Question

The central theme of the passage is about the choice between:

• A. truth and power.
• B. leaders who unknowingly spread fictions and those who intentionally do so.
• C. stories that unite people and those that distinguish groups from each other.
• D. attaining social cohesion and propagating objective truth.
• A. "In fact, truth and power have a far more complicated relationship, because in human society, power means two very different things."
• B. “Hence sticking with the truth is the best strategy for gaining power. Unfortunately, this is just a comforting myth.”
• C. “On the one hand, power means having the ability to manipulate objective realities: to hunt animals, to construct bridges, to cure diseases, to build atom bombs.”
• D. “. . . scholars often had to decide whether they served the truth or social harmony. Should they aim to unite people by making sure everyone believes in the same fiction, or should they let people know the truth . . .?”
• A. manipulating people’s beliefs is politically advantageous, but a leader who propagates only myths is likely to lose power.
• B. there are definite advantages to promoting fiction, but there needs to be some limit to a pervasive belief in myths.
• C. while unalloyed truth is not recommended, leaders should stay as close as possible to it.
• D. people cannot handle the unvarnished truth, so leaders retain power by deviating from it.
• A. know how to balance truth and social unity.
• B. use myths to attain the first type of power.
• C. today know how to create social cohesion better than in the past.
• D. need to leverage both types of power to remain in office.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

The central theme of the passage revolves around the dichotomy between attaining social cohesion and propagating objective truth. The passage outlines two distinct forms of power:

• One that manipulates objective realities, relying on truth for practical accomplishments like building technology.
• Another that manipulates human beliefs, relying on shared fictional narratives to foster large-scale cooperation and social cohesion.

Fictional narratives often confer advantages in maintaining social cohesion as they function as strong identity markers and signals of loyalty, unlike the universal nature and disturbing potential of truths. Consequently, fictional stories often prevail historically over truth due to their ability to unite people, despite the inherent trade-off between unity and objective truth.

The passage encapsulates the historical conflict scholars face: whether to promote unity through fiction or to unveil reality, risking societal disunity. Ultimately, the central theme aligns with the choice between social cohesion and objective truth.

Answer 2

The passage discusses the relationship between truth and power. It highlights the dual nature of power: one that manipulates objective realities and one that manipulates human beliefs. Fiction is emphasized as a means to unite people through common stories, which do not necessarily have to be true. The duality results in the dilemma faced by scholars - whether to serve truth or social harmony.
The selected quote: “. . . scholars often had to decide whether they served the truth or social harmony. Should they aim to unite people by making sure everyone believes in the same fiction, or should they let people know the truth . . .?” emphasizes the role of fiction in achieving social cohesion by suggesting that scholars might overemphasize fiction to unite people, even if it sacrifices the truth. This aligns with the question, indicating an overemphasis on the importance of fiction in creating unity and harmony.

Answer 3

The author in the comprehension passage argues that while people often believe truth is aligned with power, the relationship between truth and political power is complex. Power is not solely dependent on truth but also involves manipulating beliefs for large-scale cooperation. Fiction, rather than truth, often serves as a better tool for uniting people due to its local nature, signaling of loyalty, and because truth can be painful and unsettling.

Considering the options given:

• Manipulating people’s beliefs is politically advantageous, but a leader who propagates only myths is likely to lose power. - The passage doesn't support losing power by propagating myths; rather, myths can aid in retaining power.
• There are definite advantages to promoting fiction, but there needs to be some limit to a pervasive belief in myths. - No direct limit to myths is discussed; the overall tone emphasizes the power gained through myths.
• While unalloyed truth is not recommended, leaders should stay as close as possible to it. - The passage suggests sticking to reality is not politically strategic.
• People cannot handle the unvarnished truth, so leaders retain power by deviating from it. - This statement is supported by the passage as it clearly mentions the challenge of sticking to reality politically.

Therefore, the author would support the statement that people cannot handle the unvarnished truth, so leaders retain power by deviating from it.

Answer 4

The given comprehension passage delves into the complex relationship between truth and power and how these concepts are interpreted differently in human society. The passage outlines that power, in societal terms, is understood in two distinct ways: the ability to manipulate objective realities and the ability to manipulate human beliefs to achieve large-scale cooperation. It further elucidates how fictions, although not necessarily true, can powerfully unite people through shared beliefs, effectively creating social cohesion.

Successful leaders, much like scholars, are presented with the challenge of either promoting the truth or encouraging fictions that foster social unity. The comprehension goes on to highlight the inherent advantages that fictional stories hold over truth in human society for promoting unity and signaling loyalty. For leaders, this implies the necessity of balancing between conveying truths and propagating unifying myths.

The question asks what the author implies about successful leaders. Amidst the options given, the correct interpretation as per the passage is that "successful leaders know how to balance truth and social unity." This aligns with the author's commentary on the critical choice between promoting factual truth and fostering unity through shared stories or fictions.

Therefore, the correct answer is: know how to balance truth and social unity.