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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 19 May 2021, 03:38
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I thought semicolon only connects independent clauses?

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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 19 May 2021, 05:37
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Bambi2021
I thought semicolon only connects independent clauses?
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Hi Bambi2021, one application of semi-colon obviously is that it is used to connect two Independent clauses.

Consider this as another application of semi-colon: to connect various elements in a list, when each element has further sub-elements.

The correct option here is:

Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them; common humanity, an empathy with the suffering of others; and self-kindness, a recognition of your own suffering and a commitment to solving the problem.

Because of the use of semi-colons, there is a clear demarcation of various elements and sub-elements (within each element):

i) Element-1: mindfulness; sub-element-1: an appositive describing Element-1 - the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them

ii) Element-2: common humanity; sub-element-2: an appositive describing Element-2 - an empathy with the suffering of others

iii) Element-3: self-kindness; sub-element-3: an appositive describing Element-3 - a recognition of your own suffering and a commitment to solving the problem

Now, in this correct option, let us see what happens if the sentence had used commas instead of semi-colons:

Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them, common humanity, an empathy with the suffering of others, and self-kindness, a recognition of your own suffering and a commitment to solving the problem.

Notice how confusing the above sentence is, because all we see is an almost infinite series of commas, making it extremely difficult for us to make sense of how each element and sub-element is demarcated. The use of semi-colons neatly solves this interpretation conundrum.

Another similar official question that comes to my mind:

First discovered more than 30 years ago, Lina's sunbird, a four-and-a-half-inch animal found in the Philippines and resembling a hummingbird, has shimmering metallic colors on its head; a brilliant orange patch, bordered with red tufts, in the center of its breast; and a red eye.

Again, notice a similar use of semi-colons in the above sentence.
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 27 Jul 2021, 21:07
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How can the three elements of the list be treated as independent clauses, given that they're talking about a common subject?
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 03 Jul 2022, 09:45
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AndrewN

Need super help here! Copying certain sentence from the below post for better understanding.

1. ''When Tim gave dog food to his daughter for a snack, Maria couldn't tell if he was being a jerk or showing signs of extreme sleep deprivation."

--In above sentence, 'being' or 'showing' as -ing verbal modifying the pronoun 'HE' after jumping a verb. Is that acceptable usage on?

I think 'was being' is a verb here with 'was' as aiding verb. If that is the case, are two entities parallel across 'OR'


2. In the original question we have this absolute phrase- ''the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried or repressing them''

Now, What are the modified entities for 'being carried' and 'repressing them''

I think, ''being carried'' can not modify emotions but a human. And 'repressing them is modifying 'thoughts and emotions''. Thus not parallel ??

In such special cases where 'being carried'' is used together, does 'carried' modify noun ( a person in this case) or 'ing verbal' itself ? A big confusion.


Kindly help!



GMATNinja
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Hi - can you please explain the ruole around this - We can eliminate options B & E because they don't use an -ing word to make them parallel to "being carried away."

Anytime you encounter a parallel marker, such as "or," "and," or "but," the marker will be used to connect similar forms. For example:

    "When Tim gave dog food to his daughter for a snack, Maria couldn't tell if he was being a jerk or showing signs of extreme sleep deprivation."

In this case, because we have VERB-ing after the parallel marker "or," it's likely that we'll see VERB-ing earlier in the sentence to pair with the later instance, so "being" is parallel to "showing." Both VERB-ing words serve as adjectives describing poor Tim.

Now, keep in mind that parallelism isn't about simply seeking out elements that look the same. I can enjoy swimming and tennis. Here, "swimming" and "tennis," though they don't look alike, are both nouns, and so can be logically parallel to one another. So that's the real test: is the parallel marker connecting two elements that are playing the same role in the sentence?

In (B), we have the following: "the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away, or repression." In this case, "being" is functioning like an adverb, describing the action "to manage." "Repression," on the other hand, is functioning as a noun, and so cannot be parallel to an adverb. (B) is out.

Now take a look at (E): "the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repress them." Again, "being" is functioning as an adverb, not now "repress" is functioning as a verb. Not parallel, so (E) is out.

In the OA, we have "the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried or repressing them..." Now "being" and "repressing" are both offering context for how "to manage thoughts." The forms are logically parallel, so this works.

I hope that helps!
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 03 Jul 2022, 11:35
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AndrewN

Need super help here! Copying certain sentence from the below post for better understanding.

