please look at this English …
Despite the recent election of a woman to the office of prime minister, the status of women in Pakistan has changed little in the last century.
This is fine.
But If I write this way …will that be wrong ?
*Despite the recent election of a woman to the office of prime minister, the status of women in Pakistan is little changed from the way it was in the last century.
*
Is this wrong ? Can I write this way also ?
It’s grammatical, and it will be understood. But it is awkward.
Look at the word “it” in your final phrase. What does “it” stand for? It stands for “the status of women”. So your final phrase could be rewritten “. . . the way the status of women was in the last century”.
“Status” suggests a static measure; how things are at a given point in time. “Way” suggests movement, progress. Thus “the way the status of women was” is confusing.
And it’s unnecessary. You don’t need both “way” and “status” here. Your principal clause is “the status of women is little changed”. You can simply say “the status of women is little changed from the last century.” Or, if you want to, “. . . from what it was in the last century”.
There is another point in which your rewrite differs in meaning from the original.
The original says that “the status of women in Pakistan has changed little in the last century” which means that it has changed little in the last hundred years, i.e. (assuming this statement is made today) since 1910.
However, “the status of women in Pakistan is little changed from the last century” would, I think, suggest that it has not changed much since a particular point in time, rather than over a particular period. And “from the last century”, for most English speakers, suggests from the end of the last century, i.e. since 2000.
This is an excellent opportunity to use the word “notwithstanding,” which I would say is more appropriate than “despite.”
My suggestion: The recent election of a woman to the office of prime minister notwithstanding, the status of women in Pakistan has changed little in the last century.
To your question about this: Despite the recent election of a woman to the office of prime minister, the status of women in Pakistan is little changed from the way it was in the last century. It’s not wrong so much as non-idiomatic and a bit unclear.
I would replace “the way” with “what.” If you want the time frame to be the same as in your first sentence (i.e., during the period of the previous 100 years), change “in” to “over.” Otherwise, it could be construed as meaning “during the 20th century.”
Grammer needs work, the facts OTH are dead wrong.
Election was not recent, was in 1994 (and was dismissed in 1996).
And social structures and mores are unrecognizable from even 25 years ago, what to say for a century.
[moderating]
I notice you’ve started over a dozen threads here since you joined, and every single one starts the same way. We’re always happy to help here, but it is starting to look like you’re not interested in participating in the boards – just in having us act as your own private English tutors.
We’d appreciate it if you find something else to post about for a little while - maybe participate in some other discussions before throwing us more homework questions.
Thanks!
[/moderating]