Question 143·Medium·Boundaries
Many historians credit the invention of the printing press with accelerating the spread of _____ few acknowledge how drastically it reshaped the economics of book production.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
For sentence-boundary questions, first decide whether the chunks around the blank are complete sentences (independent clauses) or not. If both sides are independent clauses, you generally need either (1) a comma plus a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS) or (2) a semicolon alone. Eliminate options that create run-ons, fragments, or awkward punctuation like semicolon + conjunction or commas in the wrong place, and always read the full sentence with your choice to confirm standard written English.
Hints
Check each side of the blank
Ask yourself: Is the text before the blank a complete sentence? Is the text after the blank also a complete sentence that could stand on its own?
Think about how to connect two complete sentences
When you have two complete sentences in one line, what are the standard ways to connect them in formal writing—especially when using a word like “but”?
Focus on comma and semicolon placement
Compare where each choice puts the comma or semicolon relative to the word "but." Which pattern matches the standard rule for joining two independent clauses?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify the two parts of the sentence
Read the text on each side of the blank:
- Before the blank: "Many historians credit the invention of the printing press with accelerating the spread of literacy"
- After the blank: "few acknowledge how drastically it reshaped the economics of book production."
Check each part:
- Both have subjects and verbs and can stand alone as complete sentences. So you are connecting two independent clauses.
Recall the rule for joining two independent clauses
In standard written English, there are two common correct ways to join independent clauses:
- Use a comma plus a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so).
- Use a semicolon by itself (no coordinating conjunction).
Here, the word “but” (a coordinating conjunction) is required to show contrast, so you should be looking for the pattern comma + but between the clauses.
Test each punctuation pattern against the rule
Now look at the answer choices only for how they punctuate around “but”:
- "literacy but" joins the clauses with no comma before the coordinating conjunction, which is not the standard form on the SAT when two full sentences are joined by a coordinating conjunction.
- "literacy; but" uses both a semicolon and a conjunction, which is redundant; a semicolon should stand on its own.
- "literacy but," puts the comma after the conjunction instead of before it, which is not how you join independent clauses.
Only one option correctly uses a comma before the coordinating conjunction to join the two complete clauses.
Choose the option that correctly joins the clauses
The only answer that uses comma + coordinating conjunction to connect the two independent clauses is "literacy, but", so the correct choice is "literacy, but."