Question

A spectre is haunting the world, just as Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote in the Communist Manifesto of 1848. This time, however, it is not the spectre of communism but that of neoliberalism. Just as Marx and Engels reported of 'a holy alliance to exorcise this spectre,' there is once again an alliance, whether holy or unholy, that has formed to chase the ghost of neoliberalism from the world stage. In any case, it is a curious alliance that has committed to fighting neoliberalism: Religious leaders and artists, environmental activists and globalisation critics, politicians of the left and the right as well as trade unionists, commentators and academics. They all share a passion to unmask neoliberalism as an inhuman, anti-social, and potentially misanthropic ideology or as a cynical exercise by strangely anonymous forces that wish to exploit the world to their own advantage.

The members of this colourful alliance against neoliberalism are as united in their opposition to neoliberalism as they are diverse. This suggests that neoliberalism cannot be too clearly defined as a concept. Rather, it is a broad umbrella under which very different groups with various points of view can meet. In the church of anti-neoliberalism, there is a place for anyone who believes that neoliberalism stands in the way of reaching his or her political goals. This may also explain the lack of any clear and coherent definition of neoliberalism among its dissenters.

Yet the most curious characteristic of neoliberalism is the fact that these days hardly anyone self-identifies as a neoliberal. In former times, ideological debates were fought between, say, conservatives and socialists, collectivists and individualists. While there may not have been any other agreement between these opposing groups, at least they would have agreed about their respective identities. A socialist would not have felt offended by a conservative calling him a socialist and vice-versa. In present-day debates around neoliberalism, on the other hand, most accused of holding 'neoliberal' views would not accept being called 'neoliberal.' Either they would insist on being something else (whether it is 'liberal,' 'classical liberal,' or 'libertarian'), or they would simply claim to be misunderstood by their opponents. In any case, scarcely anybody wants to be a 'neoliberal' any more. For example, in an online survey of the readers of Andrew Norton's blog, out of more than 1,200 participants not a single person self-identified with the term, while 'classical liberal,' 'conservative,' and 'libertarian' were strong responses. These are strange debates indeed when the enemy you are fighting claims he does not exist.

Q74. According to the passage, the spectre is being chased by all except which one of the following:

• A. Religious leaders and artists
• B. Environmental activists and globalisation critics
• C. Communists and socialists
• D. Politicians and trade unionists

Hint:

Match each option against the passage's exact list of the alliance.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

This is a direct factual question, the passage gives you an explicit list of who has joined the alliance against neoliberalism, so you simply need to match the options against that list.

1. A. Religious leaders and artists: named directly in the passage as part of a curious alliance that has committed to fighting neoliberalism, religious leaders and artists, environmental activists and globalisation critics, politicians of the left and the right as well as trade unionists, commentators and academics. So this group is included, it is not the exception.
2. B. Environmental activists and globalisation critics: also named word for word in that same list, so this group is included too.
3. C. Communists and socialists: this pair is never mentioned as part of the alliance chasing the spectre. In fact, the passage's opening move is to contrast this spectre of neoliberalism with the original spectre of communism from the Communist Manifesto, communism is the historical reference point, not a member of the modern alliance opposing neoliberalism.
4. D. Politicians and trade unionists: the list mentions politicians of the left and the right as well as trade unionists, so this group is included as well.

Since A, B and D all appear explicitly in the passage's list of the alliance, and C is the only pairing that does not appear there at all, C is the group that is chasing the spectre except.

Let's summarize:

• For "all except" questions built on a list, check every option against the exact list given in the text.
• Communists and socialists are mentioned only as part of the historical Marx and Engels reference, not as members of the anti-neoliberalism alliance.

The correct answer is option C, communists and socialists.