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Reading Comprehension
Direction (1-5): Read the passage carefully and answer the questions given below it. There are some blanks given in the passage based on which some questions are framed, and some words are highlighted as well to help you answer some of the questions.
But international support for the Amazon has been tepid. This was clear last month in Altamira, northern Brazil, at the aptly named Amazon: Centre of the World gathering. (A) In the days before the meeting, rightwing agitators(1) called for farmers, cattle ranchers(2), police and other “patriots” to mobilise against sovereignty(3) communities, environmentalists and human rights groups taking part, that they claimed were “eco-socialists” working for international interests against Brazil’s traditional(4) and economic development. These messages were enough to spook two foreign organisations – a huge environmental NGO and one of the world’s biggest foundations – who pulled out of the event., rather than risk becoming embroiled in a potentially tense stand-off. Other foreign groups were uncowed. For domestic activists, threats are a fact of life – and they find their own way to deal with them. At the opening session, a group of land grabbers – some wrapped in the Brazilian flag – shoved their way to the front, jostled the speakers and disrupted proceedings. They were pushed back by Kayapo warriors in war paint, while other activists formed a human barrier to enable the speakers to continue.(B) It was symbolic:/ white farmers attempting to take over;/ Amazon dwellers defending their space,/ while prominent international supporters ran scared. /
(C) This is a shame on our generation. The Amazon (along with the Congo and Papua New Guinea, the oceans and other capitals of nature) should be as central to ____________________________. Back then, working-class idealists joined public intellectuals in the fight against fascism. George Orwell, Martha Gellhorn, WH Auden, Pablo Neruda, Emma Goldman and Ernest Hemingway were among tens of thousands who risked their lives reporting on the fighting or taking part in it as members of the International Brigade. Some saw it as a civilisation-defining moment. Others described it in apocalyptic terms as “the last great cause”. For Orwell– who was shot in the conflict – it was simply a fight for “common decency”.
Unlike then, the threat to civilisation and decency is not a new ideology, but the accumulated consequences of the old one. Bolsonaro, Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Rodrigo Duterte, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and other populists may often resemble fascists, but actually they are arch-capitalists. Their main appeal to voters comes not from a twisted vision of a future but from a promise to turn back the clock to a more stable age. This is impossible, because manmade climate chaos is increasingly disrupting more lives and economic activity. Until governments deal with that, all other battles will be futile.
That is why defence of the Amazon – and the broader struggle to restore nature – is today’s “last great cause”. Move this issue from the periphery to the centre and everything – global politics, economics and individual thinking – changes. (D) Ecology will be seen(1) as more representation(2) than economy, long-term fertility(3) will come ahead of destructive GDP growth, ecocide will be punishable in criminal courts, future generations and other species will be given democratic fundamental(4), and school curriculums will teach children how to maintain our home, planet Earth.
That may seem a distant prospect. The forces lined up against such a radical but necessary shift in thinking have more political power and force of arms. The same was true in the Spanish civil war. Then, the antifascists lost the war but, as the great historian Eric Hobsbawm noted, they won the battle for ideas.(E) With so many writers, poets and journalists/ on their side, the losers got to write the history for a change /– and these shaped the debate for the bigger conflict /that was to come in the second world war.
Similarly, the battle for the Amazon cannot be won on the ground with guns and bombs, but it can be shaped by opinions, money, consumer choices, street protests and international pressure. It is no longer enough for today’s intellectuals, celebrities and other opinion formers to declare support for the rainforest on social networks. More people need to get out from behind their screens, to feel what nature provides and how it is being lost.
1) The sentence given in (A) has four words given in bold. among the given bold words, which of the following must replace each other to make the sentence grammatically correct and meaningful?
A) 1-3
B) 1-4
C) 2-3
D) 2-4
E) 3-4
2) In the above passage, sentence (B) may or may not have an error in one part of the sentence, select the part having error in it as your answer.
A) It was symbolic
B) white farmers attempting to take over;
C) Amazon dwellers defending their space,
D) while prominent international supporters ran scared.
E) No error
3) Which of the following phrase should fill the blank (C) to make it contextually and grammatically correct and meaningful?
A) foreign governments need to step up and help Brazil recognise the value of the rainforest
B) global debate and international activism as the Spanish civil war was in the 1930s
C) rather than leaving the battle to courageous but outmuscled and outmoneyed traditional communities
D) nature should be pivotal in all decision-making
E) None of these
4) The sentence given in (D) has four words given in bold. amongst the given bold words which of the following must replace each other to make the sentence contextually correct and meaningful?
A) 1-3
B) 1-4
C) 2-3
D) 2-4
E) 3-4
5) In the above passage, sentence (E) may or may not have an error in one part of the sentence, select the part having error in it as your answer.
A) With so many writers, poets and journalists
B) on their side, the losers got to write the history for a change
C) and these shaped the debate for the bigger conflict
D) that was to come in the second world war
E) No error
Sentence Rearrangement
Direction (6-10): Given below are six statements A, B, C, D, E and F, which when arranged in the correct order, form a coherent and meaningful paragraph. The sentence marked as D is fixed and would fit in the fourth position. Rearrange the other statements in a proper sequence to form a meaningful paragraph, then answer the questions below.
