22 multiple-choice (MCQ / objective) questions from this chapter, in the common exam-style shapes. 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 markThe English word ‘caste’ is a borrowing from which Portuguese word, meaning ‘pure breed’?
(A) Varna(B) Jati(C) Casta(D) Panchama - 1 markThe four-fold varna classification of society includes all of the following EXCEPT:
(A) Kshatriya(B) Panchama(C) Brahmana(D) Vaishya - 1 markCompared to varna, jati is best described as:
(A) A regional or local sub-classification with hundreds or thousands of castes(B) A purely religious classification with no social effect(C) A term used only for tribal communities(D) An all-India, four-fold classification - 1 markIn the late Vedic period (roughly 900-500 BC), the caste system:
(A) Consisted of only four divisions that were not birth-determined, and movement across them was common(B) Did not exist in any form(C) Was already a rigid, birth-determined institution(D) Was identical to the modern jati system - 1 markWhich of these is NOT one of the book’s six defining features of caste?
(A) Hereditary occupation(B) Universal adult franchise(C) Determined by birth(D) Endogamy - 1 markBecause caste is linked to occupation, the book says the caste system functions like:
(A) A free labour market(B) A trade union(C) A social division of labour that, in principle, allows no mobility(D) A cooperative society - 1 markRegular, ten-yearly censuses were conducted in British India from:
(A) 1860(B) 1901(C) 1935(D) 1881 - 1 markThe 1901 Census, which attempted to rank castes in a social hierarchy, was conducted under the direction of:
(A) Lord Macaulay(B) Herbert Risley(C) Lord Curzon(D) William Jones
2 Assertion-Reason
Assertion-Reason
- 1 markAssertion (A): Caste membership is determined by birth, not by choice.
Reason (R): There are instances where a person may be expelled from their caste.
(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 - 1 markAssertion (A): Sanskritisation and dominant caste describe the same process.
Reason (R): Both terms were coined by the sociologist M.N. Srinivas.
(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 (term) with List II (meaning):
List I: (i) Varna (ii) Jati (iii) Endogamy (iv) Segmental organisation
List II: (1) marriage restricted to one’s own caste (2) local sub-classification of caste (3) four-fold all-India division (4) sub-castes within castes
(A) (i)-3, (ii)-2, (iii)-1, (iv)-4(B) (i)-1, (ii)-2, (iii)-3, (iv)-4(C) (i)-4, (ii)-1, (iii)-2, (iv)-3(D) (i)-2, (ii)-3, (iii)-4, (iv)-1 - 1 markMatch List I (reformer) with List II (contribution):
List I: (i) Jotirao Phule (ii) Savitribai Phule (iii) Sri Narayana Guru (iv) Ayyankali
List II: (1) ‘One Caste, One Religion, One God for all men’ (2) Satyashodhak Samaj, 1873 (3) first headmistress of the country’s first school for girls (4) freedom for Dalits to walk on public roads
(A) (i)-4, (ii)-1, (iii)-2, (iv)-3(B) (i)-2, (ii)-3, (iii)-1, (iv)-4(C) (i)-1, (ii)-2, (iii)-3, (iv)-4(D) (i)-3, (ii)-4, (iii)-1, (iv)-2
4 Statement-Based Questions
Statement-Based Questions
- 1 markConsider the following statements about caste:
(i) Caste membership is always a matter of choice.
(ii) Caste involves rules about food and food-sharing.
Which of the statements is or are correct?
(A) Neither (i) nor (ii)(B) (ii) only(C) (i) only(D) Both (i) and (ii) - 1 markConsider the following statements:
(i) The 1901 Census tried to record the social hierarchy of castes.
(ii) Caste identities became MORE fluid after the British began counting and recording caste.
Which of the statements is or are correct?
(A) (i) only(B) Neither (i) nor (ii)(C) (ii) only(D) Both (i) and (ii)
5 Chronological Ordering
Chronological Ordering
- 1 markArrange these events in chronological order:
(i) The Government of India Act creates the terms ‘Scheduled Castes’ and ‘Scheduled Tribes’
(ii) The census under Herbert Risley tries to rank castes in a social hierarchy
(iii) India’s Independence
(iv) The census becomes a regular ten-yearly exercise
(A) (iv), (ii), (i), (iii)(B) (i), (ii), (iii), (iv)(C) (ii), (iv), (i), (iii)(D) (iv), (i), (ii), (iii) - 1 markArrange these reformers in order of their year of birth, earliest first:
(i) Sri Narayana Guru
(ii) Jotirao Phule
(iii) Ayyankali
(iv) Periyar
(A) (i), (ii), (iii), (iv)(B) (iii), (ii), (i), (iv)(C) (iv), (iii), (ii), (i)(D) (ii), (i), (iii), (iv)
6 Fill in the Blanks
Fill in the Blanks
- 1 markGroups excluded from the four-fold varna classification, such as ‘outcastes’, foreigners and slaves, are sometimes called the ______.
(A) adivasis(B) panchamas(C) Sanskritisers(D) dominant castes - 1 markThe presence of sub-castes within castes, sometimes with further sub-castes within those, is called ______.
