UPSC Prelims 2021 GS Paper I · Q44 of 98 History easy

Who among the following is associated with 'Songs from Prison', a translation of ancient Indian religious lyrics in English?

  1. (a) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
  2. (b) Jawaharlal Nehru
  3. (c) Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi ✓ UPSC's answer
  4. (d) Sarojini Naidu

Why the answer is (c)

• 'Songs from Prison' (1934) is a collection of Gandhi's English renderings of ancient Indian devotional lyrics and bhajans, made during his imprisonment in Yeravda Jail in 1930 — option (c).

• Gandhi translated them for his English friends and Ashram inmates; John S. Hoyland adapted the collection.

• Tilak wrote 'Gita Rahasya' in prison (a); Nehru wrote 'Glimpses of World History' and 'Discovery of India' in jail (b); Sarojini Naidu was a poet of original English verse (d).

• Hence option (c).

Why the other options are wrong

(a) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Tilak's prison work was Gita Rahasya.
(b) Jawaharlal Nehru
Nehru's prison writings were histories and letters, not this translation.
(d) Sarojini Naidu
Naidu wrote original poetry, not this translation.

Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2021, held on 10 October 2021. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.

Reading the answer is not the same as getting it right under a clock. Practise this question with UPSC's negative marking, and anything you miss goes into an error notebook until you get it right twice.

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