Question

The following sentence is missing a necessary colon or contains an unnecessary one. Select the answer option that will make the sentence correct. If the original sentence is correct as is, select No change.
According to Stonehill, a primitive standard of attractiveness persists, "Some researchers have suggested that cross-cultural standards of beauty reflect an evolved preference for physical traits that are generally associated with youth, such as smooth skin, good muscle tone, and shiny hair" (Boyd & Silk, 2000, p. 625).
Group of answer choices

No change

Replace the comma after persists with a colon.

Answer 1

The correct answer is B. Replace the comma after persists with a colon.

Explanation

A colon (:) is a punctuation mark represented by one period above another. Its main function is to stop the speech to draw the reader's attention to what is next in the text. Its most common uses are in the explanatory enumeration and the introduction of quotes or verbatim words.

According to the above, it can be inferred that the correct answer is B because in the sentence "According to Stonehill, a primitive standard of attractiveness persists, "Some researchers have ..." " the author is adding a quote and it would be appropriate to replace the comma after persists with a colon.