MadaraU wrote:
Quote:
I rejected B because for following reason
b) the elaborate bowers of sticks and twigs that the males build and decorate with flowers and other vegetation in order to attract females
That is right next to noun twigs so it should modify twigs. Although if there was comma in between (shown as below), then I would have picked B without any doubt.
b) the elaborate bowers of sticks and twigs , that the males build and decorate with flowers and other vegetation in order to attract females
Can you someone please shed some light on this matter
MadaraU
Hi
Original B: The bowerbirds of Australia derive their name from the fact that the males build elaborate bowers of sticks and
twigs that the males build and decorate with flowers and other vegetation in order to attract females, decorating them with flowers and other vegetation in a display of courtship.
Your version: The bowerbirds of Australia derive their name from the elaborate bowers of sticks and
twigs, that the males build and decorate with flowers and other vegetation in order to attract females, decorating them with flowers and other vegetation in a display of courtship.
You can see the meaning goes awry with the introduction of the comma before that. When you put the comma, then the content between the two commas is rendered inessential and should not alter the intended meaning of the main sentence. If you remove the modifier, then the sentence reads:
The bowerbirds of Australia derive their name from the elaborate bowers of sticks and twigs decorating them with flowers and other vegetation in a display of courtship.
Now, who is decorating whom or what? It looks as though sticks and twigs or bowers of sticks and twigs are decorating the birds (them)
We can now see how weird the meaning changes. Logically, we know that the birds cannot build sticks and twigs but only bowers. Therefore, B is quite ok
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