The Quechuans believed that all things participated in both the materi

This question is based on Construction.

In Option A, the pronoun ‘it’ is ambiguous as it its antecedent is not clear. As it stands, ‘it’ could refer to either the material level or the mystical level of reality. So, Option A can be eliminated.

Option B also contains the same ambiguous pronoun. So, Option B can be eliminated.

Option C clarifies what the Quechuans claimed to have contact with by using the noun instead of the pronoun.
However, the adverb ‘directly’ is misplaced in this option. As it is placed in the sentence, it seems to modify the preposition ‘through’, a function that is not performed by an adverb. So, Option C can be eliminated.

Option E also contains the misplaced adverb ‘directly’.
Moreover, the preposition ‘due to’ means “as a result of”. So, the sentence conveys the meaning that Quechuans claimed to have contact directly with the mystical level as a result of an ichana.
However, the other options contain a word that means that they claimed to have contact with mystical reality through or by means of an ichana. Since the meaning is distorted, Option E can be eliminated.

In Option D, the adjective ‘direct’ modifies the noun ‘contact’. The adjective ‘latter’ also helps to identify what the Quechuans claimed to have contact with. Moreover, the phrase ‘by means of’ correctly conveys the idea that it is through an ichana that the Quechuans claim to have contact with mystical reality.
Therefore, D is the most appropriate option.

Jayanthi Kumar.

pk6969 C and D are both grammatically fine as far as I can tell. There's no rule related to adverb proximity.
Therefore, I fear that your takeaway isn't going to improve your overall SC ability. I want to dig a bit deeper into the logic/meaning issue - that's a much more useful, generally applicable takeaway.
Here's an analogy:
(C) I get sunlight directly through this window.
(D) I get direct sunlight through this window.
Grammatically they're both perfectly fine. But they mean different things. Which of those do you think is the more likely, more sensible meaning?

The Quechuans believed that all things participated in both the material level and the mystical level of reality, and many individual Quechuans claimed to have contact with it directly with an ichana (dream) experience.

(A) contact with it directly with - Pronoun it does not have a clear antecdent

(B) direct contact with it by way of - Pronoun it does not have a clear antecdent

(C) contact with the last directly through - “with the last” is un-idiomatic

(D) direct contact with the latter by means of - Correct

(E) contact directly with the mystical level due to - Usage of due to is incorrect

Answer D

Alexiaint wrote


I am afraid not; the material level of reality is the former and the mystical level of reality is the latter. 'Of reality' is just a prepositional intermediary.

Hm, I thought the answer would be D.

So my thought between B vs D is that B uses "it" in which "it" refers to the compound subject "material level and mystical level", and since it is singular, that B could not be correct.

However I can see that "direct contact with the latter" is a bit complicated. Any thoughts experts?

The Quechuans believed that all things participated in both the material level and the mystical level of reality, and many individual Quechuans claimed to have contact with it directly with an ichana (dream) experience.

Option A and B: pronoun "it" is ambiguous since it cannot refer to any specifics.
Option C: "directly through" is ambiguous because we are not sure whether the actual contact is direct.
Option E: error in usage of "due to"

Only D left no error.

(A) contact with it directly with

(B) direct contact with it by way of

(C) contact with the last directly through

(D) direct contact with the latter by means of --- Correct

(E) contact directly with the mystical level due to


But OA is B? Need some expert explanation.

Choice A: Pronoun Reference Error.

Choice B: Pronoun Reference Error as in Choice A.

Choice C: The use of expression “with the last” is un-idiomatic.

Choice D: No errors.

Choice E: Use of “due to” changes the meaning of the sentence. The sentence now implies a cause and effect sequence – dream experience was the reason for the contact with mystical level of reality. The intended meaning however is that the contact with the mystical level of reality happened through the dream experience.

Thus, Choice D is the correct answer.

GMATNinja RonPurewal IanStewart DmitryFarber GMATGuruNY can anybody explain the usage of due to? In what context can this expression be used and what should follow it?

For more on the usage of "due to," check out this thread.

Examples of "due to" in official questions can be found here, here, here, and here. Enjoy!

I think (C) and (D) come down to a pretty significant difference in meaning, with regards to what it is exactly that the Quechuans claimed.

Is their claim about having contact with something, and this contact is achieved directly through a dream experience?
Or
Is their claim about having direct contact with something, and this direct contact is achieved thanks to a dream experience?

Do you see a difference in meaning? Which meaning do you think the author was attempting to convey?

Hi JulieLama, Here's an article in a medical journal with "direct sunlight" in the title.
Getting sunlight directly through a window doesn't have any meaning in my opinion. What would it look like to get sunlight indirectly through a window??
Regarding the original problem:
(C) people claimed to have contact with the mystical level of reality directly through a dream.
Can you try to explain what it means to have contact with something directly through a dream? perhaps in contrast with having contact with something indirectly through a dream?
I, for one, have no idea what that means nor how to explain the difference between the two. Seems like a nonsense statement to me (similar to getting sunlight directly through a window, in contrast with getting sunlight indirectly through a window).
(D) people claimed to have direct contact with the mystical level of reality by means of a dream.
This makes a lot more sense: you can have direct contact with things and you can have indirect contact with things (asking friends to give other people messages for you).

I'll echo Ajitesh here: there's nothing special about (A). It's one of five options, and your job is to pick the best of the five.

And this question is a good illustration of why it wouldn't make sense to have to preserve the meaning of (A): it's less clear/logical than some alternatives! (What is "it" here?) We wouldn't want to preserve an error just because it happens to show up first!

The problem with (C), as the late, great Daagh pointed out, is the use of "directly." Because "directly" is an adverb, it has to modify a verb or an adjective. The only thing it could be describing here is the action "claimed." But it makes far more sense to talk about "direct contact" with a form of reality -- as we see in (D) -- than to say that they "claimed" directly.

So that's the problem with (C). It's less logical than (D), which is our answer.

I hope that helps!

(D) The Quechuans believed that all things participated in both the material level and the mystical level of reality, and many individual Quechuans claimed to have direct contact with the latter by means of ...

Doesn't it sound like 'the latter' relates to 'reality' rather than to 'the mystical level'?

Hi! I am not sure how D is better than C. In C it is clear that what directly is modifying as an adverb. In fact I found D to be a bit odd because of phrase by means of. Is there any other point of elimination ? Help. IanStewart GMATNinja avigutman

Hi,

In option D , i saw the use of "means of" , but i read somewhere that 'means of ' refers to 'a type of '. correct my understanding what is wrong with my knowledge , and how does that usage fits here.

Thnanks

Definition of "means":
an action or system by which a result is brought about; a method.
"resolving disputes by peaceful means"

I think both meaning could make sense. Like, both meanings can be correct. But I got another point of distinction. In C, directly is a bit far from the verb its modifying. Though its not an absolute rule, but it surely gives D a plus point. Thats how I understood it.