Question

Read the following excerpt from a student essay. How can the writer best improve his or her grammar and

mechanics?
Nearly out of breath, the door at the top of the stairs swings open, and I find myself on the main
observation deck on the eighty-sixth floor of the Empire State Building. What a view there is! Looking
down from this impressive landmark, New York City is displayed before me in every direction. To the
southwest, the Statue of Liberty stands on Liberty Island in New York Harbor. This deck is one of the
world's most famous movie sets, and it's also where my father proposed to my mother in 1995.


a. by fixing sentence fragments
b. by correcting misplaced modifiers
c. by fixing run-on sentences

Answer 1

To improve grammar and mechanics in the excerpt, the writer can fix sentence fragments, correct misplaced modifiers, and address run-on sentences.

Step-by-step explanation:

To improve grammar and mechanics in the given excerpt, the writer can start by fixing the sentence fragments present in the text. For example, the sentence 'Nearly out of breath, the door at the top of the stairs swings open' is a sentence fragment that can be combined with the following sentence to create a complete thought.

Additionally, the writer can work on correcting misplaced modifiers. An example of a misplaced modifier in the text is the phrase 'in every direction' which modifies 'New York City' instead of 'displayed'. This can be corrected to 'New York City, which is displayed before me, is visible in every direction.'

Lastly, the writer should look for and fix any run-on sentences. A run-on sentence occurs when two independent clauses are improperly connected. An example of a run-on sentence in the text is 'This deck is one of the world's most famous movie sets, and it's also where my father proposed to my mother in 1995.' This can be corrected by using a coordinating conjunction or by separating the two independent clauses into separate sentences.