Although a number of excellent studies narrate the development of dome

Let's make some backend calculation. The relative pronoun 'who" cannot refer to anything other than humans and only A has humans as demonstrators and publicists. Therefore, A.
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Hello Everyone!

I already see some great discussion about this question, so let's tackle this question one issue at a time to come up with the correct answer! To get started, here is the original question with important differences between each option highlighted in orange:

Although a number of excellent studies narrate the development of domestic technology and its impact on housewifery, these works do not discuss the contributions of the women employed by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists, who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers.

(A) by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists,
(B) to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies,
(C) to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies
(D) by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products
(E) by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products

Right away, a couple major issues jump out at me that we must address:

1. Each option's ending = finding the right antecedent for the modifier phrase "who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers."
2. Use of the pronoun "their" in options C, D, and E

Let's start with #1 on our list. Since the sentence ends with a modifier phrase, we MUST make sure it's being paired up with the correct antecedent. Here is each option with the ending added on. This will helps us figure out which options have a problem.

Remember, to find the correct antecedent, you need to ask yourself the question "WHO initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers?" The answer? The product demonstrators and publicists! Let's see how each answer stacks up:

(A) by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists, who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers. --> OK

(B) to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies, who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers. --> WRONG

This says the companies promoted technology, which isn't true - the demonstrators and publicists did! It's also not grammatically correct to have the word "who" refer to non-humans, including collective nouns like "companies."

(C) to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers. --> WRONG

This option has a few problems:
It is incorrectly saying the companies promoted technology, not the people hired as demonstrators and publicists.
Also, it's not okay to use "who" to refer to collective nouns such as "companies."
The lack of comma at the end is also a problem. It turns the phrase, "who initially promoted..." into an essential clause, rather than a modifier. Without the comma, it's telling readers that these women were only hired by companies that initially promoted technology to women, which is unnecessarily specific.

(D) by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers. --> WRONG

This option is incorrect because the modifier is referring to the word "products," which doesn't make sense. First, the word "who" cannot refer to non-human objects. Second, the products didn't promote technology to women - that doesn't make logical sense. The products aren't going door-to-door by themselves!

(E) by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers. --> WRONG

This option is incorrect for the same reason as option D - the word "who" cannot refer to non-human objects, such as the word "products."

There you go - option A is the CORRECT answer because the modifier has a clear and correct antecedent!

I know some of you may have started with #2 on our list (proper use of the pronoun "their"), here is how each answer would break down:

(A) by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists, --> OK (no pronoun to deal with)

(B) to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies, --> OK (no pronoun to deal with)

(C) to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies --> WRONG (In this case, the pronoun "their" is referring back to the women, which isn't accurate. The women weren't hired to demonstrate and publicize their own products - they were hired to demonstrate and publicize the companies' products!)

(D) by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products --> WRONG (In this case, it's not absolutely clear what the pronoun "their" is referring to - the women who were hired, the companies who made the products, or some other group we don't know about?)

(E) by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products --> WRONG (Again, it's not absolutely clear what "their" is referring to - the companies or the women who were hired? If it's not 100% clear, it's probably not the correct option.)

Once you've done this, you're left with options A & B. You can go back to #1 on the list and see that option B is wrong because the modifier isn't referring to the right antecedent, so you'd still end up with option A as your final answer!


Don't study for the GMAT. Train for it.
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Dear Friends,

Here is a detailed explanation to this question-

Concepts tested here: Pronouns + Modifiers + Awkwardness/Redundancy

• "who/whose/whom/which/where", when preceded by a comma, refer to the noun just before the comma.
• "who" is only used to refer to human beings.

A: Correct. This answer choice correctly uses "who" to refer to "demonstrators and publicists". Further, Option A avoids the pronoun error seen in Options C, D, and E, as it uses no pronouns. Additionally, Option A is free of any awkwardness or redundancy.

B: This answer choice incorrectly uses "who" to refer to "manufacturers and utility companies"; please remember, "who/whose/whom/which/where", when preceded by a comma, refer to the noun just before the comma, and "who" is only used to refer to human beings. Further, Option B uses the passive and needlessly indirect construction "to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

C: This answer choice incorrectly uses "who" to refer to "manufacturers and utility companies"; please remember, "who" is only used to refer to human beings. Further, Option C suffers from pronoun ambiguity, as it is unclear whether "their" refers to "women" or "manufacturers and utility companies". Additionally, Option C uses the passive and needlessly indirect construction "to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

D: This answer choice incorrectly uses "who" to refer to "products"; please remember, "who" is only used to refer to human beings. Further, Option D suffers from pronoun ambiguity, as it is unclear whether "their" refers to "women" or "manufacturers and utility companies". Additionally, Option D uses the passive and needlessly indirect construction "to be demonstrators and publicists of", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

E: This answer choice incorrectly uses "who" to refer to "products"; please remember, "who" is only used to refer to human beings. Further, Option E suffers from pronoun ambiguity, as it is unclear whether "their" refers to "women" or "manufacturers and utility companies". Additionally, Option E uses the passive and needlessly indirect construction "to demonstrate and publicize their products", leading to awkwardness and redundancy.