1. ''When Tim gave dog food to his daughter for a snack, Maria couldn't tell if he was being a jerk or showing signs of extreme sleep deprivation."

--In above sentence, 'being' or 'showing' as -ing verbal modifying the pronoun 'HE' after jumping a verb. Is that acceptable usage on?

I think 'was being' is a verb here with 'was' as aiding verb. If that is the case, are two entities parallel across 'OR'


2. In the original question we have this absolute phrase- ''the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried or repressing them''

Now, What are the modified entities for 'being carried' and 'repressing them''

I think, ''being carried'' can not modify emotions but a human. And 'repressing them is modifying 'thoughts and emotions''. Thus not parallel ??

In such special cases where 'being carried'' is used together, does 'carried' modify noun ( a person in this case) or 'ing verbal' itself ? A big confusion.


Kindly help!
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To be honest, himanshu0123, I think both of your questions are answered in the post you quoted. Furthermore, if you have queries on a post written by GMATNinja, I would suggest you follow up with GMAT Ninja. I am sure he could provide clarity on his own words better than I ever could. (I knew it was a GMAT Ninja post as soon as I saw Tim make an appearance.)

I appreciate your thinking to ask for my help, all the same. I look forward to seeing what Charles has to say.

- Andrew
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 03 Jul 2022, 14:21
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AndrewN

My bad! I will wait until Charles GMATNinja returns.

Meanwhile, may i ask you a simple qsn on parallelism. Below sentence has 'noun+RPC and 'noun+ing verbal'' Is this fine. Have we seen any such issues in OG?


1. The mountainous terrain of Greece, which proves difficult for other stock-raising, such as bovine production, and the climatic conditions allowing for long periods of grazing have made sheep breeding a most important section of animal husbandry in Greece since ancient times.




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himanshu0123
AndrewN

Need super help here! Copying certain sentence from the below post for better understanding.

1. ''When Tim gave dog food to his daughter for a snack, Maria couldn't tell if he was being a jerk or showing signs of extreme sleep deprivation."

--In above sentence, 'being' or 'showing' as -ing verbal modifying the pronoun 'HE' after jumping a verb. Is that acceptable usage on?

I think 'was being' is a verb here with 'was' as aiding verb. If that is the case, are two entities parallel across 'OR'


2. In the original question we have this absolute phrase- ''the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried or repressing them''

Now, What are the modified entities for 'being carried' and 'repressing them''

I think, ''being carried'' can not modify emotions but a human. And 'repressing them is modifying 'thoughts and emotions''. Thus not parallel ??

In such special cases where 'being carried'' is used together, does 'carried' modify noun ( a person in this case) or 'ing verbal' itself ? A big confusion.


Kindly help!
To be honest, himanshu0123, I think both of your questions are answered in the post you quoted. Furthermore, if you have queries on a post written by GMATNinja, I would suggest you follow up with GMAT Ninja. I am sure he could provide clarity on his own words better than I ever could. (I knew it was a GMAT Ninja post as soon as I saw Tim make an appearance.)

I appreciate your thinking to ask for my help, all the same. I look forward to seeing what Charles has to say.

- Andrew
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 03 Jul 2022, 15:06
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himanshu0123
AndrewN

My bad! I will wait until Charles GMATNinja returns.

Meanwhile, may i ask you a simple qsn on parallelism. Below sentence has 'noun+RPC and 'noun+ing verbal'' Is this fine. Have we seen any such issues in OG?


1. The mountainous terrain of Greece, which proves difficult for other stock-raising, such as bovine production, and the climatic conditions allowing for long periods of grazing have made sheep breeding a most important section of animal husbandry in Greece since ancient times.
Show more
No worries, himanshu0123. Out of respect for other Experts, I like to let them follow up on queries that pertain to their own posts, rather than jumping in on their behalf (unless I know that that person is no longer active on the site). Regarding your hypothetical sentence, it is functional, even if I would expect to see tighter parallelism in an official SC question. Remember, and I will almost certainly echo GMATNinja here, SC is not about asking what is possible, but about assessing the five options you are presented within the context of that sentence and seeking a grammatically sound iteration that also happens to be clear and concise. There are many moving parts, and worrying about covering all bases would ultimately prove counterproductive to your studies. If you do come across an official SC sentence in which the OA seems to break some rule, that is the time to revise your understanding and ask for help as needed. (I cannot think of any questions off the top of my head that hold a relative clause and a modifying phrase in parallel, but I am open to that possibility.)

