Comprehension


Direction: In the following questions, you have two brief passages with 5 questions following each passage. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.
Passage
Poverty can be defined as a social phenomenon in which a section of the society is unable to fulfil even its basic necessities of life. When a substantial segment of the society is deprived of the minimum level of living and continues at a bare subsistence level, that society is said to be plagued with mass poverty. The countries of the third world exhibit invariably the existence of mass poverty, although pockets of poverty exist even in the developed countries of Europe and America. Attempts have been made in all societies to define poverty, but all of them are conditioned by the vision of minimum or good life obtaining in society. For instance, the concept of poverty in the U.S.A. would be significantly different from that in India because the average man is able to afford a much higher level of living in the United States. There is an effort in all definitions of poverty to approach the average level of living in a society and as such these definitions reflect the coexistence of inequalities in a society and the extent to which different societies are prepared to tolerate them. For instance, in India, the generally accepted definition of poverty emphasizes minimum level of living rather than a reasonable level of living. This attitude is borne out of a realization that it would not be possible to provide even a minimum quantum of basic needs for some decades and therefore, to talk about a reasonable level of living or good life may appear to be wishful thinking at the present stage. Thus, political considera-tions enter the definitions of poverty because programmes of alleviating poverty may become prohibitive as the vision of a good life widens.
SOME IMPORTANT WORDS
(1) substantial (Adj.) : considerable
(2) bare (Adj.) : just enough
(3) deprived (Phr. V.) : without the basic needs
(4) subsistence (N.) : the state of having just enough money/food to stay alive
(5) plagued with : suffering from
(6) invariably (Adv.) : always ; without fail
(7) borne out (Phr. V.) : justified ; confirmed
(8) quantum (N.) : a quantity/amount
(9) wishful thinking (N.) : the illusion that what you wish for is actually true
(10) alleviating (V.) : to lessen/reduce
(11) prohibitive (Adj.) : preventing people from doing something by law

  1. Definition of poverty in India emphasizes minimum level of living because









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    It is impossible at this stage to provide a reasonable quantum of living.

    Correct Option: A

    It is impossible at this stage to provide a reasonable quantum of living.


  1. What do all definitions of poverty do?









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    Reflect the coexistence of inequalities in society.

    Correct Option: A

    Reflect the coexistence of inequalities in society.



  1. What conditions the various attempts to define poverty?









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    The vision of minimum or good life

    Correct Option: C

    The vision of minimum or good life


  1. What is poverty according to the writer?









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    Inability of a society to provide the basic necessities of life.

    Correct Option: B

    Inability of a society to provide the basic necessities of life.



Direction: A passage is given with 5 questions following it. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of the four alternatives.
PASSAGE
Settled life and cultivation gave man leisure; he had no longer to always think of getting food. During spare time he could make stone tools, hoes or pots and weave cloth. Some people spared from producing their own food could even devote themselves to other activities all the time. This resulted in a division of labour. The division of labour made it possible for various groups to specialize, that is, to acquire greater skill and learn better techniques in doing one kind of work. The settled community life needed rules to regulate the behaviour of the members of the community. It is not possible to know exactly how regulations were established. It appears that the decisions regarding the community were taken by the people as a whole, or by a council of elders, as is in the practice in tribal societies. There were perhaps no kings or any organized government. Most likely, there were chiefs elected by the community for their qualities of leadership. But, these chiefs could not pass their positions on to their sons and they enjoyed few special privileges. Archaeological excavations have not revealed anything which would indicate the prevalence of a higher status for some members of the community. This is also supported by the study of life in many tribes in modern times. Thus, social inequalities do not seem to have emerged even in Neolithic times.

  1. What did man do in his spare time?









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    All of the above

    Correct Option: D

    All of the above