This problem has floated through various forums with an incorrect OA. In order for A to be correct, it would need to use "those of" instead of "that of" to refer to the studies conducted for those earlier works (plural those to match with plural works).

The correct answer would be D, comparing the early works with his study.

KW
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"that" when used with "of" creates a possessive pronoun that needs to refer to some characterstic of the earlier studies, rather than the studies themselves. Additionally, it would be very rare to use "that of" when referring to a plural noun - we would usually use "those of". "that of" would only be correct if we were referring to some communal characterstic that the studies had as a group.

An example of proper usage of "that of" would be:

"Unlike that of earlier studies, the genre of Blassingame's study is..."

More likely, we'd see something like:

"Unlike those of earlier studies, the table of contents of Blassingame's study...".

In the posted sentence, we're comparing the studies themselves to Blassingame's study, so "that of" is 100% incorrect.

As an aside, we can definitely compare a group to a specific person.

The following are proper comparisons:

"Unlike most other hockey players, Wayne Gretzky was more excited about getting an assist than a goal."

"Like her co-workers, Melissa enjoyed a good drink at happy hour."

A is the correct answer as Blassingame’s study is compared to study of earlier work. "That" refers correctly to "study".

Unlike study of earlier work on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study- seems correct, no ambiguity.

D compares Blassingame’s study with earlier work and thus, makes comparison not parallel.

I can find no justification for A to be the right answer. I think its D. Would nothave been very disappointed had this question appeared and I had gone with D on the exam. A is just wrong for me.

Kudos Please... If my post helped.

In any case, i think D is correctly paired than A even though I initially chose A.
Take a look at the diagram I've attached and post if you have further reservations.

Unlike that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study relies not on the
records of White slave owners but on the records of the salves themselves, especially the
70 or so autobiographies and memoirs that have been preserved.

A. that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s "that" correctly refers to "study"
B. that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his wrong; compares works with Blessingame
C. earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his wrong; compares works with Blessingame
D. earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s wrong; At least IMO the problem here comes from the possesive Blessingame's; The example answer currently compares earlier works to this study
E. the earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his wrong; compares works with Blessingame

Unlike that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study relies not on the records of White slave owners but on the records of the salves themselves, especially the 70 or so autobiographies and memoirs that have been preserved.

First thing to address : the comparison.
All illogical comparisons must be wrong, so:
B. that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his
C. earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his
E. the earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his

Between A and D.
A. Unlike that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study
D. Unlike earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study

Please note that the correct answer is D and not A.
"that" is A has no reference. I mean in the comparisons "unlike ____, ____" the next part after the comma must complete the comparison: in D you have "unlike a work, a study" <== correct
Unlike X, Y (comparison X-Y) is the correct construct; unlike THAT of x, Y(comparison THAT-Y)
in A the subject of the comparison is not the work, but is "that" which has no reference. What is that?

That can refer to innovative study also right?

More than correct.

Unlike that=innovative study of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study relies not on the records of White slave owners but on the records of the salves themselves, especially the 70 or so autobiographies and memoirs that have been preserved.

makes no sense at all (unlike the study of works??)

Unlike that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study relies not on the records
of White slave owners but on the records of the salves themselves, especially the 70 or so
autobiographies and memoirs that have been preserved.

A. that of earlier words on slavery, Blassingame’s
B. that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his (Wrong --- two type of study is compared)
C. earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his (Wrong --- two type of study is compared)
D. earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s
E. the earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his (Wrong --- two type of study is compared)
B,C,E gone
2 left --- A, D
unlike x, y --- noun are compared .
hence D .
in A --- no referent for that .
hope its help . kudos appreciated .
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Hi Kyle,
I have a quick question on this.
I am having difficulty in understanding this. IMO, even a study can cover multiple works hence below 2 versions shall be fine.
Unlike study of earlier words on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study Vs
Unlike studies of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study

Those examples you give are fine. We can compare a study with another singular study or a group of studies. The error in the previous was with using "that" instead of "those" when referring to "studies".

KW
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OA is A? 'That' is ambiguous

IMO D) is the best option.

Check out my earlier posts on this thread. The OA is not A - it's D. In choice A, the error with that is one of pronoun agreement. We should have the plural "those" instead of the singular "that".

KW
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OA is D

Meaning of the sentence- Blassingame's innovative study (His work) relies not on the records of white slave owners but on the records of the slaves. Whereas, earlier works were opposite to the new study; earlier works relied on the records of white slave owners rather than on the records of slaves.

Few Things to notice:-
1) New study (New work) is compared to the old works and NOT to the study of old works

Let's look at the answer choices:-

A. that (try replacing 'that' with 'study'. So, now the sentence is-Unlike study of earlier works on slavery, B's innovative study relies on... How can study of earlier works rely on something? In fact, work itself could rely on something, at least in the given sentence) of earlier words on slavery, Blassingame’s
B. that of earlier works on slavery, Blassingame (B is compared with earlier study) in his
C. earlier works on slavery, Blassingame (B is compared with earlier works) in his
D. earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s Most appropriate choice. Earlier works are compared with Blassingame's innovative work
E. the earlier works on slavery, Blassingame (compared with earlier works) in his
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A. Illogical comparison - study of earlier works compared to B's study . Also , "that of" is singular and can't refer to some characterstic of the earlier studies
B. Illogical comparison - study with B himself
C. Illogical comparison - work with B himself
D. Correct
E. Illogical comparison - Works with B

Answer D
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hi daagh,

if option E uses Blassingame's instead of Blassingame, is E right choice. can we use 'the earlier works' in this case?

Deepika
Hi


The given choice E.------ the earlier works on slavery, Blassingame in his
Your choice E.------ the earlier works on slavery, “Blassingame’s (work)” and “ in his study” will be redundant as well as meaningless
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hi daagh,

if' in his' is also removed and the sentence is 'the earlier works on slavery, Blassingame’s innovative study..." is this sentence right?