- Andrew
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 08 Jul 2022, 12:52
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Is my understanding of parallel items correct in below option

A. Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them


''being carried'' can not modify emotions but a human. And 'repressing them is modifying 'thoughts and emotions''. Thus not parallel ??


Moreover, 'without being carried' is a prepositional modifier and thus not parallel to ing verbal 'repressing'.

In such special cases where 'being carried'' is used together, does 'carried' modify noun (a person in this case who is not explicitly mentioned) or 'ing verbal i.e being' itself ?
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 24 Jul 2022, 03:44
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1. My query is related to the phrase '' the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them''.


I understood the meaning as:

??? One's ability to manage thoughts without being carried away. Here 'being' is referring to person specific. ((implied but not mentioned))

??? 2nd part: the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without repressing them. Here, 'repressing' is modifying the emotions


But I think, 'being carried'' can not modify emotions but a human. And 'repressing them is modifying 'thoughts and emotions''. Will it be parallel then?
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 24 Jul 2022, 13:44
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Anshul1223333
1. My query is related to the phrase '' the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them''.


I understood the meaning as:

??? One's ability to manage thoughts without being carried away. Here 'being' is referring to person specific. ((implied but not mentioned))

??? 2nd part: the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without repressing them. Here, 'repressing' is modifying the emotions


But I think, 'being carried'' can not modify emotions but a human. And 'repressing them is modifying 'thoughts and emotions''. Will it be parallel then?
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Hi Anshul.

Both "being carried away" and "repressing them" are things that a person would do.

That part of the sentence communicates that mindfulness is the ability a person has to manage thoughts and emotions without that person's being carried away or that person's repressing them.

So, yes, "being carried away or repressing" is a parallel list.
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 24 Jul 2022, 22:58
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MartyTargetTestPrep

Thank you, Marty! It did help!


MartyTargetTestPrep
Anshul1223333
1. My query is related to the phrase '' the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them''.


I understood the meaning as:

??? One's ability to manage thoughts without being carried away. Here 'being' is referring to person specific. ((implied but not mentioned))

??? 2nd part: the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without repressing them. Here, 'repressing' is modifying the emotions


But I think, 'being carried'' can not modify emotions but a human. And 'repressing them is modifying 'thoughts and emotions''. Will it be parallel then?
Hi Anshul.

Both "being carried away" and "repressing them" are things that a person would do.

That part of the sentence communicates that mindfulness is the ability a person has to manage thoughts and emotions without that person's being carried away or that person's repressing them.

So, yes, "being carried away or repressing" is a parallel list.
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 02 Dec 2022, 15:47
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Quote:
Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them, common humanity, or empathy with the suffering of others, and self-kindness, a recognition of your own suffering and a commitment to solving the problem.

(A) away or repressing them, common humanity, or empathy with the suffering of others,
(B) away, or repression of them, and common humanity, or empathy with the suffering of others,
(C) away, or repressing them, common humanity, empathy with the suffering of others;
(D) away or repressing them; common humanity, an empathy with the suffering of others;
(E) away or repress them; common humanity, to empathize with the suffering of others
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As COMMA is also in underlined part, we should be careful on it! There is a highly chance to replace that COMMA with another one (semi-colon or no punctuation)
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 02 Dec 2022, 16:25
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Quote:
Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them, common humanity, or empathy with the suffering of others, and self-kindness, a recognition of your own suffering and a commitment to solving the problem.

(A) away or repressing them, common humanity, or empathy with the suffering of others,
(B) away, or repression of them, and common humanity, or empathy with the suffering of others,
(C) away, or repressing them, common humanity, empathy with the suffering of others;
(D) away or repressing them; common humanity, an empathy with the suffering of others;
(E) away or repress them; common humanity, to empathize with the suffering of others
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Request Expert Reply:
What types of modification the to solving is, actually? We normally don't add ING with verb after preposition to!
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 25 Jan 2023, 17:02
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RonPurewal

1) according to one of the past instructors in the below, the being carried away is both a passive construction and ING NOUN/gerund. so I understand the without X or Y explanation that rendered E wrong.
However, can the ability to X apply to "repress" in the....without being carried away or repress them part? is it not valid because them cannot be a pronoun for the "thoughts and emotions"?
https://gmatclub.com/forum/?href=-ple ... tml#259089

