2011 GS Paper I, all questions

UPSC Prelims 2011 · GS Paper I

Question 67: History and Culture

Mahatma Gandhi said that some of his deepest convictions were reflected in a book titled, "Unto this Last" and the book transformed his life. What was the message from the book that transformed Mahatma Gandhi ?

aUplifting the oppressed and poor is the moral responsibility of an educated man
bThe good of individual is contained in the good of all
cThe life of celibacy and spiritual pursuit are essential for a noble life
dAll the statements (a), (b) and (c) are correct in this context

AnswerThe answer is (b).

John Ruskin's Unto This Last, which Gandhi read in 1904 and later put into Gujarati as Sarvodaya, taught that the good of the individual is contained in the good of all; that a lawyer's work and a barber's work have equal value, as all have the same right to earn a living by their work; and that the life of labour is the life worth living. The first of these is the message Gandhi said transformed his life.

Why each option is right or wrong
  • (a) This is not the specific message of Unto This Last.
  • (b) Right: the good of the individual is contained in the good of all.
  • (c) Celibacy and spiritual pursuit are not the message of Ruskin's book.
  • (d) Only (b) is correct, so this fails.

Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.

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Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2011, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.