Question

Read this excerpt. Note the verb tense in the sentence “When I look into the small rectangle, I see a face looking back at me but I don’t recognize it.”
There is a mirror over the steel sink in my cell. It's six inches high, and scratched with the names of some guys who were here before me. When I look into the small rectangle, I see a face looking back at me but I don't recognize it. It doesn't look like me. I couldn't have changed that much in a few months.
—Monster, Walter Dean Myers
Which choice shows the same sentence properly written in past tense?
A.When I look into the small rectangle, I saw a face looking back at me but I don’t recognize it.
B.When I looked into the small rectangle, I see a face looked back at me but I didn’t recognize it.
C.When I looked into the small rectangle, I saw a face looking back at me but I didn’t recognize it.
D.When I look into the small rectangle, I saw a face looked back at me but I didn’t recognize it.

Answer 1

Answer:

The answer is C.

Explanation:

Answer 2

Answer:

C. When I looked into the small rectangle, I saw a face looking back at me but I didn’t recognize it.

Explanation:

The original sentence is written in present indefinite tense, so when it is changed to past tense, it should be past indefinite. Moreover, to make the sentence structure parallel, all of it clauses being changed to past tense. Out of the given options, only C has correctly written sentence in past tense (all clauses changed to past tense). Options A, B, and D have at least one clause not changed to past tense. SO they are all incorrect.