Reading Comprehension

Passage 1
Born on Jan 12, 1863 in an affluent Bengali family, Narendra Natha Datta was a precocious child
who was what we call nowadays, an all-rounder, excelling in music, studies and athletics. His
father Vishwanatha Datta was a well-known attorney. However, he took the spiritual route
instead and introduced Hinduism to the world in 1893 when he spoke at the World's Parliament
of Religion (probably one of the most epic things any Indian has done abroad!).
The historic speech was given on September 11, 1893 by Swami Vivekananda. Here's the full
text of his opening and closing address:
Sisters and Brothers of America,
It fills my heart with joy unspeakable to rise in response to the warm and cordial welcome which
you have given us. I thank you in the name of the most ancient order of monks in the world; I
thank you in the name of the mother of religions, and I thank you in the name of millions and
millions of Hindu people of all classes and sects.
My thanks, also, to some of the speakers on this platform who, referring to the delegates from the
Orient, have told you that these men from far-off nations may well claim the honor of bearing to
different lands the idea of toleration. I am proud to belong to a religion which has taught the
world both tolerance and universal acceptance.
We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true. I am proud to
belong to a nation which has sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all
nations of the earth. I am proud to tell you that we have gathered in our bosom the purest
remnant of the Israelites, who came to Southern India and took refuge with us in the very year in
which their holy temple was shattered to pieces by Roman tyranny. I am proud to belong to the
religion which has sheltered and is still fostering the remnant of the grand Zoroastrian nation. I
will quote to you, brethren, a few lines from a hymn which I remember to have repeated from my
earliest boyhood, which is every day repeated by millions of human beings: "As the different
streams having their sources in different paths which men take through different tendencies,
various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee."
The present convention, which is one of the most august assemblies ever held, is in itself a
vindication, a declaration to the world of the wonderful doctrine preached in the Gita:
"Whosoever comes to me, through whatsoever form, I reach him; all men are struggling through
paths which in the end lead to me." Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism,
have long possessed this beautiful earth.

Q1. What was Vishwanatha Datta’s profession?

1. Attorney 2.Spiritual leader 3.Teacher 4.None of the above
Ans – The first option is correct, as the passage mentions that he was an attorney.

Q2.Who spoke at the World’s Parliament of Religion?

1. Narendra Nath Datta 2.Swami Vivekananda 3.Both 4.None
Ans – Swami Vivekananda spoke at the conference
Q3.Give the opposite of the word “Occident” from the second passage of the speech
1. Delegate 2.Universal 3.Orient 4.Toleration
Ans – “Orient” is the opposite of Occident

Q4.In the phrase: “all lead to Thee”, to whom does the word ‘Thee’ refer?
1. All religions 2.The delegates present 3.Universal brotherhood and peace4.God
Ans – It refers to God.

Q5.In the phrase: “I am proud to belong to a nation” – what nation is the speaker referring to?
1. India 2.Southern India 3.Rome 4.America
Ans – the speaker is referring to India

