Comprehension

Curiously, the chiming of the hour seemed to have put new heart into him. He was a lonely ghost uttering a truth that nobody would ever hear. But so long as he uttered it, in some obscure way the continuity was not broken. It was not by making yourself heard but by staying sane that you carried on the human heritage. He went back to the table, dipped his pen, and wrote: To the future or to the past, to a time when thought is free, when men are different from one another and do not live alone—to a time when truth exists and what is done cannot be undone: From the age of uniformity, from the age of solitude, from the age of Big Brother, from the age of doublethink —greetings! He was already dead, he reflected. It seemed to him that it was only now, when he had begun to be able to formulate his thoughts, that he had taken the decisive step. The consequences of every act are included in the act itself. He wrote: Thoughtcrime does not entail death: thoughtcrime IS death. Now he had recognized himself as a dead man it became important to stay alive as long as possible. Two fingers of his right hand were inkstained. It was exactly the kind of detail that might betray you. Some nosing zealot in the Ministry (a woman, probably: someone like the little sandy-haired woman or the dark-haired girl from the Fiction Department) might start wondering why he had been writing during the lunch interval, why he had used an old-fashioned pen, WHAT he had been writing—and then drop a hint in the appropriate quarter. He went to the bathroom and carefully scrubbed the ink away with the gritty darkbrown soap which rasped your skin like sandpaper and was therefore well adapted for this purpose. He put the diary away in the drawer. It was quite useless to think of hiding it, but he could at least make sure whether or not its existence had been discovered. A hair laid across the page-ends was too obvious. With the tip of his finger he picked up an identifiable grain of whitish dust and deposited it on the corner of the cover, where it was bound to be shaken off if the book was moved. 

Question: 1

According to the passage, what is the MAIN AND DECISIVE EVIDENCE to prove that the author has committed a thoughtcrime?

Show Hint

In detail-oriented comprehension questions, precision is key. Pay close attention to specifics like "left hand" versus "right hand." The correct answer often hinges on these small but crucial details mentioned in the text.
Updated On: Oct 13, 2025
  • Sandy-haired woman from the Fiction Department
  • Gritty darkbrown soap
  • Ink stains on the twofingers of his left hand
  • Ink stains on the twofingers of his right hand
Hide Solution
collegedunia
Verified By Collegedunia

The Correct Option is D

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Understanding the Question
The question asks for the primary and conclusive piece of evidence that could prove the author (the character in the story) has committed a "thoughtcrime," which in this context is the act of writing his thoughts in a diary.

Step 2: Locating the Evidence in the Passage
The passage explicitly identifies the key piece of evidence. It states: "Two fingers of his right hand were inkstained. It was exactly the kind of detail that might betray you." This sentence directly links the ink stains on his right hand to the act of writing and the risk of being discovered.

Step 3: Evaluating the Options


(A) Sandy-haired woman from the Fiction Department: She is a potential accuser or "nosing zealot," not the evidence itself.

(B) Gritty darkbrown soap: This is the tool used to remove the evidence (the ink stains), not the evidence of the crime.

(C) Ink stains on the twofingers of his left hand: The passage specifically mentions the right hand, making this option incorrect.

(D) Ink stains on the twofingers of his right hand: This matches the text precisely and is described as the detail that could "betray" him.


Step 4: Final Answer
The passage clearly points to the ink stains on the character's right hand as the main and decisive evidence of his writing. Therefore, option (D) is the correct answer.
Was this answer helpful?
0
0
Question: 2

According to the passage, the author is living in a political system of a................state

Show Hint

When a question asks you to infer something not explicitly stated, synthesize multiple clues from the text. Look for keywords and phrases that paint a larger picture of the setting or context.
Updated On: Oct 13, 2025
  • Liberal democratic
  • Limited democratic
  • Autocratic surveillance
  • Diverse bureaucratic
Hide Solution
collegedunia
Verified By Collegedunia

The Correct Option is C

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Understanding the Question
The question requires us to infer the nature of the political system in which the author lives, based on the clues and descriptions provided in the passage.

Step 2: Analyzing Clues in the Passage
The passage contains several strong indicators of the political environment:


"The age of Big Brother": This is a direct reference to a totalitarian, all-seeing leader.

"Thoughtcrime does not entail death: thoughtcrime IS death": This shows that independent thinking is a capital offense, indicating extreme repression.

"Nosing zealot in the Ministry": This points to a system where citizens are encouraged to spy on each other for the state.

Fear of being discovered: The character's extreme paranoia and elaborate precautions (scrubbing ink, placing dust on the diary) show constant fear of state surveillance.

"Age of uniformity", "age of solitude": These phrases suggest a society where individuality is suppressed and people are isolated.


Step 3: Evaluating the Options based on the Analysis


(A) Liberal democratic \& (B) Limited democratic: These are incorrect. The system described actively suppresses freedom of thought and speech, which is the opposite of a democracy.

(C) Autocratic surveillance: This fits perfectly. "Autocratic" refers to a system with a single, absolute ruler (Big Brother), and "surveillance" describes the constant monitoring and fear of being watched.

(D) Diverse bureaucratic: While a bureaucracy ("the Ministry") exists, the defining characteristics are not its diversity but its oppressive control and surveillance. This option is not the best description.


Step 4: Final Answer
The combined evidence of a totalitarian figurehead (Big Brother), the criminalization of thought, and constant monitoring points to an autocratic surveillance state. Option (C) is the most accurate description.
Was this answer helpful?
0
0

Top Questions on Reading Comprehension

View More Questions

Questions Asked in KLEE exam

View More Questions