Direction: In the following questions, read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.
PASSAGE
It is strange that, according to his position in life, an extravagant man is admired or despised. A successful businessman does nothing to increase his popularity by being careful with his money. He is expected to display his success, to have a smart car, an expensive life, and to be lavish with his hospitality. If he is not so, he is considered mean and his reputation in business may even suffer in consequence. The paradox remains that if he had not been careful with his money in the first place, he would never have achieved his present wealth. Among the two income groups, a different set of values exists. The young clerk who makes his wife a present of a new dress when he hadn’t paid his house rent, is condemned as extravagant. Carefulness with money to the point of meanness is applauded as a virtue. Nothing in his life is considered more worthy than paying his bills. The ideal wife for such a man separates her housekeeping money into joyless little piles, and she is able to face the milkman with equanimity and never knows the guilt of buying something she can’t really afford.
SOME IMPORTANT WORDS
(1) despised (V.) : to dislike and have no respect for somebody/something
(2) lavish (Adj.) : large in amount, or impressive, and usually costing a lot of money; extravagant; luxurious
(3) hospitality (N.) : friendly and generous behaviour towards guests
(4) reputation (N.) : the opinion that people have about what somebody/something is like, based on what has happened in the past (5) consequence (N.) : a result of something that has happened
(6) paradox (N.) : a person, thing/situation that has two opposite features and therefore seems strange
(7) condemned (V.) : to express very strong disapproval of somebody/something usually for moral reasons
(8) meanness (N.) : unkind behaviour
(9) applauded (V.) : to express praise for somebody/ something because you approve of them/it.
(10) virtue (N.) : behaviour/attitudes that show high moral standards
(11) equanimity (N.) : a calm state of mind which means that you do not become angry/upset, especially in difficult situations.