In one of the most stunning reversals in the history of marketing, the

Question

In one of the most stunning reversals in the history of marketing, the Coca-Cola company in July 1985 yielded to thousands of irate consumers demanding that it should bring back the original Coke formula.

(A) demanding that it should
(B) demanding it to
(C) and their demand to
(D) who demanded that it
(E) who demanded it to

(A) demanding that it should
(B) demanding it to
(C) and their demand to
(D) who demanded that it
(E) who demanded it to

egmat · Answer

Hello pritishbhuyan , I am not sure if you still have this doubt. However, i would still like to present the explanation to clarify the doubt raised.

There is no issue with the subject-verb pair it bring back . It is so because usage of the word demand requires use of Subjunctive Verb which is always plural irrespective of the number of the subject. For example: The teacher suggested that Paul undergo the formal training before the tournament . The module dealing with Verbs in our SC course has a section dedicated to Subjunctive Verbs. Hope this helps.

Thanks. Shraddha

egmat · Answer

Hello rocko911 , I will be glad to help you with this one.

There are certain verbs, generally considered "bossy", that requires use of Subjunctive Verb. Now Subjunctive Verbs are always plural and hence appear to counter the Subject-Verb agreement rules when used with singular subjects. The structure of Subjunctive verbs are "bossy" verb + that + subject + plural verb. Some words that require use of Subjunctive words are demand, insist, request, suggest, mandate, recommend , etc. Since the official sentence in question uses the "bossy" word demand, it MUST be followed by Subjunctive Verb. This is the reason why the structure in Choice D - who demanded that it bring back - is correct because we cannot use to bring back (to verb phrase) with demand . Hence, Choice E is incorrect. Hope this helps.

Thanks. Shraddha

rocko911 · Answer

Hi, I have heard about using the term 'be' in subjunctive sentences...

Can u please provide me all types of formats of subjunctive and when to use 'be' and when to not, and when to use other subjunctive formats?

It will be really helpful!!

Thanks

adkikani · Answer

rocko911

Please see  this  post.

Hope this helps!

harsh2112 · Answer

who demanded  that it bring back

Doesn't the structure look odd?

EducationAisle · Answer

Hi Harsh, this odd looking structure is called  Subjunctive  in English Grammar, and does take a bit of effort, to get used to.

Our book    EducationAisle Sentence Correction Nirvana    discusses  Subjunctive , its application and examples in significant detail. If someone is interested, PM me your email-id; I can mail the corresponding section.

Ansh13 · Answer

If the above sentence is changed to -  In one of the most stunning reversals in the history of marketing, the Coca-Cola company in July 1985 yielded to thousands of irate consumers demanding that  it bring  back the original Coke formula , will it still be incorrect?

DmitryFarber · Answer

Anshit13 
Sure, that would work fine. The "who demanded"/"demanding" split doesn't make much difference here--both are noun modifiers that apply to consumers.

shauryahanda · Answer

egmat   sajjad   VeritasKarishma  and other respected moderators

Could you pl help me understand why option B is incorrect ?

KarishmaB · Answer

We cannot "demand A to do B". 
We "demand that A do B". Hence (B) is incorrect.

With demand, we use subjunctive so base form of the verb "bring"
...who demanded that it bring back the original formula...
Correct.

ShubhamAgarwal · Answer

ExpertsGlobal  can you give a few examples to elaborate on the difference between nature of demand and purpose of demand. While I am clear of the solution, I am not clear of what is meant by purpose of demand and when demand + infinitive will be correct

ExpertsGlobal5 · Answer

Hello  ShubhamAgarwal ,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, "purpose of demand" applies in a construction wherein "what the demand is" is expressed as the reason for the action of making the demand being done - for example, "I demand to speak to the manager."

Here, "demand" is the action that "I" takes, and speaking to the manager is the purpose of the demand: "I" takes the action of demanding for the purpose of speaking to the manager.

"nature of demand" applies in a construction wherein "what the demand is" is expressed directly - for example, "I demand that you let me go."

Here, "you let me go" IS the demand itself, rather than the reason "I" makes a demand.

We hope this helps.
All the best!
Experts' Global Team

krndatta · Answer

KarishmaB  Ma'am, 
If we change option A to "demanding that it bring back.." Won't this still be incorrect? 
We are talking about the past 1985, and the amended sentence is talking about present tense.

Please share your two cents.

socialsloth · Answer

Just a doubt,

Would it be correct to frame the sentence using - "... thousand of irate consumers demanding that it bring back ..."

