XAT 2018 — VARC Question 1
Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.
If history doesn’t follow any stable rules, and if we cannot predict its future course, why study it? It often seems that the chief aim of science is to predict the future – eteorologists are expected to forecast whether tomorrow will bring rain or sunshine; economists should know whether devaluing the currency will avert or precipitate an economic crisis; good doctors foresee whether chemotherapy or radiation therapy will be more successful in curing lung cancer. Similarly, historians are asked to examine the actions of our ancestors so that we can repeat their wise decisions and avoid their mistakes. But it never works like that because the present is just too different from the past. It is a waste of time to study annibal’s tactics in the Second Punic War so as to copy them in the Third World War. What worked well in cavalry battles will not necessarily be of much benefit in cyber arfare. Science is not just about predicting the future, though. Scholars in all fields often seek to broaden our horizons, thereby opening before us new and unknown futures. This is especially true of history. Though historians occasionally try their hand at prophecy (without notable success), the study of history aims above all to make us aware of possibilities we don’t normally consider. Historians study the past not in order to repeat it, but in order to be liberated from it. Each and every one of us has been born into a given historical reality, ruled by particular norms and values, and managed by a unique economic and political system. We take this reality for granted, thinking it is natural, inevitable and immutable. We forget that our world was created by an accidental chain of events, and that history shaped not only our technology, politics and society, but also our thoughts, fears and dreams. The cold hand of the past emerges from the grave of our ancestors, grips us by the neck and directs our gaze towards a single future. We have felt that grip from the moment we were born, so we assume that it is a natural and inescapable part of who we are. Therefore we seldom try to shake ourselves free, and envision alternative futures. Studying history aims to loosen the grip of the past. It enables us to turn our head this way and that, and begin to notice possibilities that our ancestors could not imagine, or didn’t want us to imagine. By observing the accidental chain of events that led us here, we realise how our very thoughts and dreams took shape – and we can begin to think and dream differently. Studying history will not tell us what to choose, but at least it gives us more options.
Based on the passage, which of the following would be the most appropriate means for citizens to learn history?
Answer & solution
- A
British names of streets in India should never be changed.
Every street in India should display a plaque that lists all its previous names.
- C
British names of streets in India should be changed to Indian names along with an explanation of their origin.
- D
Indian streets should be named based on suggestions generated through an opinion poll.
- E
Names of Indian streets should be periodically changed.
According to the passage, history does not provide any actionable principle, except that it helps citizens to be liberated from the past. For historians, studying history aims to loosen the grip of the past. It enables us to turn our head this way and that; we begin to notice possibilities that our ancestors could not have imagined,… By observing the accidental chain of events that led us here, we realize how our very thoughts and dreams took shape. This, in turn, encourages us to think and dream differently. Among the four options, option 2 is the most neutral representation of history making us aware of its self, rather than acting concretely upon our consciousness like in other options.
Hence, the correct answer is option 2.