<p>SAT preparation has changed me. I now see grammatical errors everywhere I look :D. </p>
<p>For example: </p>
<p>“Can the four headless men represent the four directions, a number universally significant to the Indians of North America.”</p>
<p>Is this an illogical comparison? The “four directions” are not “a number.” </p>
<p>Am I correct? Is Byron Hollinshead really an idiot?</p>
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<p>Shouldn’t there be a question mark somewhere? And yes, a number cannot be compared with directions. :)</p>
<p>Haha I know exactly what you mean! Now I get so paranoid whenever I see something that incorrectly uses “less” or “few”</p>
<p>Thanks for confirming my suspicions :).</p>
<p>Why can’t the “four headless men” stand back-to-back and represent the “four directions” of North / South / East / West ??</p>
<p>^The sentence isn’t comparing that. It’s comparing the “four directions” with “a number,” which is totally illogical for two reasons:</p>
<p>1) “directions” is plural while “number” is singular
2) “directions” do not relate to “numbers” in any way</p>
<p>I suspect that your unclear on the technical reason WHY “four directions” and “a number” are being compared. I can’t remember the answer, I just know that they are being compared (probably due to the comma and their physical proximity in the sentence).</p>