CAT 2020 Slot 1 — VARC Question 16
Direction for Reading Comprehension: The pass ages given here are followed by some questions that have four answer choices; read the passage carefully and pick the option whose answer best aligns with the passage
The word ‘anarchy’ comes from the Greek anarkhia, meaning contrary to authority or without a ruler, and was used in a derogatory sense until 1840, when it was adopted by Pierre-Joseph Proudhon to describe his political and social ideology. Proudhon argued that organization without government was both possible and desirable. In the evolution of political ideas, anarchism can be seen as an ultimate projection of both liberalism and socialism, and the differing strands of anarchist thought can be related to their emphasis on one or the other of these.
Historically, anarchism arose not only as an explanation of the gulf between the rich and the poor in any community, and of the reason why the poor have been obliged to fight for their share of a common inheritance, but as a radical answer to the question ‘What went wrong?’ that followed the ultimate outcome of the French Revolution. It had ended not only with a reign of terror and the emergence of a newly rich ruling caste, but with a new adored emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, strutting through his conquered territories.
The anarchists and their precursors were unique on the political Left in affirming that workers and peasants, grasping the chance that arose to bring an end to centuries of exploitation and tyranny, were inevitably betrayed by the new class of politicians, whose first priority was to re-establish a centralized state power. After every revolutionary uprising, usually won at a heavy cost for ordinary populations, the new rulers had no hesitation in applying violence and terror, a secret police, and a professional army to maintain their control.
For anarchists the state itself is the enemy, and they have applied the same interpretation to the outcome of every revolution of the 19th and 20th centuries. This is not merely because every state keeps a watchful and sometimes punitive eye on its dissidents, but because every state protects the privileges of the powerful.
The mainstream of anarchist propaganda for more than a century has been anarchistcommunism, which argues that property in land, natural resources, and the means of production should be held in mutual control by local communities, federating for innumerable joint purposes with other communes. It differs from state socialism in opposing the concept of any central authority. Some anarchists prefer to distinguish between anarchist-communism and collectivist anarchism in order to stress the obviously desirable freedom of an individual or family to possess the resources needed for living, while not implying the right to own the resources needed by others. . . .
There are, unsurprisingly, several traditions of individualist anarchism, one of them deriving from the ‘conscious egoism’ of the German writer Max Stirner (1806–56), and another from a remarkable series of 19th-century American figures who argued that in protecting our own autonomy and associating with others for common advantages, we are promoting the good of all. These thinkers differed from free-market liberals in their absolute mistrust of American capitalism, and in their emphasis on mutualism.
The author makes all of the following arguments in the passage, EXCEPT:
Answer & solution
- A
The failure of the French Revolution was because of its betrayal by the new class of politicians who emerged from it.
The popular perception of anarchism as espousing lawlessness and violence comes from a mainstream mistrust of collectivism.
- C
Individualist anarchism is actually constituted of many streams, all of which focus on the autonomy of the individual.
- D
For anarchists, the state is the enemy because all states apply violence and terror to maintain their control.
Easy
An EXCEPT question: three options restate arguments the author actually makes; the answer is the one that is NOT in the passage (or is inconsistent with it). Match each option to its supporting line, and the unsupported one stands out.
Stated — eliminated. "The failure of the French Revolution was because of its betrayal by the new class of politicians who emerged from it." Supported by paragraph 2–3: the Revolution ended badly and the workers were "inevitably betrayed by the new class of politicians." The author does make this argument.
Correct — NOT stated. "The popular perception of anarchism as espousing lawlessness and violence comes from a mainstream mistrust of collectivism." The passage notes "anarchy" was used derogatorily until 1840, but it never traces anarchism's bad reputation to a "mistrust of collectivism." This causal claim is invented — and anarchists actually favour mutualism/collective control, so the author would not link distrust of collectivism to anarchism's image. Not an argument in the passage.
Stated — eliminated. "Individualist anarchism is constituted of many streams, all focusing on individual autonomy." Supported by the last paragraph: "several traditions of individualist anarchism" (Stirner's conscious egoism; the 19th-century American figures), all centred on autonomy. The author makes this argument.
Stated — eliminated. "For anarchists, the state is the enemy because all states apply violence and terror to maintain control." Supported by paragraph 3–4: "the state itself is the enemy," and rulers apply "violence and terror, a secret police, and a professional army." The author makes this argument.
Option B. A, C and D each map onto explicit lines of the passage; only B invents a causal claim (anarchism's image arising from mistrust of collectivism) that the author never makes, so it is the EXCEPT.