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.

Q75. Why, according to the passage, is there an association against the phenomenon of neoliberalism?

• A. Because they cannot face it alone
• B. Because it is easy to collaborate against it
• C. Because they resent its spread
• D. Because they fear the misuse of the world

Hint:

Find the sentence that states the alliance's motive directly.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

This question asks for the reason behind the alliance's opposition to neoliberalism, so you need to find the sentence in the passage that gives the motive, not just the fact that the alliance exists.

1. A. Because they cannot face it alone: the passage never suggests the members of the alliance are individually too weak to oppose neoliberalism alone. It talks about who has joined the alliance and how diverse it is, not about any need for safety in numbers.
2. B. Because it is easy to collaborate against it: the passage actually says the opposite, it calls neoliberalism a concept that cannot be too clearly defined, a broad umbrella under which very different groups with various points of view can meet. A vague, loosely defined target does not make collaboration especially easy, it just makes the alliance broad and varied.
3. C. Because they resent its spread: resentment of neoliberalism's spread is never stated as the motive. The passage instead explains what the members believe about neoliberalism, not that they are reacting to how widely it has spread.
4. D. Because they fear the misuse of the world: paragraph one states that the alliance shares 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. Exploiting the world to one's own advantage is exactly a fear of the world being misused, which is what this option describes.

Only option D is directly grounded in the passage's own explanation of why this alliance has formed, the fear that neoliberalism is being used as a cynical tool to exploit the world.

Let's summarize:

• Reason based questions need the actual cause stated in the text, not a plausible sounding guess.
• The passage's phrase exploit the world to their own advantage is the direct textual basis for option D.

The correct answer is option D, because they fear the misuse of the world.