Dear Friends,
Here is a detailed explanation to this question-
pau.sabria wrote:
Joachim Raff and Giacomo Meyerbeer are examples of the kind of composer who receives popular acclaim while living, often goes into decline after death, and never regains popularity again.
(A) often goes into decline after death, and never regains popularity again
(B) whose reputation declines after death and never regains its status again
(C) but whose reputation declines after death and never regains its former status
(D) who declines in reputation after death and who never regained popularity again
(E) then has declined in reputation after death and never regained popularity
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 the hypothetical composer in question is one who receives popular acclaim while living, but whose reputation declines after death and never regains its former status.
Concepts tested here: Meaning + Tenses + Grammatical Construction + Awkwardness/Redundancy• If a list contains only two elements, they must be joined by a conjunction; the "comma + and construction" (oxford comma) is used for the last element in a list of three or more elements.
• Information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense.
• The present perfect tense (marked by the use of the helping verb “has/have”) is used to describe events that concluded in the past but continue to affect the present.
• The simple past tense is used to refer to events that concluded in the past.
A: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "often goes into decline after death, and never regains popularity again"; the construction of this phrase illogically implies that
the hypothetical composer in question goes into decline after death, and never regains popularity; the intended meaning is that the
reputation of the hypothetical composer goes into decline after death and never regains its former status. Further, Option A redundantly uses "regains" alongside "again", rendering it awkward and needlessly wordy.
B: This answer choice incorrectly uses a comma to join two elements in a list - the modifying phrases "who receives popular acclaim while living" and "whose reputation declines after death and never regains its status again" that act upon the noun "composer"; remember, if a list contains only two elements, they must be joined by a conjunction. Further, Option B redundantly uses "regains" alongside "again", rendering it awkward and needlessly wordy.
C: Correct. This answer choice uses the phrase "whose reputation declines after death and never regains its former status", conveying the intended meaning - that the
reputation of the hypothetical composer goes into decline after death and never regains its former status. Further, Option C correctly uses the simple present tense verbs "declines" and "regains" to refer to information that is permanent in nature. Additionally, Option C correctly uses conjunctions ("but" and "and" in this sentence) to join elements in two lists of only two elements. Besides, Option C is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.
D: This answer choice incorrectly uses the simple past tense verb "regained" to refer to information that is permanent in nature; remember, information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense, and the simple past tense is used to refer to events that concluded in the past. Further, Option D incorrectly uses "and" to join the last element of a list with the rest of the elements; remember, the “comma + and” (oxford comma) construction is used to join the last element of a list of more than two other elements. Additionally, Option D redundantly uses "regained" alongside "again" and uses the needlessly indirect phrase "declines in reputation", rendering it awkward and needlessly wordy.
E: This answer choice incorrectly uses the present perfect tense verb "has declined" and the simple past tense verb "regained" to refer to information that is permanent in nature; please remember, information that is permanent in nature is best conveyed through the simple present tense, the present perfect tense (marked by the use of the helping verb “has/have”) is used to describe events that concluded in the past but continue to affect the present, and the simple past tense is used to refer to events that concluded in the past. Further, Option E redundantly uses the word "then", rendering it needlessly wordy; this usage is redundant because "then" can be deleted without a loss of clarity.
Hence, C is the best answer choice.To understand the concept of "Simple Tenses" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):
To understand the concept of "Present Perfect Tense" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):
To understand the concept of "Oxford Comma" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~2 minutes):
All the best!
Experts' Global Team