Campus Recruitment – Verbal Ability – Theme Detection
Contents
Theme Detection
Theme detection questions have been a regular feature in the Campus Recruitment tests for the past few years. If one wants to do well at questions on Critical Reasoning, one has to develop ability to recognize and evaluate argumentative logic. Therefore, to answer these Questions, your logical ability to reason out must be more accurate than your knowledge in English. Theme detection mostly consists of a paragraph followed by Questions based on the paragraph. However, this Question is different from that of the Questions appearing in reading comprehension. Generally, critical reasoning passage contains an argument. This argument will be supported by reasons and evidences.
Here, a paragraph will be given followed by certain statements which may or may not be inferred from the passage. You are required to choose the statement which contains the jist or the theme of the passage. For this you have to understand the passage completely. A small paragraph will be given. Read it twice or thrice carefully and find out the main idea that the passage conveys.
Exercise – I
1. Read the above paragraph and also go through each of the following statements, find out the statements which strengthens the arguments.
One of the most important and constructive reforms in AP state politics was the abolition of legislative council, a decision taken by the erstwhile NTR government.
A. Legislative council is a superfluous body.
B. It does not have that much political and legislative power when compared to Legislative Assembly.
C. It does not represent all the electorate in the state of Andhra Pradesh.
D. However, the Legislative Council can act as a check on the government’s decisions.
a) A, B, C
b) D, C,B
c) C, A, D
d) C, B, A
2. Which of the following, if true would weaken the argument?
We are in the days of economic crises if we do not find new reserves of natural gas and if the demand for gas continues to grow then the reserves which now exist will get exhausted by the years 2200 A.D.
a) There has been slow down in the demand for natural gases. Over the past five years.
b) Reserves of natural gases are found under Antarctica and it is yet to be economically exploited.
c) Electricity is used now in the place of natural gases,
d) None of the above.
3. Which of the following can be inferred from the following?
Diamond, which is considered to be one of the main attractions now-a-days, especially among the younger i generation, is catching up in the market .We get export quality of diamonds which are more attractive to the teenage women, It has become fashion to go to functions and parties wearing a diamond necklace or ear-ring.
a) Diamond is a precious thing which our young girls want very much now a days.
b) Diamond necklace ear-rings etc…are fashionable now-a-days.
c) It has a high refractive index. Hence there is price hike in diamonds now a days.
4. Read the passage below:
The monetary policy of any country can achieve its goal by reducing the import surplus and by making tireless efforts for economics development. The standard of living should be restricted.
Which of the following assumes that?
a) If people go for loans, the economy will grow.
b) If people consume less, the economy will grow.
c) People should be asked to bean with economical depression.
d) In order to reduce import surplus investments on exports should be exhausted.
5. Which is the irrelevant argument in the following statements?
A. The dog is a faithful animal. .
B. The dog guards his masters and property.
C. The dog demonstration it love and faithfulness.
D. The dog does not belong to the cat family.
a) A and B
b) B and C
c) C and D
d) D
6. The rate of crimes has increased over the last one decade. Sociologists say that violence depicted in the media especially on the visual media, is responsible for rise in crimes.
Which of the following if true would strengthen the argument?
A) Violence and crimes or on the rise because of the psychological problem faced by some well behaved people.
B) New weapons like AK-47 are used in violent crimes.
C) The censor board and the information department eased the rules while granting certificates to the movies
and television serials.
D) The criminals are not punished severely
a) A
b) B
c) C
d) D
7. Monopoly is the state where there are no competitors with in a single market. Vanilla vinegar is one such industry.Which of the following conclusions may be inferred from the above?
A) Vanilla vinegar is not a monopoly.
B) Oligopoly is the state where there are many competitors in a particular industry.
C) Vanilla vinegar has a lot of competition in the domestic market.
D) Vanilla is operating in a monopolistic market
a) A
b) B
c) C
d) D
8. In the year 1980, as per the survey made, for every hundred people in india, there was only one telephone a recent survey made in 2006 the figure became one telephone per 6 people.
Each of the following, if, true, could explain this trend except:
A) The cost of telephones has gone down compared to olden days.
B) Getting a telephone is easy now.
C) There has been privatization of telephone industries in 2007-01-01
D) The middle class people are able to buy telephone
a) A
b) B
c) C
d) D
9. Vegetable prices have touched the sky. Even the price of tomato has gone up to f35 per Kilogram. The common man, living in urban areas; finds it very difficult to live. Hence, now house-wives in urban areas are doing away with the tomato.
