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SAT Prep Help Paragraph Improvement Sample Questions Answer Explanations
1. The correct answer is (D). The best revision among the choices offered to make this sentence grammatically correct is to combine sentences (1) and (2). The reason for combining the two is that the sentences are intertwined in terms of expression of a significant theme. Sentence (2) is an independent clause which could stand on its own, but it is strongly related to the information in the first sentence and builds upon its meaning. The first sentence of the passage describes how Marlowe was seen during his own time; the second sentence describes how scholars see him compared to the other individuals writing during that particular era of literary development. The problem the sentence construction poses is that it is not clear if the subject of the second sentence of the passage is Marlowe rather than Shakespeare. The flow of images is interrupted and disjointed because there is no transition from the first sentence into the second. As a result, the best way to revise this sentence and improve the overall passage is to combine sentences (1) and (2) so that the related information is presented together.
2. The correct answer is (A), as the best revision to make to this sentence is to change "it is true that" to "unfortunately,". This is because sentence (3), even though it is grammatically correct, interrupts the flow of the passage. In other words, sentence (3) presents the information that the writer or speaker intended in the correct format, but the sentence does not include a word or phrase that creates a transition from the second sentence to the third sentence. This problem can be easily corrected by adding a transitioning word such as unfortunately to the beginning of the sentence. Therefore, the passage as a whole will be more effective if the sentence is changed to read: "Unfortunately, many people have never even heard of Marlowe as he only had enough time to pen seven or eight plays and several poems before his death in 1593."
3. The correct answer is (C), since the best place for sentence 4 would be after sentence (2). Sentence (4) is grammatically correct and the sentence has a transitional phrase that allows the flow of the paragraph to continue, but the placement of the sentence within the passage does not logically develop the theme. This is because sentence (4) offers the opinion that Christopher Marlowe was similar to Shakespeare in many ways and supports that opinion by mentioning that Marlowe, like Shakespeare, was both a playwright and a poet. However, the sentence appears after sentence (3), which refers to the fact that Marlowe was only able to write a small number of plays and poems, unlike Shakespeare, who was more prolific. Putting sentence (4) after sentence (3) is something of a non sequitur. The writer wishes to show that Christopher Marlowe should occupy as important a place in English literature as Shakespeare. It would strengthen the argument, and the writing, to place sentence (4) after sentence (2). The result would be two sequential statements that support each other, each one describing Marlowe as a talented writer of drama and poetry, and in the same league as Shakespeare.
4. The correct answer is (C), as the best version of the underlined portion of the sentence is "However, there is no doubt that the works of Christopher Marlowe have..." This version of the sentence is more effective than the original version because the original version of the sentence does not make it clear who "his" works belong to. The vagueness of this reference to "his works" weakens the theme and confuses the reader. The sentence is most likely talking about Marlowe, but sentences (1) and (4) also mention Shakespeare, so it is possible that the writer of the passage is discussing Shakespeare in this sentence. As a result, in order to make it clear that the writer is discussing Marlowe and not Shakespeare, it is necessary to replace the word his with "Christopher Marlowe's" or "the works of Christopher Marlowe".