Dear Readers,
As SSC CGL & MTS notification is out and candidates have started their preparation for this exam. Mahendras also has started special quizzes for this examination. This series of quizzes are based on the latest pattern of the SSC CGL & MTS examination. Regular practice of the questions included in the quizzes will boost up your preparations and it will be very helpful in scoring good marks in the examination.
1-10. Read the following passage carefully and choose the best answer to each question out of four alternatives and mark your answer.“Nobody knows my name” is the title of one of James Baldwin’s celebrated books. Who knows the name of the old man sitting amidst ruins pondering over his hubble - bubble? We do not. It does not matter. He is there like the North Pole, the Everest and the Alps but with one difference. The North Pole, the Everest and the Alps will be there when he is not there any more. Can we really say this? “Dust thou act to dust returneth” was not spoken of the soul. We do not know whether the old man’s soul will go marching on like Johan Brown’s. While his body lies mouldering in the grave or becomes ash driven by the wind or is immersed in water, such speculation is hazardous. A soul’s trip can take one to the treacherous shoals of metaphysics where there is no ‘yes’ or ‘no’, ‘Who am I?’ asked Tagore of the rising sun in the first dawn of his life, he received no answer. “Who am I?’ he asked the setting sun in the last twilight of his life. He received no answer.
We are no more on solid ground with dust which we can feel in our hands, scatter to the wind and wet with water to turn it into mud. For this much is sure, that in the end, when life’s ceaseless, labour grinds to a halt and man meets death, the brother of sleep, his body buried or burnt, becomes dust. In the form of dust he lives, inanimate yet in contact with the animate. He settles on files in endless government almirahs, on manuscripts written and not published on all shelves, on faces and hands. He becomes ubiquitous all pervasive, sometimes sneaking even into hermetically sealed chambers.
To write well you have to be able to write clearly and logically, and you cannot do this unless you can think clearly and logically. If you cannot do this yet you should train yourself to do it by taking particular problems and following them through, point by point, to a solution, without leaving anything out and without avoiding any difficulties that you meet.
At first you find clear, step-by-step thought very difficult. You may find that your mind is not able to concentrate. Several unconnected ideas may occur together. But practice will improve your ability to concentrate on a single idea and think about it clearly and logically. In order to increase your vocabulary and to improve your style, you should read widely and use a good dictionary to help you find the exact meanings and correct usages of words.
Always remember that regular and frequent practice is necessary if you want to learn to write well. It is not good waiting until you have an inspiration before you write. Even with the most famous writers, inspiration is rare. Someone said that writing is ninety-nine percent hard work and one percent inspiration, so the sooner you get into the habit of disciplining yourself to write, the better it is.
1 What is the difference between the old man and the North Pole the Everest and the Alps?
A. he ponders over his hubble-bubble while they don’t
B. they are known to all while he is known to none
C. they remain while he will soon become dust.
D. they are not as old as he
2 What, according to the passage happens to a person’s soul after death?
A. the soul also dies with the body
B. the soul continues to live after the body is dead
C. the soul certainly becomes dust after death
D. it is dangerous to guess
3 Which of the following statement is true?
A. The rising sun told Tagore who he was
B. The rising sun did not tell Tagore who he was
C. The rising sun advised Tagore to ask no questions
D. The rising sun told Tagore that he would become dust
4 What happens to man after he becomes dust?
A. he disappears from the world for ever
B. he appears in the form of man again
C. he becomes all pervasive as dust
D. he often sneaks into hermetically sealed chambers
5 What figure of speech is used in the expression the ‘brother of sleep’?
A. Simile
B. Metaphor
C. Oxymoron
D. Irony
6 To write well, a person must train himself in.
A. dealing with a difficult problem
B. not leaving anything out
C. thinking clearly and logically
D. following a step-by step approach
7 Initially it is difficult to write because
A. a good dictionary is not used
B. ideas occur without any sequence
C. aids to correct writing are not known
D. exact usages of words are not known
8 According to the passage, writing style can be improved by
A. thinking logically
B. writing clearly
C. undergoing training
D. reading widely
9 Famous writers have achieved success by
A. using their linguistic resources properly
B. disciplining their skill
C. following only one idea
D. waiting for inspiration
10 All the following words mean ‘exact’ except.
A. precise
B. accurate
C. very
D. erect
Answers:-
Q.1 (C)
Q.2 (D)
Q.3 (B)
Q.4 (D)
Q.5 (B)
Q.6 (C)
Q.7 (B)
Q.8 (D)
Q.9 (B)
Q.10 (D)
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MAHENDRA GURU