2) In option B, I have seen everyday usage that uses ", or insert phrase here" to modify or elaborate an action and circumstances by serving as an appositive phrase.
correct me if that is not right. I was looking to see if somehow I missed a possible parallelism in B , common humanity given the first "or" is used as an appositive phrase. B) is sort of a train wreck of parallelism. initially thought it might be
something like a list parallelism: X, Y, and Z and within the element X, you have another appositive phrase that uses Or. but that is not standard usage, unidiomatic.
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 31 Jan 2023, 16:35
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RonPurewal

according to one of the past instructors in the below, the being carried away is both a passive construction and ING NOUN/gerund. so I understand the without X or Y explanation that rendered E wrong.However, can the ability to X apply to "repress" in the....without being carried away or repress them part? is it not valid because them cannot be a pronoun for the "thoughts and emotions"?https://gmatclub.com/forum/?href=-please-explain-being-t58684.html#259089

In option B, I have seen everyday usage that uses ", or insert phrase here" to modify or elaborate an action and circumstances by serving as an appositive phrase.correct me if that is not right. I was looking to see if somehow I missed a possible parallelism in B , common humanity given the first "or" is used as an appositive phrase. B) is sort of a train wreck of parallelism. initially thought it might besomething like a list parallelism: X, Y, and Z and within the element X, you have another appositive phrase that uses Or. but that is not standard usage, unidiomatic.
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Don't overcomplicate things!

It looks like self-compassion is made up of three things here: 1) mindfulness; 2) common humanity; and 3) self-kindness. Because each of those elements is modified by a phrase set off by a comma, the three elements need to be separated by a semicolon, so that it's clear when one element ends and the next begins. (Otherwise, it's basically impossible to tell what's a modifier and what's yet another element in the list -- they all kind of blur together.) The only option that does this clearly and correctly is (D).

And for what it's worth, there's no reason why you couldn't have a parallel construction, such as "without being x or repressing y." And there's no reason why "them" can't refer to "thought and emotions." As long as there's a plural noun somewhere that "them" could logically stand in for, it's fine. And if you're not sure about an issue, don't use it as a decision point. Simple as that.

The takeaway: focus on concrete issues first when you tackle SC questions! We only want to wrestle with the elements we're confused about if we absolutely have to.

I hope that clears things up!
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 07 Feb 2023, 20:06
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RonPurewal

according to one of the past instructors in the below, the being carried away is both a passive construction and ING NOUN/gerund. so I understand the without X or Y explanation that rendered E wrong.However, can the ability to X apply to "repress" in the....without being carried away or repress them part? is it not valid because them cannot be a pronoun for the "thoughts and emotions"?https://gmatclub.com/forum/?href=-please-explain-being-t58684.html#259089

In option B, I have seen everyday usage that uses ", or insert phrase here" to modify or elaborate an action and circumstances by serving as an appositive phrase.correct me if that is not right. I was looking to see if somehow I missed a possible parallelism in B , common humanity given the first "or" is used as an appositive phrase. B) is sort of a train wreck of parallelism. initially thought it might besomething like a list parallelism: X, Y, and Z and within the element X, you have another appositive phrase that uses Or. but that is not standard usage, unidiomatic.
Don't overcomplicate things!

It looks like self-compassion is made up of three things here: 1) mindfulness; 2) common humanity; and 3) self-kindness. Because each of those elements is modified by a phrase set off by a comma, the three elements need to be separated by a semicolon, so that it's clear when one element ends and the next begins. (Otherwise, it's basically impossible to tell what's a modifier and what's yet another element in the list -- they all kind of blur together.) The only option that does this clearly and correctly is (D).

And for what it's worth, there's no reason why you couldn't have a parallel construction, such as "without being x or repressing y." And there's no reason why "them" can't refer to "thought and emotions." As long as there's a plural noun somewhere that "them" could logically stand in for, it's fine. And if you're not sure about an issue, don't use it as a decision point. Simple as that.

The takeaway: focus on concrete issues first when you tackle SC questions! We only want to wrestle with the elements we're confused about if we absolutely have to.