Hence, A is the best answer choice.

To understand the concept of "Which/Who/Whose/Where" on GMAT, you may want to watch the following video (~1 minute):



All the best!
Experts' Global Team
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Good question

A. by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists,
Correct.

B. to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies,
This choice is wrong since "employed by manufacturers and utility companies" conveys better meaning

C. to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies
"the contributions of the women employed to demonstrate and publicize sth by sb" is awkward.

D. by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products
This choice makes "who" refer to "their products"

E. by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products
This choice makes "who" refer to "their products"
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A. by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists,- correct use of 'as' to show a role being performed.
B. to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies, - here 'who' is wrongly referring to manufacturer and companies
C. to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies - same as B
D. by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products - wrong- employed to be is not not the correct usage.
E. by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products - employed to should be employed as

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Hello daag,

Thank you for the explanation. I wanted to ask whether "who" follows the "touch rule" i.e does it always modify the entity preceding it.

I am aware that "which" does not ALWAYS follow the touch rule e.g I killed the snake with scales, which lived in the burrow behind my house. WHICH modifies the snake and not scales.

Please clarify. Thanks

fmik
Hi
Whether 'who' modifies a proximate or distant noun, it is clear that it can modify only human beings and not companies. The reference of a relative pronoun is to be pondered over when there is no forthright eligible noun to modify in front but is found after ignoring some unnecessary interventions such as prepositional phrases.

Even assuming that 'who' may modify the demonstrators and the publicists in B and D, that can be only after they can ignore the intruders.

We can now see why B and D do not fit in as well as A does.
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Although a number of excellent studies narrate the development of domestic technology and its impact on housewifery, these works do not discuss the contributions of the women employed by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists, who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers.

A. by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists,
B. to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies,
C. to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies
D. by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products
E. by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products

A time-saving approach to this specific question is to ask yourself "Who promoted technology to consumers?"

", who" refers to people

In this case, only (A) make sense. (B) & (C) are saying manufacturers and companies are people. This may be true in real world regarding CitizenUnited, super pac, and U.S presidential election. But never in GMAT I believe.
(D) & (E) are saying products are people.

- X and Y, who - refers to the compound noun x and y both together and not just Y. Look at the following examples. The first one is logically wrong because the modifier who would later make his reputation as a labor leader modifies both of them

However, the second one is correct since who qualifies one of them namely Philip only and the other entity Chandler has been relegated to the end after the modification is over.


1.Published in Harlem, the Messenger was owned and edited by two young journalists, A. Philip Randolph and Chandler Owen, who would later make his reputation as a labor leader.


2.Published in Harlem, the Messenger was owned and edited by two young journalists, A. Philip Randolph, who would later make his reputation as a labor leader, and Chandler Owen.
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Sentence Analysis
Here’s the sentence structure:

Although a number of excellent studies narrate (Dependent clause presenting a contrast to the main clause. Subject: a number of excellent studies; Verb: narrate)
the development of domestic technology (First object of the verb ‘narrate’)
and its impact on housewifery, (Second object of the verb ‘narrate’)
these works do not discuss the contributions of the women (Main Clause. Subject: these works; Verb: do not discuss)
employed (Verb-ed modifier modifying ‘women’)
by manufacturers and utility companies (prepositional phrase modifying ‘employed’)
as product demonstrators and publicists, (prepositional phrase modifying ‘employed’)
who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers. (relative clause modifying ‘product demonstrators and publicists’. Subject: who; Verb: promoted)
The sentence says that even though several studies talk about certain things (the development of domestic technology and its impact on housewifery), they do not discuss certain other things (contributions of certain women). Which women? Women employed by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists.

As is, the sentence looks fine.

Although a number of excellent studies narrate the development of domestic technology and its impact on housewifery, these works do not discuss the contributions of the women employed by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists, who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers.

(A) by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists,

(B) to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies,

(C) to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies

(D) by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products

(E) by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products

Limiting to the relevance of the pronoun 'their':

If there is any doubt, whether the pronoun 'their' in C, D and E can refer to 'women's', try this age-old test. Replace 'their' with 'women's' and see how appropriate the replacement is.

C) to demonstrate and publicize the women's products by manufacturers and utility companies


(D) by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of the women's products

(E) by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize the women's products


Are the manufacturers and companies employing the women to demonstrate the women's products or the companies own products?

The companies are not employing the women to publicize the women's products in general but their products created by upgraded technologies. Therefore, by no logic can we take that 'their' stands for 'women's.'

C and E are wrong for the incompatibility of the relative pronoun 'who' to refer to companies and products.

In the case of D, one might debate that the word ( who without a comma) may still refer to the demonstrators and publicists, but yet, D can be accused of the unidiomatic 'employed to be' rather than the conventional 'employed as'
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One more reason to eliminate B C D E

We use "as" to show a function or a position.

