Emperor Ashoka ruled the Maurya Empire in South Asia from roughly 270 to 232 BCE. He is known for enforcing a moral
code called the Law of Piety, which established the sanctity of animal ______ the just treatment of the elderly, and the
abolition of the slave trade.
life
life;
life:
life,
Choice D is the best answer. Notice that "the sanctity of animal life" is the ﬁrst item in a list of three things. We must use a
comma to separate the ﬁrst two items in the list, just as a comma is used to separate "the just treatment of the elderly" and
"the abolition of the slave trade."
Choice A is incorrect. This choice creates a punctuation error. Notice that "the sanctity of animal life" is the ﬁrst item in a list
of three things. To appropriately format the list, we need punctuation to separate each item. Choice B is incorrect. This
choice creates a punctuation error. Notice that "the sanctity of animal life" is the ﬁrst item in a list of three things. While
semicolons are sometimes used to separate list items, this list uses commas to separate the other list items, and lists must
use the same punctuation throughout. Choice C is incorrect. This choice creates a punctuation error. Notice that "the
sanctity of animal life" is the ﬁrst item in a list of three things. While colons can be used to introduce lists, they can’t be used
to separate items within a list.