A) Unlike English, Italian has no reduced vowels (called “schwa” in linguistics), so nothing is diminished or squashed. It’s a syllable-timed language, whereas English is stress-timed: we eat words, they say – we cluster consonants and elide; they don’t. Italian isn’t necessarily louder, it just sounds so to an Anglo-Saxon ear because we’re simply unused to so many syllables.
B) Recent research has also suggested that Italian is a high-speed, low-density language. The amount of information communicated per syllable is lower than in English, meaning it’s spoken faster and, as all musicians know, when you pick up speed you sometimes, inadvertently, go loud.
C) Frecciarossa’s quiet carriages were previously only available for business passengers, but they proved so popular that they will now be available to passengers in economy class too. They will be called “Standard Silenzio”.
D) Yet many Italians feel the stereotype is absurd. Italians are only perceived to be loud because of their language: it’s vowel-based, requiring the vibration of vocal chords – hence its melodious quality and aptness for opera.
E) In some ways, Italy has earned its reputation as a rowdy country. A 2015 survey of global noise pollution placed Italy second for racket. “Noise music” – replacing classical harmonies with modern clanking – was pioneered by the Italian futurist Luigi Russolo. And no self-respecting pizzeria is without a loud TV in the corner. As Francesco De Gregori once sang: “Poor me – I’m scared of the silence but can’t stand the noise.”
F) The announcement that Italy’s high-speed train franchise, Frecciarossa, is introducing “quiet carriages” has been greeted with relief and irony. Of the many stereotypes about Italians, one that refuses to die is that they are loud, and even many Italians doubt that a “quiet carriage” will ever remain so.
6) Which of the following will be LAST sentence after rearrangement?
A) B
B) A
C) F
D) E
E) None of these
7) Which of the following pairs form two consecutive statements after rearrangement?
A) A-D
B) B-C
C) C-E
D) C-D
E) None of these
8) Which of the following will be FIRST sentence after rearrangement?
A) D
B) C
C) B
D) F
E) None of these
9) Which of the following will be SECOND sentence after rearrangement?
A) D
B) C
C) B
D) A
E) None of these
10) Which of the following will be FIFTH sentence after rearrangement?
A) D
B) E
C) F
D) A
E) None of these
Answers :
Directions (1-5) :
1) Answer: E
After the replacement the thus formed sentence is “In the days before the meeting, rightwing agitators called for farmers, cattle ranchers, police and other “patriots” to mobilise against traditional communities, environmentalists and human rights groups taking part, that they claimed were “eco-socialists” working for international interests against Brazil’s sovereignty and economic development.”
2) Answer: E
All parts of the sentence is correct.
3) Answer: B
This is a shame on our generation. The Amazon (along with the Congo and Papua New Guinea, the oceans and other capitals of nature) should be as central to global debate and international activism as the Spanish civil war was in the 1930s.
4) Answer: D
After making the replacements, the thus formed sentence is “Ecology will be seen as more fundamental than economy, long-term fertility will come ahead of destructive GDP growth, ecocide will be punishable in criminal courts, future generations and other species will be given democratic representation, and school curriculums will teach children how to maintain our home, planet Earth.”
5) Answer: C
‘These’ should be replaced with ‘this’. Thus, option C is the correct answer here.
Directions (6-10) :
The correct sequence of the paragraph should be FCEDAB
F) The announcement that Italy’s high-speed train franchise, Frecciarossa, is introducing “quiet carriages” has been greeted with relief and irony. Of the many stereotypes about Italians, one that refuses to die is that they are loud, and even many Italians doubt that a “quiet carriage” will ever remain so.
C) Frecciarossa’s quiet carriages were previously only available for business passengers, but they proved so popular that they will now be available to passengers in economy class too. They will be called “Standard Silenzio”.
E) In some ways, Italy has earned its reputation as a rowdy country. A 2015 survey of global noise pollution placed Italy second for racket. “Noise music” – replacing classical harmonies with modern clanking – was pioneered by the Italian futurist Luigi Russolo. And no self-respecting pizzeria is without a loud TV in the corner. As Francesco De Gregori once sang: “Poor me – I’m scared of the silence but can’t stand the noise.”
D) Yet many Italians feel the stereotype is absurd. Italians are only perceived to be loud because of their language: it’s vowel-based, requiring the vibration of vocal chords – hence its melodious quality and aptness for opera.
A) Unlike English, Italian has no reduced vowels (called “schwa” in linguistics), so nothing is diminished or squashed. It’s a syllable-timed language, whereas English is stress-timed: we eat words, they say – we cluster consonants and elide; they don’t. Italian isn’t necessarily louder, it just sounds so to an Anglo-Saxon ear because we’re simply unused to so many syllables.
B) Recent research has also suggested that Italian is a high-speed, low-density language. The amount of information communicated per syllable is lower than in English, meaning it’s spoken faster and, as all musicians know, when you pick up speed you sometimes, inadvertently, go loud.
6) Answer: A
7) Answer: C
8) Answer: D
9) Answer: B
10) Answer: D
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