Passage 2
The stratosphere—specifically, the lower stratosphere—has, it seems, been drying out. Water
vapour is a greenhouse gas, and the cooling effect on the Earth's climate due to this desiccation
may account for a fair bit of the slowdown in the rise of global temperatures seen over the past
ten years. These are the somewhat surprising conclusions of a paper by Susan Solomon of
America's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and her colleagues, which was
published online by Science on January 28th. Whether the trend will continue, stop or reverse
itself, though, is at present unknown. The stratosphere sits on top of the troposphere, the lowest,
densest layer of the atmosphere. The boundary between the two, the tropopause, is about 18km
above your head, if you are in the tropics, and a few kilometers lower if you are at higher
latitudes (or up a mountain). The tropopause separates a rowdy below from a sedate above. In the
troposphere, the air at higher altitudes is in general cooler than the air below it, an unstable
situation in which warm and often moist air below is endlessly buoying up into cooler air above.
The resultant commotion creates clouds, storms and much of the rest of the world's weather. In
the stratosphere, the air gets warmer at higher altitudes, which provides stability The stratosphere
—which extends up to about 55km, where the mesosphere begins—is made even less weather-
prone by the absence of water vapour, and thus of the clouds and precipitation to which it leads.
This is because the top of the troposphere is normally very cold, causing ascending water vapour
to freeze into ice crystals that drift and fall, rather than continuing up into the stratosphere. A
little water manages to get past this cold trap. But as Dr Solomon and her colleagues note,
satellite measurements show that rather less has been doing so over the past ten years than was
the case previously. Plugging the changes in water vapour into a climate model that looks at the
way different substances absorb and emit infrared radiation, they conclude that between 2000
and 2009 a drop in stratospheric water vapour of less than one part per million slowed the rate of
warming at the Earth's surface by about 25%. Such a small change in stratospheric water vapour
can have such a large effect precisely because the stratosphere is already dry. It is the relative
change in the amount of a greenhouse gas, not its absolute level, which determines how much
warming it, can produce, and this change was about 10% of the total. By comparison with the
greenhouse effect caused by increases in carbon dioxide, the stratospheric drying is hardly
massive. Dr Solomon and her colleagues peg the 2000-2009 cooling effect at about a third of the
opposite effect they would expect from the carbon dioxide added over the same decade, and only
a bit more than a twentieth of the warming expected from the rise in carbon dioxide since the
industrial revolution. But it is surprising, nonetheless. It is for the most part only in the tropics
that tropospheric air can be drawn up into the stratosphere; it is also in the tropics that one finds
the most spectacular thunderstorms, and these can reduce the temperature at the top of the
troposphere, deepening the cold trap that ascending water vapour must pass through and thus
impeding its rise. Over the past decade this stormy effect seems to have been pronounced, with
the coldest parts of the tropical troposphere getting about a degree colder. But why this should be
is not clear. Sea-surface temperatures, which drive the big tropical storms, have been high, and
during the past few years have seemed to correlate with increased coldness aloft. At other times,
though, they have seemed to predict a wetter stratosphere. Dr Solomon cannot say what is
driving the change she and her colleagues have studied, or how long it will last. It may be one of
many aspects of the climate that flop around, seemingly at random, over periods of years to
decades. Or it might be something driven by a long-term change, such as the build-up of
greenhouse gases (or, conceivably, layers of sooty smog). Dr Solomon suspects the former,
because of the way the relationship between the stratosphere and the sea-surface temperature has
changed. Patterns of sea-surface temperature which come and go, rather than absolute levels that
continue to rise, may be the important thing. That said, it is possible that the changes in the
stratosphere are linked to the effects humans are having on the atmosphere at large, and that the
drying may persist in providing a brake on warming. Or it may be, as others have suggested in
the past, that the long-term trend, as the troposphere warms up, will be to a wetter, more
warming lower stratosphere, too. Whether this is the case depends on physical subtleties that are
currently undecided, but it is not implausible. If it were true, then the current drying would be
more a blip than a trend. A better understanding of matters as diverse as how water vapour
actually gets across the tropopause and how the stratosphere circulates at the global scale might
help sort the question out, and Dr Solomon's high profile contribution may help focus researchers
on those problems. Meanwhile, the good news (if further research bears it out) that the world's
warming has been slowed, at least for a few years, needs to be leavened with the realization, yet
again, that there are significant uncertainties in science's understanding of the climate — and
thus unquantifiable risks ahead.

Q1 What is the order of layers in the atmosphere, starting from the lowermost and going to the
topmost?
A-Tropopause, Troposphere, Mesosphere, Stratosphere.
B-Troposphere, Tropopause, Stratosphere, Mesosphere.
C-Troposphere, Tropopause, Mesosphere, Stratosphere.
D-Troposhere, Stratosphere, Tropopause, Mesosphere.
Ans B

Q2 What is the passage has been cited as the main reason affecting global temperatures?
A-Relative change in water vapour content in the Stratosphere.
B-Drop in Stratospheric water vapour of less than one part per million.
C-The extreme dropness in the Stratosphere.
D-Absorption and emission of infrared radiation by different substances.
Ans B

Q3 Why is the situation in the troposphere defined as unstable?

