The ghazal, a poetic form originating in seventh‑century Arabic poetry, has an intricate structure. The twentieth‑century Kashmiri American poet Agha Shahid Ali explains that each one of a ghazal’s couplets, while adhering to the patterns of rhyme (qafia) and refrain (radif) established in the poem’s opening lines (matla), _______thematically and logically autonomous, resulting in a poem with “a stringently formal disunity.” Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
","rationale_html":"Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is the use of verb forms within a sentence. The singular verb “is” agrees in number with the singular subject “each one of a ghazal’s couplets.” While the prepositional phrase “of a ghazal’s couplets” within the subject contains a plural noun, the head of the subject (“each one”) is singular, indicating that each individual couplet (not the couplets as a group) is “thematically and logically autonomous,” or self-standing. Choice B is incorrect because the plural verb “were” doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject “each one of a ghazal’s couplets.” Choice C is incorrect because the plural verb “have been” doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject “each one of a ghazal’s couplets.” Choice D is incorrect because the plural verb “are” doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject “each one of a ghazal’s couplets.”
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