None of the houses that Frank Lloyd Wright built in the Prairie Style

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 the crucial part of this sentence is that the drawings in the 1910 Wasmuth edition of Frank Lloyd Wright's work show the buildings in his Prarie Style in the vast spaces of an imaginary Wild West.

Concepts tested here: Subject-Verb Agreement + Meaning

A: This answer choice incorrectly refers to the plural noun "drawings" with the singular verb "shows".

B: This answer choice incorrectly refers to the plural noun "drawings" with the singular verb "shows". Further, Option B alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "that the buildings were"; the construction of this phrase illogically implies that the drawings indicate that the buildings were literally located in an imaginary Wild West; the intended meaning is that; the intended meaning is that within the drawings, the buildings are depicted in an imaginary Wild West.

C: Correct. This answer choice correctly refers to the plural noun "drawings" with the plural verb "show". Further, Option C uses the phrase "show the buildings", conveying the intended meaning - that within the drawings, the buildings are depicted in an imaginary Wild West.

D: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "show the buildings as being"; the construction of this phrase illogically implies that the drawings indicate that the buildings were literally located in an imaginary Wild West; the intended meaning is that; the intended meaning is that within the drawings, the buildings are depicted in an imaginary Wild West.

E: This answer choice alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "show the buildings to have been"; the construction of this phrase illogically implies that the drawings indicate that the buildings were literally located in an imaginary Wild West; the intended meaning is that; the intended meaning is that within the drawings, the buildings are depicted in an imaginary Wild West.

Hence, C is the best answer choice.

All the best!
Experts' Global Team

In GMAT the usage of 'being' is usually considered redundant or usually replaced with simple present verb.

As explained in this article https://e-gmat.com/blog/gmat-verbal/sen ... -questions
'being' is usually used under two conditions
1. as a noun
-> Being an early riser helps to get more things done
2. passive continuous verb tense
-> The goods are being loaded into the truck as we speak

However, in option D the usage of 'as being' doesn't perform any of the above role.

In option C, the meaning is more clear-> 'He didn't build houses on the prairie. However, drawings on his work show buildings in places with prairies.'

Why is E incorrect? Could someone explain? I am confused between C and E.

The subject here is the drawings, which is plural and it should take the plural verb show.
A and B are out because of SVA error.
The statement talks about the past 1910 thus the usage of present perfect have been is incorrect.
Anand in his earlier post has already explained why D is incorrect that leaves us with option C

'have been' is present perfect progressive - this usage indicates an action which began in past and continues to be true in the present and might continue into the future.

The issue with option 'E' is that the present perfect progressive tense is used to refer to the fact that the 'drawings show the buildings in the vast spaces' - this is more of a fact than a real action -> hence, the simple present tense usage (as in option C).

The analysis of Anandkumar is correct except that the tense is present perfect, not present perfect progressive. Nonetheless the reason mentioned is logical.

Hi sayantanc2k,

Please have a look on OG 12 , SC Q73
________________________________________________________
Combining enormous physical strength with higher
intelligence, the Neanderthals appear as equipped for
facing any obstacle the environment could put in their
path, but their relatively sudden disappearance during
the Paleolithic era indicates that an inability to adapt
to some environmental change led to their extinction.

(A) appear as equipped for facing any obstacle the
environment could put in their path,

(B) appear to have been equipped to face any
obstacle the environment could put in their path,

(C) appear as equipped to face any obstacle the
environment could put in their paths,

(D) appeared as equipped to face any obstacle the
environment could put in their paths,

(E) appeared to have been equipped for facing any
obstacle the environment could put in their path,

Verb form; Diction
Because Neanderthals “disappeared,” the verb
describing their apparent abilities cannot be
present tense, so as equipped must be changed to to
have been equipped. Th e expression equipped to face
is clearer and more direct than equipped for facing.
A As equipped indicates that Neanderthals still
appear this way; equipped should be followed
by an infi nitive form instead of a
prepositional phrase.
B Correct. Th e verb tense clearly indicates
that the current evidence is about
Neanderthals in the past.
C As equipped does not indicate that
Neanderthals appeared this way in the past;
while individual Neanderthals may well
have followed different paths, this sentence
is about the single evolutionary path taken
by Neanderthals as a species.
D Present-tense appear is needed to parallel
present-tense indicates and to reinforce that
this is current evidence about Neanderthals
in the past; as in C, paths should be singular.
________________________________________________________

As you can see, in this correct option we use present perfect tense "to have been" for Neanderthals. (But Neanderthals became extinct a way back)

If we are making some conclusion AT PRESENT on PAST things than we need to use "to have been"

Therefore, according to me the usage of "to have been" in option E should not be wrong because its present-perfect tense.
Actually, I opted for E but its incorrect.

May be its incorrect because it is wordy.

Whats your opinion.

Thanks

Thank you for pointing out. Yes, I agree with you. While analysing the explanation of anandkumar88, I missed out that the perfect tense occurs within an infinitive. Such constructions, to+participle, are called perfect infinitives and have the peculiarity that they can be used to depict past as well as future event:

1. To depict a past event: Neanderthals appear to have been equipped to face any obstacle.
2. To depict a future event: I expect to have finished my preparation by next Monday.

Hi GMATNinja ,

I know in one of my previous questions you told me not to worry about hypothetical answers, but I really just want to nail down the meaning on this one. Is it because of the word IMAGINARY that makes the meaning illogical? So if the context is not imaginary and there were actual drawings of houses in the wild west, then there wouldn't be a meaning issue here, right?