A-Because, unlike the Stratosphere, there is too much water vapour in the Troposphere.
B-Because the Troposphere is not directly linked to the Stratosphere, but through the Tropopause
which creates much of the world‘s weather.
C-Because of the interaction between warm and cool air which is unpredictable in nature and can
leads to storms.
D-Because this layer of the atmosphere is very cloudy and can lead to weather related
disruptions.
Ans C

Q4 What accounts for the absence of water vapour in Stratosphere?

A-The layer of Stratosphere is situated too far above the water vapour to reach.
B-Rising global temperatures, leading to reduced water vapour that gets absorbed in the
Troposphere.
C-The greenhouse gas gets absorbed by the clouds in the Troposphere and comes down as rain.
D-Before the vapour can rise up, it has to pass through below freezing temperatures and turns
into ice
Ans D

Passage- 3
THE question whether war is ever justified, and if so under what circumstances, is one which has
been forcing itself upon the attention of all thoughtful men. On this question I find myself in the
somewhat painful position of holding that no single one of the combatants is justified in the
present war, while not taking the extreme Tolstoyan view that war is under all circumstances a
crime. Opinions on such a subject as war are the outcome of feeling rather than of thought: given
a man's emotional temperament, his convictions, both on war in general, and on any particular
war which may occur during his lifetime, can be predicted with tolerable certainty. The
arguments used will be mere reinforcements to convictions otherwise reached. The fundamental
facts in this as in all ethical questions are feelings; all that thought can do is to clarify and
systematize the expression of those feelings, and it is such clarifying and systematizing of my
own feelings that I wish to attempt in the present article.

The question of rights and wrongs of a particular war is generally considered from a juridical or
quasi-juridical standpoint: so and so broke such and such a treaty, crossed such and such a
frontier, committed such and such technically unfriendly acts, and therefore by the rules it is
permissible to kill as many of his nation as modern armaments render possible. There is a certain
unreality, a certain lack of imaginative grasp about this way of viewing matters. It has the
advantage, always dearly prized by lazy men, of substituting a formula, at once ambiguous and
easily applied, for the vital realization of the consequences of acts. The juridical point of view is
in fact an illegitimate transference, to the relations of States, of principles properly applicable to
the relation of individuals within a State. Within a State, private war is forbidden, and the
disputes of private citizens are settled, not by their own force, but by the force of the police,
which, being overwhelming, very seldom needs to be explicitly displayed. It is necessary that
there should be rules according to which the police decide who is to be considered in the right in
a private dispute. These rules constitute law. The chief gain derived from the law and the police
is the abolition of private wars, and this gain is independent of the question whether the law as it
stands is the best possible. It is therefore in the public interest that the man who goes against the
law should be considered in the wrong, not because of the excellence of the law, but because of
the importance of avoiding the resort to force as between individuals within the State.

Question 1: Which of the following would be an appropriate title to the passage?

The do’s and don’ts of war
War- A historical perspective
The Ethics of War
The moral justification of war
Ans 4
Question2: What is the main purpose of the author?
To justify the necessity of war through arguments
To prove that war is unnecessary and cannot have any moral justification
To discuss the justification of war through arguments
To juxtapose internal law and war and do a comparative analysis
Ans 3

Question 3: The author is most likely to agree with which of the following?
Tolstoy believed that war under all circumstances is a crime
Private wars are very much likely within a state
Mankind should avoid war as far as possible
All of the above
Ans 1