I hope that clears things up!
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GMATNinja
thanks for response. With regard to 1), I want to clarify that whether the root phrase "the ability to" manage thoughts and emotions.... or to repress them in E) is acceptable? I noticed that the end of E does not have a semicolon as does the correct answer.
as you mentioned, the use of open parallel marker – or, and, and but – relies on the element that came after the "or" to determine what needs to be parallel. I thought I could argue the ability to repress is the intended parallel..

as a side note, How can I know if the modifier applies to A in the case of A and B+modifier without much context?? e.g., I learned a great deal on this problem from the gmatninja and students lurking on the forum. technically, the modifier - lurking ...could be applied to both gmatninja and students.
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 08 Feb 2023, 04:43
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M838TE

With regard to 1), I want to clarify that whether the root phrase "the ability to" manage thoughts and emotions.... or to repress them in E) is acceptable? I noticed that the end of E does not have a semicolon as does the correct answer.
as you mentioned, the use of open parallel marker – or, and, and but – relies on the element that came after the "or" to determine what needs to be parallel. I thought I could argue the ability to repress is the intended parallel..

as a side note, How can I know if the modifier applies to A in the case of A and B+modifier without much context?? e.g., I learned a great deal on this problem from the gmatninja and students lurking on the forum. technically, the modifier - lurking ...could be applied to both gmatninja and students.
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Hey M838TE,

Happy to help you with this.

The quick answer to your question is "NO. The ability to manage...or to repress..." (as in choice E) is UNACCEPTABLE".

Here's why:

You need to understand that you are wrong, not from a grammatical standpoint but from a LOGICAL one. Now, we've said this so many times before and continue to say it now, "you must derive the intended meaning of the sentence BEFORE wrangling with grammatical correctness." The only way to figure out whether a grammatical structure is acceptable is to first know clearly what the author wishes to say. Let's understand:

  1. Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repressing them.
  2. Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or to repress them.
  3. Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoughts and emotions without being carried away or repress them.

Each of the above is GRAMMATICALLY CORRECT. Now, although it can be argued that sentence 2 above is slightly better than sentence 3 (grammatically), sentence 3 isn't exactly grammatically incorrect. The reason is that "repress" has only one other parallel verb: "manage". So, although sentence 2 is slightly easier to comprehend, sentence 3 isn't technically, grammatically wrong.

However, both sentences 2 and 3 fail to convey the INTENDED MEANING of the author. Just ask yourself, "what is the meaning of "mindfulness" as per the author?".

Mindfulness is
  • The ability to manage thoughts and emotions
    • without being carried away or
    • without repressing those emotions

Mindfulness is NOT the ability to repress thoughts and emotions. This is the OPPOSITE of the intended meaning. If you're repressing thoughts and emotions, you're not really being "MINDFUL", are you?

So, to conclude, you are right about the grammatical concept. What you're faltering at is Logical Thinking and deriving the Intended Meaning.

I hope this helps improve your understanding. Please feel free to revert if you still have questions.

Happy Learning!

Abhishek
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 13 Feb 2023, 09:47
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M838TE
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according to one of the past instructors in the below, the being carried away is both a passive construction and ING NOUN/gerund. so I understand the without X or Y explanation that rendered E wrong.However, can the ability to X apply to "repress" in the....without being carried away or repress them part? is it not valid because them cannot be a pronoun for the "thoughts and emotions"?https://gmatclub.com/forum/?href=-please-explain-being-t58684.html#259089

In option B, I have seen everyday usage that uses ", or insert phrase here" to modify or elaborate an action and circumstances by serving as an appositive phrase.correct me if that is not right. I was looking to see if somehow I missed a possible parallelism in B , common humanity given the first "or" is used as an appositive phrase. B) is sort of a train wreck of parallelism. initially thought it might besomething like a list parallelism: X, Y, and Z and within the element X, you have another appositive phrase that uses Or. but that is not standard usage, unidiomatic.

Don't overcomplicate things!

It looks like self-compassion is made up of three things here: 1) mindfulness; 2) common humanity; and 3) self-kindness. Because each of those elements is modified by a phrase set off by a comma, the three elements need to be separated by a semicolon, so that it's clear when one element ends and the next begins. (Otherwise, it's basically impossible to tell what's a modifier and what's yet another element in the list -- they all kind of blur together.) The only option that does this clearly and correctly is (D).

And for what it's worth, there's no reason why you couldn't have a parallel construction, such as "without being x or repressing y." And there's no reason why "them" can't refer to "thought and emotions." As long as there's a plural noun somewhere that "them" could logically stand in for, it's fine. And if you're not sure about an issue, don't use it as a decision point. Simple as that.

