[Grammar] parallelism

[LaMelange]

Hello teachers,

In the following sentence is the word having required to make the sentence grammatically correct?

Also vital are having potent communications systems to maintain relationships with all donors and continually refreshing the answers to the question, How does the donor’s money help the common good?

I feel the word is required. If I am wrong, please explain why.

Thanks a million!

 

[MikeNewYork]

I would use it. But I imagine there are those who wouldn't.

 

[LaMelange]

So, I guess the word having here just makes the two entities parallel in construction. Am I right?

 

[Tdol]

If you put the word in, then is having would work better for me as it would make it singular. Potent doesn't really collocate with communications systems IMO- I would use something like effective.

 

[Matthew Wai]

the two entities

I think they are gerund phrases.

 

[LaMelange]

If you put the word in, then is having would work better for me as it would make it singular. Potent doesn't really collocate with communications systems IMO- I would use something like effective.

Wouldn't is be wrong because there are two gerund phrases (A and B are vital) in the sentence?

 

[bhaisahab]

No, "is" is correct.

 

[LaMelange]

No, "is" is correct.

I still don't get it, Mr. bhaisahab. Isn't the skeleton of the sentence "Also vital are having potent communications systems and continually refreshing the answers to a particular question"? (That is, Also vital are A and B.)

Kindly bear with me.

 

[bhaisahab]

"Also vital is having potent communications systems and continually refreshing the answers to a particular question" this works better for me.

 

[Matthew Wai]

I think there is an argument for 'is' there.

I think the argument is that the two gerund phrases can be regarded as a single unit.

 

[LaMelange]

I think there is an argument for 'is' there, but I would use 'are', for the same reason you would..

Also vital are A and B. (A and B are vital.)

The word vital here is a predicate adjective, not a predicate nominative, right?

This is the reason I feel the verb should be plural here, not singular, unlike in the following sentence:

The biggest disaster was the roasted potatoes. (The roasted potatoes were the biggest disaster.)

Please correct me if I am wrong. Thank you all for your patience!

 

[LaMelange]

I think the argument is that the two gerund phrases can be regarded as a single unit.

Gin and tonic is a single unit, but I have my doubts about the gerund phrases here being a single unit.

 

[Matthew Wai]

If they are not a single unit, how could 'is' be correct?

 

[Tdol]

Proximity- when something is surrounded by singular words, we may feel that a singular verb works better than a plural. Mathematically, it makes sense to say There are a man and a woman to see you, but most would use is. Here, it is clearly more open as some would use the singular and others the plural.