Passage 4
It must be remembered that mysticism is at the heart of all religious systems, including
Buddhism. Mystical insights, it is claimed, can only be attained by direct, divine intervention, or
else by inward contemplation; logic and reason are not part of the process. If one attains mystical
insight by divine intervention, it is likely to result in a closed system of thought, meaning a
system that claims to possess all the necessary knowledge for proper conduct of life. These
systems naturally tend to be dogmatic, for who would have the temerity to question the divine?
Religions of this type are referred to as 'revealed religions,' and they are characteristic of the
West. Christianity, Islam, and Judaism are all 'revealed religions.'
By contrast, if the 'revelation' is arrived at by reflective contemplation alone, whereby one does
not actually 'hear' the divine but instead perceives it intuitively, an open system is more likely to
develop. Eastern religious thought tends to favor this over the first type of insight.
Nonetheless, mysticism, whether employed by Buddhists, Christians, or anyone else, is by its
nature anti-reason. Reason, if not overtly attacked, as in Christianity, is demoted to a lower level,
as in Buddhism and Hinduism. To the mystic, emotions are valid cognitive tools, which represent
a realm of 'higher' reality than that attained by 'mere' reason. At the root of all mystical thought is
the concept that consciousness is an axiomatic, irreducible primary; consciousness is superior to
physical existence, and many religionists argue that consciousness in fact 'created' existence
itself. Therefore, argues the mystic, the highest level of consciousness is that which is perceived
through mysticism.
The obvious problem with mysticism is that not all mystics arrive at the same truth. More often
than not, they contradict one another. The history of warfare has largely been the history of the
conflicts of opposing belief systems, with mysticism as the foundational cause.
Gautama, to his credit, was able within the context of his time to obviate a strictly mystical
outlook and recognize the essential role of sensory validation in acquiring knowledge. Buddhist
knowledge must be conjoined with seeing, for without some kind of sensory validation, one
cannot hope to understand the world around us. Thus Buddhism, unlike Western religions, has no
need to attack sensory validation or blindly attack reason.
Q1. Which of the following can be inferred about Christianity, Judaism and Islam?
They are all revealed religions
They tend to be dogmatic
They have followers only in the West
None of the above

Ans 1
Q2 According to the passage, which of the following is the similarity between an open system
and closed system of thought?
Both the systems are dogmatic in nature and are attained by divine intervention
They both are favoured by the Eastern Religious thought
They both are a form of mystical insights
They both rely on logic than on emotion to arrive at the truth
Ans 3

Q3: Which of the following is implied about Western Religions?

They attack sensory validation and reason
According to them, the highest level of thought is perceived through mysticism
They have opens system of thought
Both I and II option
Ans 4

Passage 5
There is a relationship between Finance, Centralization, and World Hegemony. Until this
outbreak of the First World War, money appeared to be a mere mechanism. But the arrangements
made to finance the war reveal that the money system was in fact the vehicle of a POLICY, and
that that policy was the CENTRALIZATION of power leading progressively to World
Government. Prior to the outbreak of war, Great Britain was the CENTRE of world financial
control; with the war, financial control was transferred to New York and from there used to
dismantle the British Empire which, by reason of British traditions and the Anglo-Saxon
character, had been the great barrier to World Dominion by those operating through the world
financial system. The fall of the British Empire was a FINANCIAL accomplishment, not a
military one. But the terms of 'peace' imposed on 'victorious' Britain are those which might have
been expected following military DEFEAT.
But the Power which emerged into the open in this century had its birth long before that. It was
incubated in the Secret Societies of Europe, appeared briefly in the French Revolution, and
spread to Britain in the form of Fabianism, and to America in the form of various Socialist
societies. Following the first phase of the war, it openly took over Russia, and since has visibly
spread as International Communism until it has taken over the greater part of the globe.
Current history, which looks episodic, is in fact the culminating stages of a very long-term policy
moving internationally, but visible only in the long perspective of time.
What we think we see is often an illusion intentionally presented, like the conjuror that would
have you to believe he holds an orange in his right hand, when it is actually in his left hand.
Citizens of the world, whether their sympathies are left-wing or right-wing, monarchist or
republican, have been used as pawns in their game of Hegelian psychology by the hidden hand
that rules. In reality, the orange is in neither left nor right hand.
The Hegelian dialectic process is the notion that conflict creates history. From this axiom it
follows that controlled conflict can create a predetermined history. For example when the
Trilateral Commission discusses 'managed conflict', as it does extensively in its literature, it
implies the managed use of conflict for long run predetermined ends - not for the mere random
exercise of manipulative control to solve a problem. The dialectic takes this Trilateral 'managed
conflict' process one step further. In Hegelian terms, an existing force generates a counterforce.
Conflict between the two forces results in the forming of a synthesis. Then the process starts all
over again: Thesis vs. antithesis results in synthesis.
It's like two companies with undisclosed common stockholding submitting competitive tenders
for a project on a site for which their stockholder has different plans altogether. Whatever the
outcome, the stockholder is in beneficial control.

