OFFICIAL EXPLANATIONgeneris wrote:
Project SC Butler: Sentence Correction (SC2)
She said she would not have jumped into the murky lake
if someone else were not to have jumped before her.
A) if someone else
were not to have jumped before her
B) if someone else
would not have jumped before her
C) if someone else
was not to have jumped before her
D) if someone else had not jumped before her
E) if someone else
has not jumped before her
• Strategy tip: rewrite conditional sentences when they are "backwards."That is, flip the sentence so that you see
IF X, then Y.Ignore the first two words and flip sentence P so that it looks like sentence Q:
→ P: She would not have jumped into the murky lake
if someone else were not to have jumped before her..
Flip the IF and the "main" (then) clause.
→ Q:
If someone else were not to have jumped before her,she would not have jumped into the murky lake.
• Type 3 Conditional This sentence is a tough case.
There are four main types of conditional (if/then) statements in English; this one falls into what is called a Type 3 conditional.
She refers to a time
in the past and describes a situation that is the
contrary to reality or the opposite of what happened.She asserts the probable result of that past.
She is not referring to an imaginary situation. This is not a hypothetical case.
She is talking about the opposite of what happened in the past.
In this situation, we use Conditional 3.
In Conditional 3 sentences, which are fairly rare on the GMAT, we use
IF past perfect, THEN perfect conditional
Past perfect?
= HAD + past participle (verbED)
Perfect conditional?
= WOULD + HAVE + past participle (verbED)
In affirmative Type 3 conditional sentences, we essentially write:
→
If this thing had happened, [then] that thing would have happened. We need to use negation, so we will tweak our model sentence slightly:
→
If THIS thing had not happened, then THAT thing would have happened.↑↑↑↑↑↑ Compare that phrasing to the correct answer and see whether you can see the analogous parts.
• Indicative MoodEnglish contains three major moods: indicative, imperative, subjunctive.
The indicative mood is used to make factual statements (including counterfactual statements).
This sentence will try to trick you into using the subjunctive mood, but remember that the subjunctive is only used to describe hypothetical situations and dreams.
Because the character actually did jump into the murky lake, the correct
mood is simply the past
indicative, and the correct tenses are perfect conditional and past perfect:
She said she would not have jumped into the murky lake if someone else had not jumped before her.→ Flipped:
If someone else had not jumped before her, she would not have jumped into the murky lake.• Process of EliminationOption A incorrectly uses a subjunctive verb
were not to have jumped.
→ We do not need the subjunctive.
→ This sentence does not discuss an
unreal situation.
Rather, it discusses a counterfactual one—its elements are the opposite of what happened.
Option B incorrectly uses
would [not] have jumped.That verb should hurt your ears.
Don't put
would in the if clause: "if" already expresses possibility.
Option C incorrectly states:
was not to have jumpedNonsensical. This phrasing can occasionally be shorthand for "was not
supposed to have jumped," but that means something different from what this sentence is after.
Finally, option E incorrectly uses the present perfect
has not jumped—as if that person and she were still waiting to see who would jump first. Wrong meaning.
Remember, we need
→ If THIS thing had not happened, then THAT thing would have happened.
→ If someone had not jumped into the lake before her, then she would have jumped into the lake.
Only answer D gives us this construction.
Eliminate A, B, C, and E.
The correct answer is D.COMMENTSCrytiocanalyst , of course you are bumped to Best Community Reply for being brave and diligent.
(Others who know that to post is to learn will also post. You will be at the top of community responders.)
And, because you alone took on this question, I found another post of yours and gave it kudos.
So you got two kudos today.
Nice work!