The United Nations, in response to the ongoing Liberian

Question

The United Nations, in response to the ongoing Liberian Civil War, has recently approved the imposition of some  strict policies, which are specifically applicable to the volatile situation there 
A. strict policies, which are specifically applicable to the volatile situation there
B. strict policies, where the volatile situation can have these measures specifically applied to it
C. policies that are strict, measures specifically applicable to their volatile situation
D. strict policies, measures specifically applicable to Liberia’s volatile situation
E. policies that are strict and specifically applicable to the volatile situation there

Why A is wrong?

anshunadir · Accepted Answer

This question specifically tests the concept of pronoun ambiguity i.e. pronoun does not have a clear antecedent.

The United Nations, in response to the ongoing Liberian Civil War, has recently approved the imposition of some  strict policies, which are specifically applicable to the volatile situation there 
A. strict policies, which are specifically applicable to the volatile situation there   incorrect-there cannot refer to Liberian Civil War  
B. strict policies, where the volatile situation can have these measures specifically applied to it   incorrect-modifier issue  
C. policies that are strict, measures specifically applicable to their volatile situation   incorrect-again their has no clear antecedent  
D. strict policies, measures specifically applicable to Liberia’s volatile situation   -correct  
E. policies that are strict and specifically applicable to the volatile situation there   incorrect-there cannot refer to Liberian Civil War

Marcab · Answer

There is no referent for "there" in A and E.
Regards

fameatop · Answer

A. strict policies, which are specifically applicable to the volatile situation  there  - Use of THERE is incorrect.

What is the antecedent of THERE - Liberia (Noun).
Is Liberia actually mentioned in the previous clause - The answer is NO because Liberia is used as an Adjective rather than Noun. 
Because only Nouns can be antecedents for pronoun, the use of THERE is incorrect.

Hope it help
Fame

shootingforstars · Answer

I have recently started my gmat preparation. with every discussion on this site, I am discovering a new concept.

great questions. Awesome explanations. Thanks to everyone.

gorsar · Answer

In D measures refers to policies or the imposition?

mvictor · Answer

I believe that it should be a noun+noun modifier
otherwise D looks suspicious.

TestPrepUnlimited · Answer

The correct answer is D.

We need a noun + noun modifier or "that" because we are adding additional information about those policies, i.e. we are adding more detail about the policies rather than making them the subject of a subordinated clause. We could replace "which" with "that" in A to correct it. Also, we cannot use "there" to refer to the Liberian Civil War; we can only use it to reference a location.

arbazfatmi1994 · Answer

Liberia is used as an Adjective rather than as a Noun.

Please note that a pronoun can not refer back to an adjective, hence options with "there" are wrong - Eliminate A and E

Nrj0601 · Answer

KAPLAN Official Explanation

Read the Original Sentence Carefully, Looking for Errors:

In the original sentence, "there" must refer to Liberia, but notice that Liberia itself is not directly mentioned in the sentence, only the Liberian Civil War. The correct answer will remove this unclear reference. Eliminate (A).

Scan and Group the Answer Choices:

There's no clear way to group the remaining choices, so evaluate them one by one.

Eliminate Choices Until Only One Remains:

(B) is wrong because "where" clauses, unless they are used as adverbs, must refer directly to an actual place. In (B), there is no place for the "where" clause to modify. Additionally, the passive construction "can have these measures specifically applied to it" is wordy and cumbersome.

(C) replaces the concise "strict policies" with the unnecessarily wordier "policies that are strict." Furthermore, the pronoun "their" has no clear antecedent.

(D) avoids the vagueness of the other choices by using the possessive of 'Liberia' to state clearly where the volatile situation is occurring. It's likely correct, but check (E) to be sure.

(E) also uses the wordy "policies that are strict," and repeats the unclear use of "there".

(D) is correct.

TAKEAWAY: "There" needs to refer to a specific place mentioned in the sentence.

The United Nations, in response to the ongoing Liberian

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GMAT Sentence Correction (SC - EA only) Questions

The United Nations, in response to the ongoing Liberian

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615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

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