Q1. Which of the following is true about the fall of the British Empire?
United States of America played a very important role in triggering the fall of the British Empire
The fall of the British Empire was a military accomplishment, not a financial one
Great Britain controlled the world financial system prior to the start of the first world war
None of the above
Ans 4
Q2 Which of the following can be inferred about Communism?
Russia was the birth place of Communism
It was the result of the French Revolution
Both a and b
None of the above
Ans 4

Q3 Which of the following is least likely to be an example of ‘dialectic processes?

The argument between two lawyers in the court room
The discussion between two scientists over a certain natural phenomenon
A religious discourse delivered by a religious scholar
A polemicist’s article on a contentious issue
Ans 3

Passage 6
The writings of the philosopher Plato have been analyzed, critiqued, and interpreted in countless
ways over the past two millennia. However, his Republic still stands out as an intellectual
hallmark of Greek socio-political commentary and a prescriptive utopian vehicle. We need not
confine the basic elements of Platonic thought to Platonic times, especially when we consider the
roles and status of women in our own modern societies. Regarding this topic, Plato is
surprisingly forward-thinking and appears in stark contrast to many contemporary currents of
thought.

Plato begins this discourse in Book V of the Republic by referring to an earlier fundamental
principle of that work, namely that jobs and functions in an ideal state ought to be distributed
according to one’s nature, inclination, and capability. He then inquires into their natures and
capabilities, and asks if anything aside from physiology separates men and women; he soon
concludes not. He feels that they are endowed equally with “natural capacities” for all
“administrative occupations,” including the Guardianship of the city as well as its defense, and
that there is no sufficient difference between them to justify the exclusion of women from the
most important duties of the state. He does believe, though, that since women are traditionally
the physically weaker of the sexes, nature also dictates they be given a “lighter share” of these
duties in keeping with their level of strength.

In order to arrive at this ideal, Plato advocates a system of equal education for men and women
being raised as Auxiliaries and Guardians: “‘Well then, to make a woman into a Guardian we
presumably need the same education as we need to make a man into one, especially as it will
operate on the same nature in both.’” Moreover, he suggests that women ought to be allowed to
exercise naked in the gymnasia alongside the men as part of their physical education regimen, to
keep them healthy and fit for military service: “Our women Guardians must strip for exercise,
then – their excellence will be all the clothes they need,” Plato is quite confident that any
potential critics will be silenced once they see the quality of women which his system will
produce.

Q 1: According to the passage, the Plato’s attitude towards women can be best described as:
Obsequious Nonconformist Cynical Fawning
Ans 2

Q 2: Going by the views expressed by the author in the above passage, which of the following
works would Plato not like women to undertake?
Military service Administration Teaching None of the
above
Ans 4

Q 3: About the book Republic and the views expressed by Plato in his book Republic, the author
is least likely to agree with which of the following?
It should be confined to Platonic times.
It is one of the intellectual achievements of Greek Civilization
Plato views regarding the role and status of women were unique during his time.
All of the above
Ans 1

