ShmoopTube

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Here's your Shmoop du jour, brought to you by modifying phrases. Poor things. They're

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in a constant state of identity crisis.

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How should you change the underlined portion below, if at all?

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After reading the original study, the article remains unconvincing.

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Knowing one simple rule makes this one a cinch to fix.

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If we don't know this simple rule, though, we may be headed for complete chaos.

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"After reading the original study" is what's known as a modifying phrase. Like adjectives,

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it's the job of modifying phrases to describe nouns and pronouns.

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The one simple rule we need to keep in mind here is that it's important to place the noun

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or pronoun that the modifying phrase is describing directly after or before the phrase itself.

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This way the reader is never confused about what exactly the modifying phrase is describing.

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Confusing modifiers can cause lots of trouble.

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For example, we might write an email to our boss where he mistakenly thinks we're describing

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the way his wife kissed us at the holiday party rather than the cute dog she was holding.

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The original sentence in question definitely breaks our rule. Here, the noun following

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our modifying phrase is "article."

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We're guessing that the article wasn't the thing reading the original study, unless it

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was some kind of sentient article with artificial intelligence.

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Chances are, this is not the author's intention, and so we can eliminate choice (A). We're

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convinced that this sentence is in need of a little TLC.

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Choices (B) and (C) basically make the same mistake. As with the original sentence, both

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options place the noun, "article," after the modifying phrase.

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So we can eliminate both of these options for the same reason as choice (A). Chaos will

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always ensue if we don't place the noun or pronoun we're describing directly after the

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modifying phrase.

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Choice (D) is the correct answer because it does just this by placing the pronoun "I"

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after the modifying phrase.

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In this version, it's totally clear that it's the speaker who's done the background research

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that has apparently exposed this poorly researched article.

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What kind of sicko is this speaker? Exposing articles? They need to keep their pants on

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like everyone else.

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