Like many other philosophers from the early 20th century who wrote

Question

Like many other philosophers from the early 20th century who wrote books and articles about divisive political issues, the French philosopher Paul Ricoeur, regarded as one of the great intellectual peacemakers, also wrote controversial political works,  and they were as penetrating as those of his colleagues but were  less damaging to his reputation.

A. and they were as penetrating as those of his colleagues but were
B. and these works were as penetrating as his colleagues, but being
C. and, as penetrating as his colleagues’, but were
D. as penetrating as those of his colleagues, however, they were
E. as penetrating as his colleagues' however, it was

Hi this one is from Knewton

I have a question regarding the right answer
The "but" is a conjunction that connects two independent clauses (like and) and should be used with a comma (...,but)
Now in this sentence "but" is something else, since there is no comma preceding it and it is not followed by an independent clause, now in which category should i put this particular  "but"  ???

Can someone explain this to me ?

thanks

mehrasa · Answer

btween D and A
hmmmmmmmmm. I'll go with A
the only problem with D is the COMMA after 'political works'
about the COMMA uasked before BUT< to me, the sentence is concise and clear no need to be separated by COMMA

crick20002002 · Answer

The contention is between A and D. D however is a run of sentence

....controversial political works,  and as penetrating as those of his colleagues, however, they were  less damaging to his reputation=> this usage leads to two independent clauses seperated by a comma -

....controversial political works, and as penetrating as those of his colleagues
and
however, they were less damaging to his reputation

schandok · Answer

was a tough one b/w A and D. Picked A.

'as penetrating as those' seemed like a run-on.

dev4mba · Answer

Picked D

Thought "they" might refer to the other writers mentioned before.... did not consider it as a modifier modifying the works.

gautammalik · Answer

A - "they" and "those" refer to "works" - Correct
B - incorrect comparison - "works" are compared to "colleagues"
C - Awkward
D - run-on
E - run-on

Konstantin1983 · Answer

I have a question about D. Does "as penetrating as those of his colleagues" seem to modify "political works"? I mean can we omit this modifier and a sentence still makes sense? Or in initial sentence "and" is not underlined as shows Crick20002002?

gagan0001 · Answer

If we omit the modifier in option D then also the structure is incorrect as the clause beginning with however is an IC.

The French philosopher Paul Ricoeur also wrote controversial political works, as penetrating as those of his colleagues, 
 however, they were less damaging to his reputation . This clause is an IC

The 2 commas are for the modifier 'as penetrating as'. So the clause beginning with however is not connected at all.

Konstantin1983 · Answer

Thanks! Do you mean that semi-colon is needed before "however"? In this case this would be correct?

sayantanc2k · Answer

Yes, conjunctive adverbs such as  however ,  therefore  and  in addition  often require a semicolon before them since they often start a new independent clause. Thus option D with a semicolon before "however" would be correct.

chesstitans · Answer

right, D cannot be the answer.
The information cannot be placed between 2 commas because the information is important. Also, "however" indicates that the comparison, so only A is correct.

chrisbender · Answer

I was between A and D. I know why D is wrong, but doesn't the and in A need to be parallel to something? Or is it, and I am just missing it? Thanks

VISHNUNAMBI · Answer

Can you explain how to identify run on and eliminate it quickly because I find it very hard. It seems always correct in the POE technique

DmitryFarberMPrep · Answer

VISHNUNAMBI We have a run-on anytime we have a new subject and verb without a proper connection. The most common connections are the FANBOYS conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so). We can also use a semicolon (this works just like a period), or we can make one of the clauses dependent by starting it with something like "while, although, because," etc.

So in D or E, the word "however" creates a contrast between the two halves, but it isn't a connector. We need to end the previous clause with a semicolon before saying "however, they were . . . "

So in D or E, the word "however" creates a contrast between the two halves, but it isn't a connector. We need to end the previous clause with a semicolon before saying "however, they were . . . "

VISHNUNAMBI · Answer

Thanks for reply !! Will try to take care next time

VerbalBot · Answer

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Like many other philosophers from the early 20th century who wrote

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