That infinitive really has nothing to do with the verb
aim.
-- The sentence means I will aim the camera [in a certain way]
in order to capture the whole scene.
HERE is a post written by Mike McGarry about verbs (and other words) that require the infinitive.
Most of these answers explain well. Kudos to all. Nice work.
close
02 Aug 2019, 19:47
52%
(01:32)
wrong 
. because i think if author wants to convey the meaning that to restore by doing 2 things, he should use focusing rather than returning.