Passage 7
In all battles two things are usually required of the Commander-in-Chief: to make a good plan
for his army and to keep a strong reserve. Both of these are also obligatory for the painter. To
make a plan, thorough reconnaissance of the country where the battle is to be fought is needed.
Its fields, its mountains, its rivers, its bridges, its trees, its flowers, its atmosphere—all require
and repay attentive observation from a special point of view.
I think this is one of the chief delights that have come to me through painting. No doubt many
people who are lovers of art have acquired it to a high degree without actually practicing. But I
expect that nothing will make one observe more quickly or more thoroughly than having to face
the difficulty of representing the thing observed. And mind you, if you do observe accurately and
with refinement, and if you do record what you have seen with tolerable correspondence, the
result follows on the canvas with startling obedience.
But in order to make his plan, the General must not only reconnoiter the battle-ground; he must
also study the achievements of the great Captains of the past. He must bring the observations he
has collected in the field into comparison with the treatment of similar incidents by famous
chiefs.
Considering that, the galleries of Europe take on a new—and to me at least a severely practical—
interest. “This, then, is how —— painted a cataract. Exactly, and there is that same light I
noticed last week in the waterfall at ——.” And so on. You see the difficulty that baffled you
yesterday; and you see how easily it has been overcome by a great or even by a skillful painter.
Not only is your observation of Nature sensibly improved and developed, but also your
comprehension of the masterpieces of art.
But it is in the use and withholding of their reserves that the great commanders have generally
excelled. After all, when once the last reserve has been thrown in, the commander’s part is
played. If that does not win the battle, he has nothing else to give. Everything must be left to luck
and to the fighting troops. But these last reserves, in the absence of high direction, are apt to get
into sad confusion, all mixed together in a nasty mess, without order or plan—and consequently
without effect.
Mere masses count no more. The largest brush, the brightest colors cannot even make an
impression. The pictorial battlefield becomes a sea of mud mercifully veiled by the fog of war.
Even though the General plunges in himself and emerges bespattered, as he sometimes does, he
will not retrieve the day. In painting, the reserves consist in Proportion or Relation. And it is here
that the art of the painter marches along the road which is traversed by all the greatest harmonies
in thought. At one side of the palette there is white, at the other black; and neither is ever used
‘neat.’ Between these two rigid limits all the action must lie, all the power required must be
generated. Black and white themselves placed in juxtaposition makes no great impression; and
yet they are the most that you can do in pure contrast.

Q1 The existence of which of the following would most strongly challenge the author’s
conception of the process of painting?
[A] A watercolor of waves crashing on the beach
[B] A famous artist who has never been in a European art gallery
[C] A medieval masterpiece that portrays the gates of heaven
[D] A commander who retreats hastily when his troops are losing.
Ans c

Q2 As the author creates the analogy between war and painting in the passage, the Commander-
in-Chief is to the battleground as the:
[A] painter is to the subject being painted.
[B] painter is to the canvas of the painting.
[C] painter is to the paint colors.
[D] painter is to the art gallery.
Ans 1

Q3 Following the example of the master Manet, the young Matisse often inserted in his pictures
areas of white such as tablecloths or crockery that allowed for striking contrasts with black
objects such as a knife or a dark bottle. What is the relevance of this information to the passage?
[A] It supports the author’s claim that the great artists are worthy of imitation.
[B] It supports the author’s claim that neither black nor white is ever used ‘neat.’
[C] It weakens the author’s claim that black and white themselves placed in juxtaposition make
no great impression.
[D] It weakens the author’s claim that great painters take Nature as their subject.
Ans c

Q4: The passage suggests that having the finest art supplies at hand may NOT always be helpful
to a painter because:
[A] the painter may not feel creatively inspired.
[B] nothing can make up for a lack of sense of proportion.
[C] the quality of a painting’s colors may not make an impression on the viewer.
[D] painting is in the final analysis a matter of luck.
Ans B

Passage 8
The piranha is a much-maligned fish. Most people think that this is a deadly creature that swarms
through rivers and creeks of the Amazon rainforest looking for victims to tear apart. And woe
betides anyone unlucky enough to be in the same water as a shoal of Piranhas. It takes only a few
minutes for the vicious Piranhas to reduce someone to a mere skeleton. The truth is that the
piranha is really a much more nuanced animal than the mindless killer depicted in the media. In
fact, Piranhas are a group made up of approximately twelve different species. Each piranha
species occupies its own ecological niche. One type of piranha takes chunks out of the fins of
other fish. Another type eats fruit falling from trees into the river. Each piranha species plays a
unique role in the ecology of the rainforest floodplains. So what should you do next time you
hear someone talking about the “deadly piranha”? You can remind them that the piranha is not
always the notorious killer fish that the tough, muscular heroes of popular nature television
shows would have us believe.
However, Piranhas are not always that deadly. In fact, they usually swim alone. They eat small
fish as well as seeds and fruits that fall into the water. Piranhas rarely attack people. Piranhas
swim in rivers and lakes in South America. And they are kept as pets around the world. Because
they eat so much and can be expensive to feed, some pet owners have released them into local
waters. This practice has introduced Piranhas to habitats outside their native range. In these new
environments, many Piranhas have eaten large numbers of fish, frogs, and other water animals.
The primary purpose of the author is to
a. correct misconceptions about the Piranha.
b. illustrate the importance of Piranhas in rainforest ecology.
c. describe two different species of Piranhas.
d. instruct the reader on what to say if someone describe the piranha as “deadly”.

