Question luci-t

3.1 Boundaries - Parenthetical punctuation: commas, dashes, parentheses
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Luci Tapahonso is the inaugural poet laureate of the Navajo Nation. Her book Sáanii Dahataal/The Women Are Singing—a combination of fiction and memoir, poetry and blank serves as a testament to her versatility as a writer.

Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

A.

prose;

B.

prose

C.

prose,

D.

prose—

Luci Tapahonso is the inaugural poet laureate of the Navajo Nation. Her book Sáanii Dahataal/The Women

Hard-difficulty · SAT Reading & Writing · Boundaries — Parenthetical punctuation: commas, dashes, parentheses. Read the question above, select your answer, and check the full explanation below to understand exactly why the correct choice works.

Answer explanation

Choice D is the best answer. “A combination of fiction and memoir, poetry and prose” is a nonessential supplement, so it needs to be set off from the rest of the sentence with a pair of matching punctuation marks. We already have a dash at the beginning of the supplement, so we need to add a dash at the end of the supplement to match. 

Choice A is incorrect. This doesn’t complete the text in a way that conforms to the conventions of Standard English. “A combination of fiction and memoir, poetry and prose” is a nonessential supplement, so it needs to be set off from the rest of the sentence with a pair of matching punctuation marks. We already have a dash at the beginning of the supplement, so we need to add a dash at the end of the supplement to match. Choice B is incorrect. This doesn’t complete the text in a way that conforms to the conventions of Standard English. “A combination of fiction and memoir, poetry and prose” is a nonessential supplement, so it needs to be set off from the rest of the sentence with a pair of matching punctuation marks. We already have a dash at the beginning of the supplement, so we need to add a dash at the end of the supplement to match. Choice C is incorrect. This doesn’t complete the text in a way that conforms to the conventions of Standard English. “A combination of fiction and memoir, poetry and prose” is a nonessential supplement, so it needs to be set off from the rest of the sentence with a pair of matching punctuation marks. We already have a dash at the beginning of the supplement, so we need to add a dash at the end of the supplement to match.