selim wrote:
Phillip’s grandfathers had been blacksmiths in Italy, and so, he pretended to be one, and this he did at his school’s Colonial Village Exhibition.
(A) Phillip’s grandfathers had been blacksmiths in Italy, and so, he pretended to be one, andthis [no referent] he did at his school’s Colonial VillageExhibition.
GMAT does not like "this" (or "those"), determiner pronouns, to stand alone.
In addition, "this" has no antecedent. "This" refers to Phillip's playacting. No such noun referent exists in the sentence.
A pronoun cannot refer to an entire clause such as "he pretended to be one."
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