DmitryFarber · Answer

ashusham

Sure, that ought to work. In that case, I'd probably say " the  thousands of irate consumers demanding," since I'm more likely to use a present participle (-ing) to convey the sense of a specific group at a specific point in time, but this is not a rule I'm applying, just a tendency.

tukaisg · Answer

The correct answer is (D): "who demanded that it"

Here's the reasoning:

(A) "demanding that it should"

This option is incorrect because the verb "demand" doesn't require the auxiliary verb "should." In English, the verb "demand" is followed directly by a subjunctive clause, so it should be "demand that it bring back," not "demand that it should bring back."

(B) "demanding it to"

This option is incorrect because "demand" isn't typically followed by "to" and an infinitive verb in English. It should be "demand that it bring back," not "demand it to bring back."

(C) "and their demand to"

This option is incorrect because it alters the meaning of the sentence. The use of "and" implies that the company yielded to two things separately: thousands of irate consumers and their demand. In fact, the company yielded to one thing: the demand of thousands of irate consumers.

(D) "who demanded that it"

This is the correct option. It uses "who" to introduce a relative clause correctly modifying "thousands of irate consumers." The verb "demanded" is properly followed by a subjunctive clause, "that it bring back."

(E) "who demanded it to"

This option has the same issue as option (B). The verb "demand" should not be followed by "to" and an infinitive verb.

GMAT traps here involve testing knowledge of idiomatic usage ("demand that" versus "demand to") and the correct formation and use of relative clauses. These incorrect options can seem tempting if you're not fully confident with these grammar points. By knowing the correct idiomatic usage and the rules for relative clauses, you can avoid these traps.

vipkhare · Answer

Hi  egmat

As mention by you above demand or demanded is a "bossy" verb so it requires subjunctive.

Similarly, is demanding(ing format) also a "bossy" verb and requires subjunctive ?

DmitryFarber · Answer

vipkhare

First, "demanding" is not a verb at all. It's a noun modifier. -Ing words are never standalone verbs, although they can form parts of verb phrases. (You can say "I am swimming" but not "I swimming.")

Second, "bossy" verbs don't automatically indicate the subjunctive. You need THAT afterward: "I demand that Coke reinstate the old formula."

ashutosh_73 · Answer

Hi  KarishmaB  ,  DmitryFarber  ,  GMATNinja

I request your help here. 
I have two questions.. one each for A&B and E

(A) demanding that it should
(B) demanding it to
(C) and their demand to
(D) who demanded that it
(E) who demanded it to

1. In several posters, people have eliminated (A) & (B) as subjunctive has been used(and subjunctive takes bare form of verb).

As per my understanding, Subjunctive comes in effect when Bossy verbs are used. But, in both A & B ''demanding'' is an adjective modifier, how can it take subjunctive form?

2. why option ''E'' is incorrect?

There are two ways to address the bossy words:(OG11-SC 53)
 1. use of the command subjunctive form: mandatory element (such as requires here) + a connector ‘that’ + finally a basic or command form of the verb
 2. an infinitive verbal: to make/to pay. Dont use ''That'

This option uses the second form..

Thanks
ASHUTOSH

GMATNinja · Answer

In this context, the reader is asking themselves, "WHAT is being demanded by the consumers?" In other words, the reader is looking for some noun (or noun phrase) that represents the THING being demanded.

The problem with (B) and (E) is that you can't really  demand  a company, at least not in this context:

"Tim demands justice."

This works, because "justice" is something that can be demanded.

"Tim demands the Coca-Cola company."

This doesn't work quite as well. Perhaps Tim is a big-shot businessperson who demands the Coca-Cola company as part of some M&A deal? In that case it might make sense to demand the company itself, but in the context of the official question, the company itself isn't what's being demand by consumers. Instead, the consumers are demanding THAT something be done by the company.

This leads to another issue in (B) and (E). If we assume that the company itself is the thing being demanded, then we have to ask ourselves: what is the function of the infinitive clause, "to bring back"? Does it  modify  the company (as in, "Tim demands a bed to sleep in.")? Does it give us a  reason  why the consumers are demanding the company (as in, "Tim demanded justice to placate his wife.")?"

Those might not represent concrete errors, but the usage of "demand" is much clearer in choice (D), where the THING being demanded is that something be done by the company.

(A) isn't terrible, but again think about what exactly is being demanded:

Consumers are demanding  that the company SHOULD bring back the original formula .
 
 What if the company execs responded by saying, "Umm... yes. Yes, we SHOULD bring back the original formula!", even if they don't  actually  change the formula? Would the consumers be satisfied, since all they wanted was  agreement  that the company SHOULD bring back the original formula?
 
 Obviously that doesn't make much sense. The consumers wanted the company to bring back the original formula, and that specific demand is more clearly stated in choice (D).

So picking (D) over (A) is more about meaning and clarity than about breaking specific subjunctive rules.

I hope that helps!

In one of the most stunning reversals in the history of marketing, the

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