---
title: "Edit text: war and patriotism"
subject: "Communication English"
chapter: 3
key: "semester_5/communication_english:edit-text-war-patriotism"
source: https://www.bctengineer.com/q/semester_5/communication_english/edit-text-war-patriotism
site: BCT Engineering
---

# Edit text: war and patriotism

Communication English · Chapter 3: Contextual Grammar

- Asked in: 2074 Ashwin, 5 marks
- Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort) on 2026-10-14
- Page: https://www.bctengineer.com/q/semester_5/communication_english/edit-text-war-patriotism
- Whole chapter: https://www.bctengineer.com/md/semester_5/communication_english/chapter-3

## Question

Edit the following text.
But when the war is over, the country recedes from the consciousness and it is rarely even at the back of the mind. The question am I doing any good to the country doesn't occur to the mind; and even the question is what I am doing good or bad for the country occurs only rarely. A limited patriotism is better than none but it is not enough.

## Short answer

Add comma after 'consciousness'; place questions in quotes with correct word order: 'Am I doing any good...?' and 'Is what I am doing good or bad...?'; change 'doesn't' to 'does not'; add comma before 'but'.

## Answer

#### Edited text
But when the war is over, the country recedes from the consciousness, and it is rarely even at the back of the mind. The question "Am I doing any good to the country?" does not occur to the mind, and even the question "Is what I am doing good or bad for the country?" occurs only rarely. A limited patriotism is better than none, but it is not enough.

#### Corrections made
- Added a comma after "consciousness" to separate the two clauses joined by "and".
- Put the two questions in quotation marks and corrected the word order: "Am I doing any good...?" and "Is what I am doing good or bad...?"
- Changed "doesn't" to "does not" for formal style.
- Used a comma before "but" in the last sentence.
- Replaced the semicolon before "and even" with a comma, since the clauses are closely linked.

## Check yourself

The answer's key points as multiple-choice questions, with the correct option and why.

1. How are the embedded questions corrected?
   A. Left unchanged
   B. Put in quotation marks with correct word order, e.g. "Am I doing any good to the country?"
   C. Turned into statements
   D. Written in capital letters
   Answer: B. Direct questions need quotation marks and question word order. (Key point: Question punctuation)

2. Why is a comma added after 'consciousness'?
   A. To separate two clauses joined by 'and'
   B. To mark a list
   C. To show a quotation
   D. To end a sentence
   Answer: A. Two independent clauses joined by 'and' take a comma. (Key point: Comma with and)

3. What change is made to 'doesn't'?
   A. It becomes 'do not'
   B. It is deleted
   C. It becomes 'didn't'
   D. It becomes 'does not' for formal style
   Answer: D. Contractions are avoided in formal writing. (Key point: Formal style)

## Related in Communication English

- [Edit text: Bengali lady and sitar player](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fcommunication_english%3Aedit-text-bengali-lady-sitar) — Communication English, chapter 3
- [Edit text: practice and success](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fcommunication_english%3Aedit-text-incessant-practices) — Communication English, chapter 3
- [Edit text: American politics](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fcommunication_english%3Aedit-text-american-politics) — Communication English, chapter 3
- [Edit text: bilingualism](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fcommunication_english%3Aedit-text-brigitte-halford-bilingual) — Communication English, chapter 3
- [Edit text: frightened and halfdead](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fcommunication_english%3Aedit-text-how-you-frightened-me) — Communication English, chapter 3
- [Edit text: woman and sick husband](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fcommunication_english%3Aedit-text-woman-husband-ill) — Communication English, chapter 3

## Related in other subjects

- [Rural area 22000 L/day river supply (question text cut)](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_5%2Fwater_supply_engineering%3Ares-a76) — Water Supply Engineering, chapter 7
- [Preventive maintenance is better than corrective](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_8%2Fconstruction_management%3Apreventive-better-than-corrective) — Construction Management, chapter 9, asked 4×
- [Why Kaiser window is better than fixed windows](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_7%2Fdigital_signal_analysis_and_processing%3Awhy-kaiser-better) — Digital Signal Analysis and Processing, chapter 5, asked 2×
- [Closed loop better than open loop (cruise)](https://www.bctengineer.com/question.md?key=semester_6%2Fembedded_system%3Aclosed-loop-better-cruise-integral) — Embedded System, chapter 7