From January test 2015
Section 10 #10
(One of the most charming fishing villages on Galway Bay, Kinvara’s appeal) lies in its sheltered harbor and traditional seafaring atmosphere.
(A) the same
(B) One of the Galway Bay’s most charming fishing villages, the appeal of Kinvara
(C) The appeal of Kinvara, one of the most charming fishing villages on Galway Bay,

I could easily eliminate the answer choice D and E but what are the differences between choice A,B and C? The answer to this Q was C.

A and B are dangling modifiers. The modifying phrase, “one of the most charming fishing villages on Galway Bay,” needs to be followed immediately by the thing being modified, which is Kinvara. Note that Kinvara’s appeal is not Kinvara, any more than Mike’s computer is Mike. 🙂

Comments (8)

thank you!!! But wouldn’t beB and C be the same then, since they are both appeal of kinvara? i thought C is still talking about the ‘appeal’ not kinvara because it has ‘of’ or is it modifying the word that is right next to it which is ‘kinvara’?

The subject of C is still the appeal of Kinvara, but the modifying phrase is now right next to Kinvara. Take the modifying phrase away:

The appeal of Kinvara lies in its sheltered harbor and traditional seafaring atmosphere.

That works, right? Cool. Now, you want to add some extra information for the reader who knows nothing about Kinvara. Where are you going to put this phrase: “one of the most charming fishing villages on Galway Bay”? You’re going to put it between commas, right after Kinvara.

The subject is typically found before a preposition, but that doesn’t mean other nouns in a sentence can be totally ignored. The subject is just how you conjugate the verb. Pronouns, modifiers, etc. don’t need to refer to the subject.

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