In paragraph 1, the author most likely uses the old-fashioned expression “woe betide” to
a. highlight the danger posed by Piranhas.
b. suggest that the reputation of the piranha is well-deserved.
c. emphasize the sarcastic tone.
d. indicate that the passage was written in the 19th century.
Reference: lines 2 and 3
As used in paragraph 2, which is the best synonym for notorious?
a. celebrated b. disreputable c. notable d. renowned
Explanation: option B is the only negative option.

As used in paragraph 2, which is the best definition for unique?

a. replaceable b. important c. individual d. unusual
Explanation: Unique is one of its kinds.

Passage 9
Narcissism is said to be the “Hysteria” of the 20th century. Among other related social illness,
more and more people claim self- esteem and a feeling of great emptiness. The “modern”
narcissism however, seems not to be originated in the early times described by Freud, but to be
enforced and constructed by the society. Economic and technological changes are all
contributing factors to increased narcissism in post modernity.
‘Mirror mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?’ The queen in the fairy tale Snow
White, values her “self” according to mirror’s opinion. Not being the “fairest” is unacceptable
and she is willing to kill to change that. The mirror is, of course, a reflection of the self in other
people, which is used by the narcissist to value his own “self”. The narcissistic individual is
distinguished by others and mainly acting for his personal advantage. Alice Miller describes the
narcissist as constantly striving for grandiosity, reflected in the admiration of others and so
confirms superiority and raises the individual’s self esteem. Though admiration of the uncertain
self –worthiness is bolstered. If the individual does not experience admiration, it is likely to
suffer from depressed feeling of severe emptiness emerging from this low self-esteem. However,
narcissism is not about self –love but self- hatred. Individual has an empty self with no identity
of its own. Thus, the reflection of the self in other people is a search for self idea of filling the
inner emptiness.
Admiration and approval that support self –esteem are often achieved through the external image
of the self. Society today is based on appearance. The invention of the mass media has created
new powerful sources for ideals and values and has become the single cultural influence on
young people in western societies. Some of the strongest ideals are the body image, the sexual
image and image related to economic success.
Postmodern society is bringing out narcissistic characteristics, enforcing existing “healthy”
narcissism. Today’s mostly, thoughts are not psychological disturbance of early childhood, but an
on-going socially constructed characteristics shared by members of western societies. The empty
“self” seems to be a mass symptom of the western society and is medicated with consumption of
status symbols to fill the inner emptiness. Self- identity has perhaps always been related to
appearance and achievement in the others, but post-modernity and modern mass media have
greatly increased the burden of the worldly mirror and by doing so narcissism has reached a
completely new level.
Q1. Which of the following statements is/are true as per the passage mentioned?
1. 1.Narcissism develops as a symptom of self esteem and need for identity
2. Narcissism is not a psychological disturbance of childhood as was believed earlier
3. The emergence of the postmodern society has led to shift in the age group at which
symptoms of narcissism are first observed by individual
a. 1 and 3 b. 1and 2 c. 2 and 3 d. Only 1
Ans c
Q2. Which of the following statements can be inferred from the given passage?
a. A narcissist seeks approval from the very people over whom he needs to establish
superiority
b. A narcissist will be satisfied with an image of self that is unprepossessing if that image is
approved by others
c. Society promotes narcissism and compels an otherwise normal person to turn narcissistic
d. Admiration from others is the fuel that feeds the narcissist’s self-esteem
Ans d

Q3. Why does the author refer to the queen in the tale of Snow White?
a. To introduce narcissism
b. To elucidate narcissism
c. To provide an analogy for his idea
d. To refute a previous association of an idea
Ans b

