The following text is adapted from "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" by Mark Twain. Tom is trying to convince his friend Joe to help him whitewash a fence. \"I reckon they'll be glad to give you a cent, won't they? ". . . \"No, they won't; they'll think you've got to do it for nothing, because they can do it themselves. . . . \"That's so; that's just the way it is, all right. . . . \"Why, Joe, don't you think you'd like to have a nice, bright, new, white, clean fence like this? ". . . \"No, sir. . . . \"I know what! I'll give you the whole fence and let you whitewash it. All right, I'll take it. . . . \"You take the whole fence for a cent, Joe? Why, I think you're the luckiest boy I ever saw. . . . \"Well, I guess I'll take it. Thanks. . . . "
Which of the following revisions to the text is most consistent with the conventions of Standard English?
A. No, they won’t; they’ll think you’ve got to do it for nothing, because they can do it themselves. . . . That’s so; that’s just the way it is, all right. . . . Why, Joe, don’t you think you’d like to have a nice, bright, new, white, clean fence like this? . . . No, sir. . . . I know what! I’ll give you the whole fence and let you whitewash it. All right, I’ll take it. . . . You take the whole fence for a cent, Joe? Why, I think you’re the luckiest boy I ever saw. . . . Well, I guess I’ll take it. Thanks. . . .
B. No, they won’t; they’ll think you’ve got to do it for nothing, because they can do it themselves. . . . That’s so; that’s just the way it is, all right. . . . Why, Joe, don’t you think you’d like to have a nice, bright, new, white, clean fence like this? . . . No, sir. . . . I know what! I’ll give you the whole fence, and let you whitewash it. All right, I’ll take it. . . . You take the whole fence for a cent, Joe? Why, I think you’re the luckiest boy I ever saw. . . . Well, I guess I’ll take it. Thanks. . . .
C. No, they won’t; they’ll think you’ve got to do it for nothing, because they can do it themselves. . . . That’s so, that’s just the way it is, all right. . . . Why, Joe, don’t you think you’d like to have a nice, bright, new, white, clean fence like this? . . . No, sir. . . . I know what! I’ll give you the whole fence, and let you whitewash it. All right, I’ll take it. . . . You take the whole fence for a cent, Joe? Why, I think you’re the luckiest boy I ever saw. . . . Well, I guess I’ll take it. Thanks. . . .
D. No, they won’t; they’ll think you’ve got to do it for nothing, because they can do it themselves. . . . That’s so; that’s just the way it is, all right. . . . Why, Joe, don’t you think you’d like to have a nice, bright, new, white, clean fence like this? . . . No, sir. . . . I know what. I’ll give you the whole fence, and let you whitewash it. All right, I’ll take it. . . . You take the whole fence for a cent, Joe? Why, I think you’re the luckiest boy I ever saw. . . . Well, I guess I’ll take it. Thanks. . . .
The correct answer is B. The only error in the passage is the use of a comma instead of a semicolon in the sentence: \"I’ll give you the whole fence, and let you whitewash it." Semicolons are used to join two complete sentences. Using a comma here creates a comma splice, which is an error in Standard English. All the other choices in the passage are grammatically correct. The semicolon in choice B is the correct way to join two complete sentences.