In principle, including Varosha, a ghost resort town, the Turkish-Cypr

Question

In principle,  including Varosha, a ghost resort town, the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy  south of Famagusta.

A. including Varosha, a ghost resort town, the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy

B. the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus, including Varosha, that they now occupy a ghost resort town

C. the Turkish-Cypriots, including Varosha, a ghost resort town, are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy

D. that they now occupy, including Varosha, a ghost resort town, the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus

E. the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy, including Varosha, a ghost resort town

TargetMBA007 · Answer

The answer is E, but I would love for an expert to confirm my rationale for using E, as my understanding is that "Including" is considered an exception to the standard comma + verb-ing rules.

Correct: E. 
If we apply the verb-ing rule, this would mean including modifying the noun phrase "9% of 38% of Cyprus" should be incorrect, however, including is treated as an exception to other verb-ing rules, as it can be used as a preposition (As per many dictionaries) and hence can act as a noun modifier.

daagh · Answer

Ans is E for maintaining the vibe of standard English writing. All other sentences are warped and twisted.

TargetMBA007 · Answer

Thanks  daagh .

Is the exception rule I stated valid though for including because if we follow the standard rule for a comma + verb-ing modifier, including cannot modify a noun phrase?

daagh · Answer

"Including' is definitely an exception to the verb+ing norms. It is usually added for citing random examples.

Ranasaymon · Answer

Here,  including  plays the role of ' example'/such as ! Including is a  preposition which shows that certain elements are a part of whole.

I like to spend my time by performing different activities, including reading novel and watching tv.

Posted from my mobile device

mSKR · Answer

in E," including Varosha" should be next to Cyprus? Why still E is correct?
the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy,  including Varosha , a ghost resort town

Ranasaymon · Answer

Yes, ' including Varosha , a ghost resort town' should be next to 9% of the 38% of Cyprus. But there's a problem.  'that they now occupy'  is a vital noun modifier.  If you change the placement of this vital modifier, the meaning of the sentence will be changed.

Suppose, the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus  including Varosha , a ghost resort town that they now occupy . The meaning of the sentence is changed.  'that they now occupy' modifies the ghost resort town.

To maintain the original meaning, we need to place the vital noun modifier to which it actually modifies.

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 this sentence is that the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy south of Famagusta, a region that includes Varosha, a ghost resort town.

Concepts tested here: Meaning + Modifiers

• In the “phrase + comma + noun” and “noun + comma + phrase” constructions, the phrase must correctly modify the noun; this is one of the most frequently tested concepts on GMAT sentence correction.

A:  This answer choice incorrectly uses "including Varosha" to modify "the Turkish-Cypriots", illogically implying that the ghost resort town of Varosha is part of the Turkish-Cypriots; the intended meaning is that the 9% of Cyprus that the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back includes the ghost resort town of Varosha; please remember, in a “phrase + comma + noun” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun.

B:  This answer choice incorrectly modifies "9% of the 38% of Cyprus" with "that they now occupy...Famagusta", leading to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy south of Famagusta, a region that includes Varosha, a ghost resort town; please remember, in a “noun + comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun.

C:  This answer choice incorrectly modifies "the Turkish-Cypriots" with "including Varosha", illogically implying that the ghost resort town of Varosha is part of the Turkish-Cypriots; the intended meaning is that the 9% of Cyprus that the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back includes the ghost resort town of Varosha; please remember, in a “noun+ comma + phrase” construction, the phrase must correctly modify the noun.

D:  The sentence formed by this answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "In principle that they now occupy"; the construction of this phrase leads to an incoherent meaning; the intended meaning is that the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy south of Famagusta, a region that includes Varosha, a ghost resort town.

E:   Correct.  This answer choice correctly modifies "9% of the 38% of Cyprus" with "that they now occupy" and "including Varosha", conveying the intended meaning - that the Turkish-Cypriots are ready to hand back 9% of the 38% of Cyprus that they now occupy south of Famagusta, a region that includes Varosha, a ghost resort town.

Hence, E is the best answer choice.

To understand the concept of "Phrase Comma Subject" and "Subject Comma Phrase" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xx_5LxK5Bh0

All the best!
Experts' Global Team

VerbalBot · Answer

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In principle, including Varosha, a ghost resort town, the Turkish-Cypr

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In principle, including Varosha, a ghost resort town, the Turkish-Cypr

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