Question

The invention of the cotton gin, being one of the most significant developments of the nineteenth century, had turned cotton cloth into an affordable commodity; it was costly before that.

• A. being one of the most significant developments of the nineteenth century, had turned cotton cloth into an affordable commodity; it was costly before that
• B. having been one of the most significant developments of the nineteenth century, turned cotton cloth into an affordable commodity, costly previously
• C. one of the most significant developments of the nineteenth century, turned cotton cloth into an affordable, however costly previously, commodity
• D. one of the most significant developments of the nineteenth century, turned cotton cloth into an affordable commodity, whereas it had previously been costly

Answer 1

The correct option is D

one of the most significant developments of the nineteenth century, turned cotton cloth into an affordable commodity, whereas it had previously been costly

The word "being" is unnecessary in the opening modifier "being one of the most significant developments . . ." Moreover, the past perfect verb "had turned" coupled with the simple past verb "was" reverses the chronological order of the events. The tenses run counter to the logic of the sentence by incorrectly suggesting that the invention of the cotton gin happened before the cotton cloth became expensive.
(A) This choice is incorrect as it repeats the original sentence.
(B) The words "having been" are unnecessary in the opening modifier. Moreover, the ending phrase "costly previously" is too concise; it fails to strike the contrast between the earlier and the later state of affairs.
(C) This choice interrupts the connection between the adjective "affordable" and the noun "commodity," making the sentence hard to follow. Also, the use of "however" changes the meaning: "however costly" implies that the cotton gin would have made cotton cloth affordable no matter how costly it was previously. In contrast, the original sentence only states that cotton cloth had previously been costly.
(D) CORRECT. The modifier "one of the most significant developments of the nineteenth century" eliminates the unnecessary word "being." The simple past verb "turned" coupled with the past perfect "had previously been" correctly expresses the fact that cotton cloth "turned into an affordable commodity" after it "had previously been costly." The later past event uses the simple past tense, whereas the earlier past event uses the past perfect tense. Moreover, the conjunction "whereas" correctly expresses the neutral contrast between the earlier and the later state of affairs. The pronoun "it" refers unambiguously to the "cotton cloth."