Sentence A: "The process of handing down implies not a passive transfer, but some contestation in defining what exactly is to be handed down." This sentence introduces the concept of "handing down" and contestation, making it a good starting point.
Sentence E: "Just as life has death as its opposite, so is tradition by default the opposite of innovation." This naturally follows Sentence A by explaining how tradition relates to innovation.
Sentence D: "It is now a truism to say that traditions are not handed down unchanged, but are invented." This supports the idea introduced in Sentence E, explaining that traditions are created rather than passed down unchanged.
Sentence C: "Every generation selects what it requires from the past and makes its innovations, some more than others." This sentence logically follows Sentence D by illustrating how traditions are selected and modified.
Sentence B: "Wherever Western scholars have worked on the Indian past, the selection is even more apparent and the inventing of a tradition much more recognizable." This fits last as it gives a specific example of Western scholars working on the Indian past.
The correct answer is (b) EDACB.
Read the sentence and infer the writer's tone: "The politician's speech was filled with lofty promises and little substance, a performance repeated every election season."