Which the following statement indicates implicit statement?
a) People consume less tomato soup when the prices go up.
b) House-wives are not using tomatoes now-a-days for cooking.
c) Not only the price of tomatoes but also the price of potatoes has gone up.
d) When prices rise the demand decreases.
10. Which of the following statements is a Counter¬argument?
A. Modernity in modem day is miss-recognized in our country because we equate modernity with new technology.
B. To be a modern person, one need not be computer savvy.
C. If you become a master of modem technology; you can participate in a social change.
D. Knowledge of technology alone is not enough to be a modern man.
a) A
b) B
c) C
d) D
11. The Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle have involved a theory in criticism. The word ‘theory’, in criticism, according to theses two great men of Greece, means understanding all the meanings & interpretations. Now-a-days the structural criticism of a poem or an essay etc. depends on this ‘theory’ propounded by these great Greek Writers.
Therefore, most of the critics of today .
Which of the following completes the passage below?
a) Follow the theory of Plato and Aristotle.
b) Follow the western “Theory”
c) Follow the destructive criticism of Plato.
d) Follow the constructive criticism of Aristotle.
12. The Job related accidents in Messers Smith & Co. Ltd. are more in number when compared to the public sector undertaking called H.M.T. ball bearings. The number of employees employed and the hours of working are the same in both these companies. This shows that.
Which is the best suitable statement below to complete the above passage?
a) Messer smith & Co Pvt. Ltd. manufactures goods which are useful to common man.
b) Messer Smith & Co Pvt. Ltd. Have more medicine and people for first aid treatment.
c) The public sector undertaking, H.M.T. Ball bearings, has more safety measures & frequent safety inspections
d) Massers Smith & Co. Pvt. Ltd. gives a good sum of rs 500 per month as medical allowances to its employees.
13. People, generally, believe that cats do not depend on human beings whereas dogs are very much devoted to human beings. However, some of the biologists and
scientists, who made study on the behavior of cats and dogs state that their behavior does not depend on their biological origin. Even human beings sometimes behave in stereotypical manners. It is said to be some examples of stereotypical behavior.
Which one of the following indicates a flow in the argument.
a) The word “Stereotypical” is not relevant here.
b) No evidence to prove that cats and dogs behave in a stereotypical way.
c) There is no evidence to show that even human beings behave in a stereotypical way.
d) The argument depends on “stereotypical” without even explaining it is the passage.
14. In the earlier part of the 1980 , the service sector contributed approximately 15 percent of Indian’s G.D.P. Even to-day we do not have a system of rules, principles and procedure to govern the service sector. Which one of the following best summarizes the argument presented in the passage.
a) Our regulatory system is not proper.
b) Reality is something different in the service sector.
c) India’s GDP is very less when compare to S. Africa.
d) India should have a regulatory system that should reflect the impotence of the service sector.
Explanations
1) All the statements i.e. strengthens the arguments. So (1) (abc) is the correct answer the statement (d) only weakens the arguments because it tell the advantage of the legislative council (1) is correct.
2) None of the above statements are weakening. A, B, C are only strengthening the argument.
3) Because question is asking inference, we need to extend the argument with the implied statement. The passage is discussing about the demand of the diamond among young girls now a days, Here only 4 is extending the argument.
4) The assumption is a premise that is not explicitly or directly stated. In this question the monetary policy of any country can achieve its goal only of people consumption gets reduces therefore the unstated premises is (2)
5) The statement (a), (b) and (c) are stating the faithful nature of a dog and its commitment to the master. The only statement that is irrelevant is d. has nothing to do with the faithful nature of the dog.
6) If we have to strengthen the argument, we have to find out evidence to support the connection between violent crime and violence of visual media, especially on the television. So, (A), (B), (D) are irrelevant. (C) is the only statement that strengthens the argument.
7) (A) and (B) are contradictionary statements. Especially (B) sentence has nothing to do with the argument which is about monopoly. (C) is also is the correct conclusion.
8) (A), (B), (C) are supporting argument.(C)says that privatization of telecom industry to develop. This is not true because the survey is done in 2007 and we are speaking about the statistics available in the year 2006.
