Comprehension

Democracy rests on a tension between two different principles. There is, on the one hand, the principle of equality before the law, or, more generally, of equality, and, on the other, what may be described as the leadership principle. The first gives priority to rules and the second to persons. No matter how skilfully we contrive out schemes, there is a point beyond which the one principle cannot be promoted without some sacrifice of the other.
Alexis de Tocqueville, the great 19th-century writer on democracy, maintained that the age of democracy, whose birth he was witnessing, would also be the age of mediocrity, in saying this he was thinking primarily of a regime of equality governed by impersonal rules. Despite his strong attachment to democracy, he took great pains to point out what he believed to be its negative side: a dead level plane of achievement in practically every sphere of life. The age of democracy would, in his view, be an unheroic age; there would not be room in it for either heroes or hero-worshippers. 
But modern democracies have not been able to do without heroes: this too was foreseen, with much misgiving, by Tocqueville. Tocqueville viewed this with misgiving because he believed, rightly or wrongly, that unlike in aristocratic societies there was no proper place in a democracy for heroes and, hence, when they arose they would sooner or later turn into despots. Whether they require heroes or not, democracies certainly require leaders, and, in the contemporary age, breed them in great profusion; the problem is to know what to do with them.
In a world preoccupied with scientific rationality the advantages of a system based on an impersonal rule of law should be a recommendation with everybody. There is something orderly and predictable about such a system. When life is lived mainly in small, self-contained communities, men are able to take finer personal distinctions into account in dealing with their fellow men. They are unable to do this in a large and amorphous society, and organised living would be impossible here without a system of impersonal rules. Above all, such a system guarantees a kind of equality to the extent that everybody, no matter in what station of life, is bound by the same explicit, often written, rules and nobody is above them.
But a system governed solely by impersonal rules can at best ensure order and stability; it cannot create any shining vision of a future in which mere formal equality will be replaced by real equality and fellowship. A world governed by impersonal rules cannot easily change itself, or when it does, the change is so gradual as to make the basic and fundamental feature of society appear unchanges. For any kind of basic or fundamental change, a push is needed from within, a kind of individual initiative which will create new rules, new terms and conditions of life.
The issue of leadership thus acquires crucial significance in the context of change. If the modern age is preoccupied with scientific rationality, it is no less preoccupied with change. To accept what exists on its own terms is traditional, not modern, and it may be all very well to appreciate tradition in music, dance and drama, but for society as a whole the choice has already been made in favour of modernisation and development. Moreover, in some countries the gap between ideal and reality has become so great that the argument for development and change is now irresistible.
In these countries no argument for development has greater appeal or urgency than the one which shows development to be the condition for the mitigation, if not the elimination, of inequality. There is something contradictory about the very presence of large inequalities in a society which professes to be democratic. It does not take people too long to realise that democracy by itself can guarantee only formal equality; beyond this, it can only whet people’s appetite for real or substantive equality. From this arises their continued preoccupation with plans and schemes that will help to bridge the gap between the ideal of equality and the reality which is so contrary to it.
When pre-existing rules give no clear directions of change, leadership comes into its own. Every democracy invests its leadership with a measure of charisma, and expects from it a corresponding measure of energy and vitality. Now, the greater the urge for change in a society the stronger the appeal of a dynamic leadership in it. A dynamic leadership seeks to free itself from the constraints of existing rules: in a sense that is the test of its dynamism. In this process it may take a turn at which it ceases to regard itself as being bound by these rules, placing itself above them. There is always a tension between ’charisma’ and ’discipline’ in the case of a democratic leadership, and when this leadership puts forward revolutionary claims, the tension tends to be resolved at the expense of discipline.
Characteristically, the legitimacy of such a leadership rests on its claim to be able to abolish or at least substantially reduce the existing inequalities in society. From the argument that formal equality or equality before the law is but a limited good, it is often one short step to the argument that it is a hindrance or an obstacle to the establishment of real or substantive equality. The conflict between a ’progressive’ executive and a ’conservative’ judiciary is but one aspect of this larger problem. This conflict naturally acquires added piquancy when the executive is elected and the judiciary appointed.