The takeaway: focus on concrete issues first when you tackle SC questions! We only want to wrestle with the elements we're confused about if we absolutely have to.

I hope that clears things up!

GMATNinja

thanks for response. With regard to 1), I want to clarify that whether the root phrase "the ability to" manage thoughts and emotions.... or to repress them in E) is acceptable? I noticed that the end of E does not have a semicolon as does the correct answer.

as you mentioned, the use of open parallel marker – or, and, and but – relies on the element that came after the "or" to determine what needs to be parallel. I thought I could argue the ability to repress is the intended parallel..

as a side note, How can I know if the modifier applies to A in the case of A and B+modifier without much context?? e.g., I learned a great deal on this problem from the gmatninja and students lurking on the forum. technically, the modifier - lurking ...could be applied to both gmatninja and students.
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It wouldn't make sense to describe "mindfulness" as "the ability to repress thoughts and emotions" -- mindfulness is the ability to manage thoughts and emotions WITHOUT repressing them.

So, yes, you could argue that the parallelism in (E) is grammatically okay. But the parallelism creates an illogical meaning, and that's not great.

Quote:
How can I know if the modifier applies to A in the case of A and B+modifier without much context??
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In short: you can't! It's the GMAT, and context is crucial. Unfortunately, there are no rules you can memorize and apply to avoid thinking about the meaning.

And remember, GMAT SC is about comparing your options and looking for the BEST one, not looking at single sentences in a bubble and labeling them "wrong" or "right". Often, it's useful to ask yourself: is the role of the modifier clear in one option and less clear in another? If so, then you probably have a vote against the less clear option.

Likewise, is the role of the modifier pretty obvious, even though you could technically do some mental gymnastics to create an illogical meaning? If the logical meaning is fairly clear and obvious -- but it takes some effort to force an illogical meaning -- then the sentence is probably okay. But again, it all depends on how well that option stacks up against your other choices.

As described in our sentence correction guide for beginners (and also in this video), you'll want to find the DEFINITE errors first, and then focus on comparing the remaining choices based on meaning.

I hope that helps!
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug Updated on: 06 Mar 2023, 18:35
Originally posted by M838TE on 01 Mar 2023, 06:57.
Last edited by M838TE on 06 Mar 2023, 18:35, edited 1 time in total.
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GMATNinja


Quote:
How can I know if the modifier applies to A in the case of A and B+modifier without much context??

In short: you can't! It's the GMAT, and context is crucial. Unfortunately, there are no rules you can memorize and apply to avoid thinking about the meaning.

And remember, GMAT SC is about comparing your options and looking for the BEST one, not looking at single sentences in a bubble and labeling them "wrong" or "right". Often, it's useful to ask yourself: is the role of the modifier clear in one option and less clear in another? If so, then you probably have a vote against the less clear option.

Likewise, is the role of the modifier pretty obvious, even though you could technically do some mental gymnastics to create an illogical meaning? If the logical meaning is fairly clear and obvious -- but it takes some effort to force an illogical meaning -- then the sentence is probably okay. But again, it all depends on how well that option stacks up against your other choices.

As described in our sentence correction guide for beginners (and also in this video), you'll want to find the DEFINITE errors first, and then focus on comparing the remaining choices based on meaning.

I hope that helps!
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Duly noted. I assume this logic of context clue also applies to sentences that are structured in this way: subject+verb+(optional A object)+ "THAT" modifier+"AND" + some kind of phrase that is underlined? basically determining what does the underline part need to be parallel to, i.e., stuff that comes after "that" or the main clause.
Assuming the THAT modifier in itself contains a clause that also has a subject and a verb. I went to an easy high school that the curriculum is not conducive to a successful GMAT experience nor/and to a D1 athlete program. I am going to stop trying to make my own sentence now.... this sentence is so bad...but I hope you get my gist. what comes after the nor/and could also be a clause..
This question was prompted by your response in (E) in the link below. GMATNinja
https://gmatclub.com/forum/unlike-the-b ... l#p2014747
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Self-compassion is made up of mindfulness, the ability to manage thoug 03 Mar 2023, 09:31
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My only problem with this was that, i didnt know if we can use a semicolon and a conjuction side by side.
; and self-cons.......

that was the only thing that confused me with D.

Can someone shed light on the semicolon followed by a conjunction part?
its like using "and and"

or did i just read it all wrong?
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