9) The implicit statement will not be directly expressed in the argument. From (1), (2), (3) statement we can indirectly understand that when prices ride, the demand for a commodity will decrease. Therefore, (4) is the most appropriate implicit statement.
10) The counter argument is 3. The statements 1, 2, 4 are stating that to be modern one need not be aware of technology, and are need to be a computer savvy because Knowledge of technology alone is not enough to be a modern man, No 3 says that if participate in a social change then statement is contra dictionary to the statements made in 1, 2, 4.
Therefore, 3 is the counter argument.
11) The statement 2, 3, 4 has nothing to do with the passage. Nothing is mentioned about western criticism, destructive criticism and constructive criticism. Therefore the correct answer is (1)
12) The correct statement is (3),1, 2, 4 are not pertaining to any part of the passage given. So, irrelevant.
13) Hence the word stereotypical is used without the usually meaning of the word. Thus, the argument has a flaw. The Answer is (4).
14) The best summarized statement is (4). 1 is partially correct. But not summarizing the argument fully or
completely. (2) And (3) are irrelevant. Because nothing is said about government’s view and no comparison is made to South Africa’s G.D.R
Exercise II
1) Directions for questionsThis question has a set of four sequentially ordered statements it can be classified as FACTS, INFERENCES or JUDGEMENT.
FACTS – Information obtained by hearing, seeing or by reading which can be verified. {F}
INFERENCES – conclusions obtained from the argument about the unknown, on the basis of the known arguments {1}
JUDGEMENTS – They are opinions that will either manifest the approval or the disapproval of the persons, the objects or the situations. {J }
I. His intelligence was typified by his quick decision making power.
II. The pass-port office is about twelve kilometers from here.
III. It is very difficult to understand the poems of John Keats.
a) J F J
b) I F J
c) I I I
d) J J J
2) A. About 14 million children in India between the age group of 5 to 14 years are either out of school, as drop-outs or do not go to school.
B. Government of India can give incentives to the poor parents to send their children to school.
C. Primary education should be made compulsory for the development of our country.
D. The recent satisfied details manifest that the efforts made by the different state governments in India have kept space with the goals the government has to achieve
a) FIIJ
b)JIJF
c) IIJF
d) IJIF
3) A. Kovalam beach is a beautiful beach situated near Trivandrum
B. To-day the kovalam beach, which used to attract a lot of tourists, is having an awful time.
C. Still, the tourists, who visit the kovalam beach, consider it as a paradise on earth
a) J F I
b) F J I
c) I F J
d) J J F
4) A. The two main kinds of governments, now existing in the world, are called democracy and dictatorship
B. Both these forms of governments have their advantages and disadvantages.
C. Democracy is more beneficial to the common people.
a) I F J
b) F I J
c) J F I
d) I J F
5) Classify the set of statement of sentences into fact inferences and judgments: (F) (I) (J)
A. He was operating the computer.
B. What I love about her is her frank nature.
C. The lady standing at the counter looked shrewd.
a) F J J
b) F I J
c) J F I
d) J I F
6) A. There is a mistaken belief among the people of India that the cause for corruption in India is due to the crooked mentality of the people of India.
B. There is more official delay or red-tapism in India When compared to countries like Australia where a business establishment can be started in two days; the same may take two years in India.
C. Red-tapism in India leads to corruption.
D. Procedure in India begins with official contacts, “which in its turn becomes an opportunity for taking
and giving bribes.
a) I I F J
b) J I F F
c) J I J F
d) I J I F
Explanations
1) I-is judgment, II – is fact, III – is judgment I – quick decision making power is the result of intelligence.
II – it is a factual information.
III is a personal opinion of the writer.
Therefore it is also a judgment.
2) (A) is a factual information based on statistics.
(B) and (C) are inferences drawn from the fact.
(D) is the judgment or the opinion.
Therefore, (1) F I I J is the option.
3) (A) Is a fact which can be verified. (B) is a Judgment or the personal view of the fact. Therefore, (2) F J I is the option.
4) A. It is a fact which can be physically verified and found to be true. B. It is the inferences drawn from the fact. C It is the judgment. So, the opinion is (2) F I J
5) 1. FJJ is the correct (A) is a fact making a statement about what a person is doing (B) and (C) are judgments. The opinion about a lady’s nature and the opinion about another lady’s looks are nothing but judgments.
6) J I J F is the correct that is (A) judgment (B) is Inference, 6(C) again is the judgment and (D) is the fact
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