Question

Now, it is clear that the decline of a language must ultimately have political and economic causes: it is not due simply to the bad influence of this or that individual writer. But an effect can become a cause, reinforcing the original cause and producing the same effect in an intensified form, and so on indefinitely. A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the more completely because he drinks. It is rather the same thing that is happening to the English language. It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts. (Adapted from Politics and the English Language by George Orwell.) The illustration of the man who takes to drink is used to underscore which of the following ideas in the passage above?

• A. Political and economic causes control deterioration of language.
• B. Foolish thoughts are enabled by inaccurate language.
• C. Effect of an action becomes the cause in a cyclic pattern.
• D. Drinking enables people to have foolish thoughts and slovenly language.

Hint:

The illustration of the man who takes to drink is used to underscore which of the following ideas in the passage above

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B, C

To address the question effectively, we must first analyze the passage and understand the underlying concept being discussed. The passage deals with the decline of a language due to political and economic causes, eventually transforming these effects into causes themselves. It uses an analogy of a man who drinks due to failure, which then leads to further failure because of drinking. This cyclical relationship is a key aspect of the passage.

Let's evaluate each option and their relevance to the passage:

1. Political and economic causes control deterioration of language.
   • This statement only partially reflects the introduction of the idea that political and economic causes contribute to the decline of language. However, it does not delve into the cyclical nature of cause and effect mentioned in the passage.
2. Foolish thoughts are enabled by inaccurate language.
   • This statement captures a crucial point in the passage: the relationship between language and thought, where bad language facilitates foolish thoughts, which is mentioned as part of the cyclical problem.
3. Effect of an action becomes the cause in a cyclic pattern.
   • This option directly captures the central idea of cyclical causation in the passage, as illustrated by both the language deterioration and the drinking analogy.
4. Drinking enables people to have foolish thoughts and slovenly language.
   • This statement misinterprets the analogy, which was used to illustrate the concept of an effect becoming a cause, rather than directly associating drinking with language decline and foolish thoughts.

Given the explanation, the correct answers are:

1. Foolish thoughts are enabled by inaccurate language.
   • This demonstrates how language deterioration feeds back into thought processes, highlighting the cyclical deterioration.
2. Effect of an action becomes the cause in a cyclic pattern.
   • This accurately reflects the passage's key theme that the effect can perpetuate the cause, creating a continuous cycle.

In conclusion, these selected answers encapsulate the nuances within the passage about the cyclic nature of cause and effect, specifically in the context of language and thought.