Please help, I answered E

Thanks.

None of the houses that Frank Lloyd Wright built in the Prairie Style actually stood on the prairie, though the drawings in the 1910 Wasmuth edition of his work shows the buildings in the vast spaces of an imaginary Wild West.

A. work shows the buildings
B. work shows that the buildings were
C. works show the buildings
D. works show the buildings as being
E. works show the buildings to have been

Let me say that an element of ellipsis has been forgotten in this question. The elided word is ' built" that is required o be placed at the beginning of the free part after the underlined part.

As such, the choices have to be understood as

A. work shows the buildings (built)
B. work shows that the buildings were(built)
C. works show the buildings(built)
D. works show the buildings as being(built)
E. works show the buildings to have been(built).

The elided word 'built' is a past participle and not a past tense verb

Now I think that the picture may be clear. Let us appreciate that in E, the infinitive ('to have been') is a verbal and therefore takes its tense from the main clause, which in the context is 'past'. One cannot envisage a scene in which FLW comes down to earth again to paint them for the future. A simple past tense for a random event would be better than an infinitive that may mislead that the FLW built them with an intention.

Yet another sore point in this question is the casual use of the word 'built' in the early part. The painter never built any house. He only drew them. People may inadvertently think he was also a builder.

That said, therefore C is the best choice.

I think you are on the right track here. Yes, the buildings certainly were not actually located in an imaginary Wild West.

Also, the word "though" implies a contradiction between the first part of the sentence and the second: the drawings show the buildings in the vast open spaces of an imaginary Wild West [even] THOUGH none of the houses actually stood on the prairie. Even without the word "imaginary", we can infer that the locations in the drawings do not represent the actual locations of the buildings. The word "imaginary" confirms this interpretation.

(D) and (E) seem to suggest that the drawings somehow show that the buildings were located in places where the buildings never actually stood, and that is what makes the meaning illogical.

I hope that helps!

I eliminated A & B because the subject is Drawings and thus the Verb has to a plural. I want to know the role of "WORK" ->
Should it be work or works. And also the reason behind the asnwer.

You're correct: "drawings" is the subject. "Work" (or "works") is a noun here, referring to Wright's architectural designs.

The reasons behind the correct answer are explained in detail here. If that doesn't help, let us know.

Hello, babloorudra. You bring up a good point here: work or works can be used to refer to the same body of drawings, poems, songs, or other types of art. It is perfectly acceptable to use either in a sentence, but the choice of word conveys a different meaning. Compare:

1) The work of Leonardo da Vinci moves many viewers.
Meaning: The paintings/drawings in general that Leonardo da Vinci produced are emotionally moving to many people.

2) The works of Leonardo da Vinci move many viewers.
Meaning: There is a certain specificity about this one that suggests the speaker has particular works in mind that are emotionally moving. If I came across this sentence in a passage, I would expect it to be flanked by the names of such works.

In the sentence at hand, I think we are looking at more of a type 2 situation. The sentence, with the correct answer:

None of the houses that Frank Lloyd Wright built in the Prairie Style actually stood on the prairie, though the drawings in the 1910 Wasmuth edition of his works show the buildings in the vast spaces of an imaginary Wild West.

Here, the reference to specific drawings in a certain edition of a publication on the works of Frank Lloyd Wright is fitting--i.e. certain works are depicted. I hope that helps with your query. (GMATNinja already did a fine job above explaining the rationale behind the correct and incorrect answer choices.)

- Andrew

GMATNinja

Isn't (E) wrong here because "to have been" indicates that the buildings were in the vast spaces in the past but no longer so sometime later in the past?

Hello gmatimothy,

We hope this finds you well.

To answer your query, your reasoning here is correct; "to have been" is a perfect infinitive verb form (“to + have + past participle” – “to have been” in this sentence), a verb form used to refer to the earlier of two actions in the past, refer to hypothetical actions, and actions that will be completed in the future; thus, its use here incorrectly implies that the drawings of the buildings stopped being set in the vast spaces of an imaginary Wild West at some point in the past.

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

You can think of the "to have been" as a modifier for the main verb of the sentence. Since "to have been" is not, by itself, a verb with a prescribed tense, there's some flexibility when it comes to the timing. Consider these examples:

• "The photo shows the man to be in the park." - Does this mean he's in the park now? Or just at the time the photo was taken? The latter seems more logical, but since "to be" doesn't have a tense, it's unclear.
• "The photo shows the man to have been in the park." - So it's a photo of a man in a park, and the fact that he's in the park SHOWS that he must HAVE BEEN in the park at some point in the past (whenever the photo was taken)? Or is it a photo of a dude with mud on his clothes, and the evidence in the photo shows that he must have been in the park at some point BEFORE the photo was taken? Again, it's not entirely clear.
• "The photo shows the man in the park." - Without those confusing infinitive phrases, this one is much easier to ingest: it's a picture of a man in the park. End of story.

Choice (E) is like the second example above, and I think the timing is equally unclear. Are we saying that the buildings were in the vast spaces at the time the drawings were made? Or at some time BEFORE the drawings were made?

That said, because "to have been" is not, by itself, a verb with a tense, I'm reluctant to eliminate it on that basis alone. More importantly, as discussed in our original explanation, "to have been" makes it sound as though the buildings are literally present in an imaginary Wild West and have been for some time, and that doesn't make any sense, regardless of the timeline.

Choice (C), like the third "photo" example above, is more sensible and less confusing. It's a drawing of a building in the vast spaces of an imaginary Wild West -- and that's definitely clearer.

I hope that clears things up!