Example- She works as a teacher.
The other choices use "to be" and it is incorrect IMHO.


Although a number of excellent studies narrate the development of domestic technology and its impact on housewifery, these works do not discuss the contributions of the women employed by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists, who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers.

(A) by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists,

(B) to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies,

(C) to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies

(D) by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products

(E) by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products

Hello daagh

Below is my reasoning why I think the usage of 'their' is ambiguous in options C, D, and E, please correct if there's flaw in my thinking. I also understand that these options are wrong for other reasons as well.

These 'few women' mentioned in the original sentence could very well have been important figures or persons or wives of important people, and the manufacturers and utility companies could have used them as brand ambassador's to promote 'their own' products at start thinking that these women and their influential image would then help them in promoting new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers.

For example, L'Oreal employing Aishwarya Rai to promote 'her own' new line of shampoo or fragrance (just spitballing here !) because that in turn would drive the sales of their other products among Ms. Aishwarya Rai's female fans/ consumers. Something on these lines..

Isn't this thought process logical, lets say to an extent, and gives the options C, D, and E some air of ambiguity?

Hope I am able to clearly show my thought process in the spur of the moment question solving time and also what I am trying to say.


Thanks
Saurabh

The 'few women' are your creation, it looks, while the original doesn't say 'few'.
The very idea is to talk of these thousands of women who silently dedicated their labor for the success of the newly introduced merchandise. They are not the celebrity appealers like the heroes of the cine world. The demonstrators and publicists are mostly hourly or daily hired people and do not get even a fracttion of the huge endorsement fee the celebrities take.

The core of the passage is to glorify the work of these poor souls. Don't you know that "blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"

However why would L' Oreal want to promote Aishwarya's own products in the place of its own products? What will happen if the regular buyers of L'Oreal start replacing with Aishwarya's products? I don't get the commercial idea behind the suggestion.

Back to our SC topic, the third dimension of 'their' draws valuable time on wrong choices unnecessarily.
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Correct


Confusing language. "to be x and y by m and u."

Modifier Error:The "who" after the comma should refer to the noun immediately preceding the comma, which in this case is "companies." Which is illogical. The companies did not promote new and unfamiliar technologies. The women did.


Confusing language. Who is the "their" referring to? Women? That's illogical. The products belong to manufacturer's and utility companies. Meaning/Pronoun Error.

Modifier Error: The "who" after the comma should refer to the noun immediately preceding the comma, which in this case is "companies." Which is illogical. The companies did not promote new and unfamiliar technologies. The women did.


Modifier Error:The "who" after the comma should refer to the noun immediately preceding the comma, which in this case is "products." Which is illogical. The products did not promote new and unfamiliar technologies. The women did.

Ambiguous Pronoun: Is the "their" referring to 'women' or 'manufacturers and companies.' We know it means to refer to 'women.' But it's ambiguous.


Modifier Error:The "who" after the comma should refer to the noun immediately preceding the comma, which in this case is "products." Which is illogical. The products did not promote new and unfamiliar technologies. The women did.

Ambiguous Pronoun: Is the "their" referring to 'women' or 'manufacturers and companies.' We know it means to refer to 'women.' But it's ambiguous.

How do I ascertain 'who' refers back to what? eg. How do I check that 'who' in option A refer backs to 'women' and not 'manufacturers and utility companies'? This will also help me know how the 'who' B does not refer to 'women' or 'oduct demonstrators and publicists'

Hi ADS2021, who can only refer to persons and so, can never refer to manufacturers and utility companies.
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Hi egmat

Here is my analysis for the question:

Although a number of excellent studies narrate the development of domestic technology and its impact on housewifery, these works do not discuss the contributions of the women employed by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists, who initially promoted new and unfamiliar technology to female consumers.
A. by manufacturers and utility companies as product demonstrators and publicists,
B. to be product demonstrators and publicists by manufacturers and utility companies,
C. to demonstrate and publicize their products by manufacturers and utility companies
D. by manufacturers and utility companies to be demonstrators and publicists of their products
E. by manufacturers and utility companies to demonstrate and publicize their products

Who refers to demonstrators and publicists
A : I see no direct issues
B. is just rearrangement of A but we have moved referrant of who far, without any actual benefit. So clearly A is a better option.
C has no referrant for who --- > incorrect
D. their is ambiguous, but logically it makes sense for their to point to manufacturers.
E like C has no referant for who --- >incorrect

In A and D, A is clearer option.
But I was not able to eliminate D on stronger grounds.

ishikasoni111
I'd be careful about making a blanket statement such as "'who' refers to demonstrators and publicists." Although that meaning ends up in the correct answer, the referent of a modifier can change in response to structure, and a correct answer may rewrite the sentence so thoroughly that we need a new interpretation. In this case, however, it makes sense to choose the answer that puts our modifier right next to "demonstrators and publicists," so that's all the justification we need to cut D. However, as others have pointed out, "employed to be" is also a false idiom.
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