Question: 1

Dynamic leaders are needed in democracies because:

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Link the definition of “dynamic leadership” in the passage to the limitations of formal equality.
Updated On: Aug 4, 2025
  • they have adopted the principles of ‘formal’ equality rather than ‘substantive’ equality.
  • ‘formal’ equality whets people’s appetite for ‘substantive’ equality.
  • systems that rely on the impersonal rules of ‘formal’ equality lose their ability to make large changes.
  • of the conflict between a ‘progressive’ executive and a ‘conservative’ judiciary.
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The Correct Option is C

Solution and Explanation

The passage highlights that systems governed solely by formal equality ensure order but cannot bring about major changes. This is where dynamic leadership becomes necessary.
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Question: 2

What possible factor would a dynamic leader consider a ‘hindrance’ in achieving the development goals of a nation?

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Distinguish between “formal” and “substantive” equality to understand the leader’s perspective.
Updated On: Aug 4, 2025
  • Principle of equality before the law
  • Judicial activism
  • A conservative judiciary
  • Need for discipline
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The Correct Option is A

Solution and Explanation

The passage notes that dynamic leaders may see formal equality (equality before the law) as a limitation in achieving substantive equality and societal change.
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Question: 3

Which of the following four statements can be inferred from the above passage? A. Scientific rationality is an essential feature of modernity.
B. Scientific rationality results in the development of impersonal rules.
C. Modernisation and development have been chosen over traditional music, dance and drama.
D. Democracies aspire to achieve substantive equality.

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Check for subtle qualifiers in the text before assuming an absolute rejection of traditions.
Updated On: Aug 4, 2025
  • A, B, D but not C
  • A, B but not C, D
  • A, D but not B, C
  • A, B, C but not D
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The Correct Option is A

Solution and Explanation

The passage links scientific rationality to modernity and the development of impersonal rules, and states democracies aspire to substantive equality. While tradition is appreciated, it is not said to be abandoned entirely.
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Question: 4

Tocqueville believed that the age of democracy would be an un-heroic age because:

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Focus on the cause-effect relationship presented in the author’s summary of Tocqueville’s view.
Updated On: Aug 4, 2025
  • democratic principles do not encourage heroes.
  • there is no urgency for development in democratic countries.
  • heroes that emerged in democracies would become despots.
  • aristocratic society had a greater ability to produce heroes.
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The Correct Option is A

Solution and Explanation

Tocqueville associated democracy with equality governed by impersonal rules, which in his view limited the scope for heroism.
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Question: 5

A key argument the author is making is that:

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Identify the main contrast in the passage — stability vs. the need for substantive change.
Updated On: Aug 4, 2025
  • in the context of extreme inequality, the issue of leadership has limited significance.
  • democracy is incapable of eradicating inequality.
  • formal equality facilitates development and change.
  • impersonal rules are good for avoiding instability but fall short of achieving real equality.
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The Correct Option is D

Solution and Explanation

The passage stresses that impersonal rules ensure stability but cannot replace formal equality with real equality without leadership-driven change.
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Question: 6

Which of the following four statements can be inferred from the above passage?
A. There is conflict between the pursuit of equality and individuality.
B. The disadvantages of impersonal rules can be overcome in small communities.
C. Despite limitations, impersonal rules are essential in large systems.
D. Inspired leadership, rather than plans and schemes, is more effective in bridging inequality.

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Eliminate options not explicitly supported; inference should still be rooted in textual evidence.
Updated On: Aug 4, 2025
  • B, D but not A, C
  • A, B but not C, D
  • A, D but not B, C
  • A, C but not B, D
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The Correct Option is D

Solution and Explanation

The text supports a tension between equality and individuality (A) and notes impersonal rules are necessary in large systems (C). It does not say small communities can overcome disadvantages (B) nor that leadership is more effective than plans (D).
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