Q4. The author of the passage is most likely to agree with which of the following statements?
a. In the absence of the external approval, the narcissist’s self-love changes into self-hatred
b. The need for self-image can be so great so as to make the person destructive
c. It is possible to be so involved in oneself that one forgives morality
d. Values of the postmodern society seem to have contributed to the increasing narcissism
Ans a

Q5. What does the author mean by “narcissism is said to be the ‘hysteria’ of the 20th century”?
a. The psychological disease that the 20th century is inflicted with
b. The root cause of all psychological issue of the 20th century
c. The psychological phenomenon that is in vogue in the 20th century
d. The result of the post-modernist society
Ans c

Q6. The author uses the example of the tale of Snow White to explain which of the following?
a. Narcissist’s search of his reflection in the mind of other people
b. Narcissist’s seeking approval in the eyes of others
c. Narcissist’s seeking reflection of the self in other people, which is used to value his own
sense
d. Narcissist’s seeking conformation of his superiority
Ans c
Passage 10
No very satisfactory account of the mechanism that caused the formation of the ocean basins has
yet been given. The traditional view supposes that the upper mantle of the earth behaves as a
liquid when it is subjected to small forces for long periods and that differences in temperature
under oceans and continents are sufficient to produce convection in the mantle of the earth with
rising convection currents under the mid-ocean ridges and sinking currents under the continents.
Theoretically, this convection would carry the continental plates along as though they were on a
conveyor belt and would provide the forces needed to produce the split that occurs along the
ridge. This view may be correct: It has the advantage that the currents are driven by temperature
differences those themselves depend on the position of the continents. Such a back-coupling, in
which the position of the moving plate has an impact on the forces that move it, could produce
complicated and varying motions. On the other hand, the theory is implausible because
convection does not normally occur along lines, and it certainly does not occur along lines
broken by frequent offsets or changes in direction, as the ridge is. Also it is difficult to see how
the theory applies to the plate between the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the ridge in the Indian Ocean.
This plate is growing on both sides, and since there is no intermediate trench, the two ridges
must be moving apart. It would be odd if the rising convection currents kept exact pace with
them. An alternative theory is that the sinking part of the plate, which is denser than the hotter
surrounding mantle, pulls the rest of the plate after it. Again it is difficult to see how this applies
to the ridge in the South Atlantic, where neither the African nor the American plate has a sinking
part. Another possibility is that the sinking plate cools the neighbouring mantle and produces
convection currents that move the plates. This last theory is attractive because it gives some hope
of explaining the enclosed seas, such as the Sea of Japan. These seas have a typical oceanic floor,
except that the floor is overlaid by several kilometers of sediment. Their floors have probably
been sinking for long periods. It seems possible that a sinking current of cooled mantle material
on the upper side of the plate might be the cause of such deep basins. The enclosed seas are an
important feature of the earth’s surface, and seriously require explanation because, addition to
the enclosed seas that are developing at present behind island arcs, there are a number of older
ones of possibly similar origin, such as the Gulf of Mexico, the Black Sea, and perhaps the North
Sea.

According to the traditional view of the origin of ocean basins, which of the following is
sufficient to move the continental plates?
a. Increase in sedimentation on ocean floors.
b. Spreading of ocean trenches.
c. Movement of mid-ocean ridges.
d. Difference in temperature under oceans and continents.
Reference: lines 2 to 5.

It can be inferred from the passage that, the deepest sediments would be found in the
a. Indian Ocean b. Black Sea c. Mid-Atlantic d. South
Atlantic
Reference: last 2 lines.

The author refers to a “conveyor belt” in order to

a. Illustrate the effects of convection in the mantle.
b. Show how temperature differences depend on the position of the continents.
c. Demonstrate the linear nature of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.
d. Describe the complicated motions made possible by back-coupling.
Reference: lines 6 and 7.

The author regards the traditional view of the origin of the oceans with
a. Slight apprehension b. Absolute indifferencec. Indignant angerd. Guarded skepticism
Reference: lines 8 and12

According to the passage, which of the following are separated by a plate that is growing on both
sides?
a. The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan.
b. The South Atlantic Ridge and the North Sea Ridge.
c. The Gulf of Mexico and the South Atlantic Ridge.
d. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Indian Ocean Ridge.
Reference: lines 14 to 16