(A) segmental organisation(B) dominant caste(C) acculturation(D) sanskritisation
7 Odd One Out
Odd One Out
- 1 markWhich one does not belong with the others?
(A) Patidars(B) Santhals(C) Jats(D) Yadavs
8 Passage-Based Questions
Passage-Based Questions
Passage
Theoretically, the caste system can be understood as the combination of two sets of principles, one based on difference and separation and the other on wholism and hierarchy. Each caste is supposed to be different from, and is therefore strictly separated from, every other caste. Many of the scriptural rules of caste are thus designed to prevent the mixing of castes, rules ranging from marriage, food sharing and social interaction to occupation. On the other hand, these different and separated castes do not have an individual existence; they can only exist in relation to a larger whole, the totality of society consisting of all castes. Further, this societal whole or system is a hierarchical rather than egalitarian system. The hierarchical ordering of castes is based on the distinction between ‘purity’ and ‘pollution’.
- 1 markAccording to the passage, the caste system combines difference and separation with which other principle?
(A) Wholism and hierarchy(B) Sanskritisation and dominance(C) Equality and competition(D) Assimilation and acculturation - 1 markAccording to the passage, the hierarchical ordering of castes is based on the distinction between:
(A) Ruler and ruled(B) Rich and poor(C) Purity and pollution(D) Urban and rural
9 True / False
True / False
- 1 markState whether the following are true or false:
(i) Some scholars argue today’s caste owes more to colonialism than to ancient tradition.
(ii) The British made no effort to survey or study caste and tribal customs.
(A) (i) true, (ii) false(B) (i) true, (ii) true(C) (i) false, (ii) true(D) (i) false, (ii) false
Answer Key and Explanations
Direct Questions
- (C) The book states the English word ‘caste’ comes from the Portuguese word casta, meaning pure breed.
- (B) Varna is a four-fold division into brahmana, kshatriya, vaishya and shudra. The panchamas (‘fifth category’) are explicitly excluded from this four-fold division.
- (A) The most common interpretation, the book says, is to treat varna as a broad all-India aggregative classification, while jati is taken to be a regional or local sub-classification involving a far more complex system; scholars still debate the exact relationship.
- (A) The book states that in this early phase the caste system was really a varna system with only four major, non-rigid divisions, and movement across categories was common.
- (B) Universal adult franchise is a democratic/political idea discussed later with dominant castes, not one of the six defining features of caste listed in the chapter.
- (C) The book states that since caste is linked with occupation, the system functions as the social division of labour, except that in principle it allows no mobility.
- (D) The census was first begun in the 1860s but became a regular ten-yearly exercise from 1881 onwards.
- (B) The book names Herbert Risley as the official who directed the 1901 Census’s effort to collect information on caste’s social hierarchy.
Assertion-Reason
- (B) Both statements are true: the book says caste is determined by birth and is never a matter of choice, and it also notes instances of expulsion. But expulsion is an exception the book mentions, not the reason caste is fixed by birth, so R does not explain A.
- (D) A false: sanskritisation is about adopting a higher caste’s ritual, domestic and social practices to raise status, while dominant caste is about landrights and political power, they are different processes. R true: both terms were indeed coined by M.N. Srinivas. So the combination is ‘A is false, R is true’.
Match the Following
- (A) Varna is the four-fold all-India division (3); jati is the local sub-classification (2); endogamy is marriage restricted to one’s group (1); segmental organisation means sub-castes within castes (4).
- (B) Phule founded the Satyashodhak Samaj (2); Savitribai Phule was the first headmistress (3); Sri Narayana Guru gave the watchword (1); Ayyankali won Dalits the right to use public roads (4).
Statement-Based Questions
- (B) Statement (ii) is correct: caste involves rules on food and food-sharing. Statement (i) is incorrect: caste is determined by birth and is never a matter of choice.
- (A) Statement (i) is correct. Statement (ii) is incorrect: the book says caste identities were more fluid BEFORE being counted, and became more rigid (‘a new life’) after.
Chronological Ordering
- (A) The census became a regular ten-yearly exercise from 1881 (iv), the Risley census followed in 1901 (ii), the Government of India Act was passed in 1935 (i), and Independence came in 1947 (iii). So the correct order is (iv), (ii), (i), (iii).
- (D) Ordered by birth year: Phule 1827 (ii), Sri Narayana Guru 1856 (i), Ayyankali 1863 (iii), Periyar 1879 (iv). So the correct order is (ii), (i), (iii), (iv).
Fill in the Blanks
- (B) The book calls this excluded group the panchamas, or the fifth category.
- (A) The book’s own term for this is ‘segmental organisation’.
Odd One Out
- (B) Yadavs, Jats and Patidars are all named as dominant castes in the chapter. Santhals are a tribe, not a dominant caste.
Passage-Based Questions
- (A) The passage states the caste system combines difference/separation with wholism and hierarchy.
- (C) The passage explicitly names purity and pollution as the basis of caste’s hierarchical ordering.
True / False
- (A) Statement (i) is true. Statement (ii) is false: the book describes extensive British surveys and reports on the customs of tribes and castes.
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