15 multiple-choice (MCQ / objective) questions from this chapter, in every exam-style shape used in the paper. Every question comes with an explanation along with the answer, so you remember why the option is correct, not just which one it is.
1 Direct Questions
Direct Questions
- 1 markWhat is the title of Nelson Mandela’s autobiography?
(A) Freedom from Fear(B) Hind Swaraj(C) On Liberty(D) Long Walk to Freedom - 1 markIn which country was Aung San Suu Kyi kept under house arrest for years?
(A) South Africa(B) Myanmar(C) England(D) India - 1 markWhat meaning emerges from combining “Swa” and “Raj” in the term “Swaraj”?
(A) Only freedom from foreign rule(B) Only rule of the self(C) Only rule over the self(D) Both rule of the self and rule over the self - 1 markWhose famous statement is “Swaraj is my birth right and I shall have it”?
(A) Mahatma Gandhi(B) Subhas Chandra Bose(C) Dr. Ambedkar(D) Bal Gangadhar Tilak - 1 markWhen and where did Subhas Chandra Bose deliver his famous presidential address on freedom?
(A) 1947, Delhi(B) 1929, Lahore(C) 1919, Amritsar(D) 1942, Bombay - 1 markWhat dress were all people required to wear during Mao’s regime in China?
(A) Mao suits(B) White clothes(C) Western suits(D) Traditional Chinese clothes - 1 markAccording to J.S. Mill, how many arguments did he give in favour of freedom of expression?
(A) Two(B) Five(C) Four(D) Three
2 Assertion-Reason
Assertion-Reason
- 1 markAssertion (A): According to J.S. Mill, the state or any other external authority has no business to interfere in self-regarding actions.
Reason (R): Self-regarding actions are those that have consequences for other people as well as for the person acting.
(A) Both A and R are true, and R correctly explains A(B) Both A and R are true, but R does not explain A(C) A is true, R is false(D) A is false, R is true
3 Match the Following
Match the Following
- 1 markMatch List I with List II.
List I: (a) Self-regarding action (b) Other-regarding action (c) Negative liberty (d) Positive liberty
List II: (i) Freedom to, opportunities for development (ii) Freedom from, area of non-interference (iii) Affects only the actor (iv) Affects others too
(A) (a)-(i), (b)-(ii), (c)-(iii), (d)-(iv)(B) (a)-(iii), (b)-(iv), (c)-(ii), (d)-(i)(C) (a)-(iv), (b)-(iii), (c)-(i), (d)-(ii)(D) (a)-(ii), (b)-(i), (c)-(iv), (d)-(iii)
4 Statement-Based Questions
Statement-Based Questions
- 1 markStatement I: J.S. Mill presented the harm principle in his essay “On Liberty”.
Statement II: According to Mill, the state should interfere even in self-regarding actions.
(A) Both Statement I and Statement II are false(B) Statement I is false, Statement II is true(C) Statement I is true, Statement II is false(D) Both Statement I and Statement II are true
5 Arrange in the Correct Order
Arrange in the Correct Order
- 1 markArrange J.S. Mill’s four arguments for freedom of expression in the order in which Mill presents them (first to last):
(i) Truth emerges only through a conflict of opposing views
(ii) We cannot be sure that what we consider true is actually true
(iii) No idea is completely false
(iv) The conflict of ideas is of continuing value for all times
(A) i, iii, iv, ii(B) iii, i, iv, ii(C) iii, iv, i, ii(D) ii, i, iii, iv
6 Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the Blanks
- 1 markAccording to J.S. Mill, the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilised community, against his will, is to prevent ______ to others.
(A) competition(B) harm(C) change(D) disagreement
7 Odd One Out
Odd One Out
- 1 markWhich of the following is NOT one of the “sources of constraints”?
(A) A fondness for music(B) The caste system(C) Economic inequality(D) Colonial rule
8 Passage-Based Questions
Passage-Based Questions
Passage
The autobiography of one of the greatest persons of the twentieth century, Nelson Mandela, is titled Long Walk to Freedom. … These ranged from being bundled into townships and being denied easy movement about the country, to being denied a free choice of whom to marry. … For this freedom, Mandela spent twenty-seven years of his life in jail, often in solitary confinement.
- 1 markAccording to the passage above (Mandela), what kind of constraint did the apartheid regime impose on the freedom of black people?
(A) Restriction on education only(B) No constraint was imposed(C) Restriction on free movement and on free choice of marriage partner(D) Complete freedom to vote
9 True / False
True / False
- 1 markI. Negative liberty is associated with the idea of “freedom from”.
II. Positive liberty is also associated with the idea of “freedom from”.
(A) Only I is true(B) Both I and II are true(C) Only II is true(D) Both I and II are false
Answer Key and Explanations
Direct Questions
- (D) Nelson Mandela’s autobiography is “Long Walk to Freedom”; “Freedom from Fear” is Aung San Suu Kyi’s book.
- (B) Aung San Suu Kyi remained under house arrest in Myanmar, separated from her children.
- (D) Swaraj has two meanings: both the rule of the self and rule over the self.
- (D) This famous statement was made by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, which became an important rallying cry in the freedom movement.
- (B) Bose delivered this address at the Student’s Conference in Lahore on 19 October 1929.
- (A) During Mao’s regime everyone had to wear “Mao suits”, justified as an expression of equality.
- (C) Mill gave four arguments in favour of freedom of expression in his book “On Liberty”.
Assertion-Reason
- (C) A is true. R is false; actions that also have consequences for others are what Mill calls other-regarding actions, while self-regarding actions have consequences only for the individual actor and nobody else.
Match the Following
- (B) Self-regarding affects only the actor (iii), other-regarding affects others too (iv), negative liberty is freedom from (ii), positive liberty is freedom to (i).
Statement-Based Questions
- (C) Statement I is true. Statement II is false; according to Mill, the state should not interfere in self-regarding actions.
Arrange in the Correct Order
- (B) Mill’s first argument is that no idea is completely false (iii); second, truth emerges only through a conflict of opposing views (i); third, this conflict is of continuing value for all times (iv); finally, we cannot be sure that what we consider true is actually true (ii).
Fill in the Blanks
- (B) Mill’s harm principle: the sole end that warrants interfering with anyone’s liberty is self-protection, that is, “the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilised community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others.” Self-protection and preventing harm to others are one end, not two.
Odd One Out
- (A) A fondness for music is not itself a source of constraint; the other three are real sources described in the chapter.
Passage-Based Questions
- (C) According to the passage, the apartheid regime restricted both free movement and free choice of marriage partner.
True / False
- (A) Statement I is true. Statement II is false; positive liberty is associated with the idea of “freedom to”, not “freedom from”.
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