On the basis of the above passage, the following assumptions have been made : 1. A society without well educated people cannot be transformed into a modern society. 2. Without acquiring culture, a person's education is not complete. Which of the above assumptions is/are valid ?
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 2 only ✓ UPSC's answer
- (c) Both 1 and 2
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Why the answer is (b)
• The passage states that education plays a 'great transformatory role' in life, implying that education is a key driver of transformation, but it does not explicitly state that a society *cannot* be transformed without well-educated people, making Assumption 1 too strong and not directly supported.
• The passage explicitly argues that a 'merely well informed man is only a bore' and that the aim should be producing men who possess 'both culture and expert knowledge'.
• It further states that expert knowledge provides a foundation, while culture leads to depth and height, and together they impart meaning to human existence.
• This directly supports the idea that without culture, education (expert knowledge) is incomplete or lacks meaning, validating Assumption 2.
• Therefore, only Assumption 2 is valid based on the text.
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) 1 only
- Assumption 1 is not explicitly supported as the passage does not claim that transformation is impossible without well-educated people, only that education plays a transformatory role.
- (c) Both 1 and 2
- Assumption 1 is invalid because the passage does not establish a necessary condition that a society must have well-educated people to become modern.
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
- Assumption 2 is valid because the passage explicitly states that the aim is to produce men with both culture and expert knowledge, implying education is incomplete without culture.
Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2019, held on 2 June 2019. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.