Reading Comprehension Questions

Multiple choice
  1. The city where a country or region has its government

  2. The most important place for an activity or industry

  3. The large form of a letter that you use at the beginning of a sentence or a name

  4. Money or property that you use to start a business or invest to earn more money

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

It matches with the information given in the passage.

Multiple choice
  1. He calls an insurance broker and chooses a protection plan.

  2. He calls a broker.

  3. He goes to the insurance agency.

  4. He calls the police.

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

It matches with the information given in the passage.

Multiple choice
  1. He has 3 times the money he had at first.

  2. He has 6 times the money he had at first.

  3. He has the same amount of money that he had at first.

  4. He has 4 times the money he had at first.

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

It matches with the information given in the passage.

Multiple choice
  1. He was applying for the post of a salesman.

  2. He was applying for the post of an office boy.

  3. He was applying for the post of an office assistant.

  4. He was applying for the post of HR manager.

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

It matches with the information given in the passage.

Multiple choice
  1. He could have been a businessman.

  2. He could have been an office boy.

  3. He could have been an agent.

  4. He could have been a manager.

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

It matches with the information given in the passage.

Multiple choice

What happened to Twishar in the end when he had thought of a plan to dethrone Raja Shankara?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. He was beaten up by the King for having cheated him

  2. He was very apologetic for his behaviour

  3. He at last managed to be crowned the King after successfully implementing his plan

  4. He fell down a flight of steps and broke both his legs

  5. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Given in the last paragraph

Multiple choice

What did Raja Shankara's wife think about the Raja's peculiar behaviour that particular day?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. She was afraid that something really bad had happened

  2. She was afraid that the Raja would beat her up because of his unusual mood

  3. She thought that he was in his usual sour mood

  4. She thought that the Raja had received threats to his life from his servants

  5. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Given in the third paragraph.

Multiple choice

What plan did Twishar have with regard to the Raja?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. He planned to take over the Raja's throne through devious means

  2. He was a loyal servant to the Raja and always had his best interests in mind

  3. He had plans to provoking the Raja into ruling the Kingdom in more wicked ways

  4. He planned to kill the Raja with the help of the Raja's servants

  5. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Given clearly in the second paragraph.

Multiple choice

What was the reason for Raja Shankara's change in behaviour?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. His advisor's words had made him realize his mistake

  2. He had felt bad for a poor family on his tour around his kingdom

  3. His wife had betrayed him and hence he was upset

  4. He had realized that doing good to people would bring good to him

  5. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

'Evil begets evil' in second-last paragraph defines the reason.

Multiple choice

What did the dog do to the cat?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. The dog chased the cat and sent it in the man's direction

  2. The dog bit the cat's leg and crippled her for life

  3. The dog killed the cat

  4. Not mentioned in the passage

  5. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Given in the third-last paragraph of passage.

Multiple choice

What proclamation did the Raja make to his subjects?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. That he was giving up his throne for the betterment of the Kingdom

  2. That his advisor would be the King from then on

  3. That he would be a better King to them than he had been all this while

  4. That his subjects were not good enough to deserve better treatment than what was already being meted out to them

  5. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Given explicitly in the fourth paragraph of the passage.

Multiple choice

How can Raja Shankara be described before his transformation? (A) He was unjust. (B) He was preoccupied with himself. (C) He was cruel.

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. Only (A)

  2. Only (B)

  3. Only (C)

  4. Only (A) and (B)

  5. All the three (A), (B) and (C)

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

The first paragraph gives a hint towards the correct answer.

Multiple choice

Why did Twishar think that this was the best time to dethrone the Raja?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. As the Raja was sick, ailing and was on his deathbed

  2. As he knew that the Raja had finally lost his mind

  3. As he knew that the Raja had become a soft-natured person and would not attempt to fight

  4. As he was sure that he would be able to convince the people of the kingdom that the Raja had become weak

  5. None of these

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

First two lines of the last paragraph

Multiple choice

Directions: Choose the word which is most similar in meaning to the word printed in bold as used in the passage.

ideals

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

“We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals. We now know that it is bad economics,” said American President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1937 in the midst of the Great Depression. And the world has learnt that enlightened self-interest is good economics all over again after the Great Recession of 2009. Americans are entering a period of social change as they are recalibrating their sense of what it means to be a citizen, not just through voting or volunteering but also through commerce. There is a new dimension to civic duty that is growing among Americans – the idea that they can serve not only by spending time in communities and classrooms but by spending more responsibly. In short, Americans are beginning to put their money where their ideals are.
In a recent poll most said they had consciously supported local or small neighbourhood businesses and 40 percent said that they had purchased a product because they liked the social or political values of the company that produced it. People were alarmed about ‘blood diamonds’ mined in war zones and used to finance conflict in Africa. They were also willing to pay \$2000 more for a car that gets 35 miles per gallon than for one that gives less, though the former is more expensive but environment friendly. Of course consumers have done their own doing-well-by doing-good calculation – a more expensive car that gives better mileage will save them money in the long run and makes them feel good about protecting the environment. Moreover since 1995, the number of socially responsible investment (SRI) mutual funds, which generally avoid buying shares of companies that profit from tobacco, oil or child labour has grown from 55 to 260. SRI funds now manage approximately 11 percent of all the money invested in the US financial markets – an estimated \$2.7 trillion. This is evidence of a changing mindset in a nation whose most iconic economist Milton Friedman wrote in 1970 that a corporation’s only moral responsibility was to increase shareholder profits.
At first the corporate stance was defensive : companies were punished by consumers for unethical behaviour such as discriminatory labour practices. The nexus of activist groups, consumers and government regulation could not merely tarnish a company but put it out of business. But corporate America quickly discerned that social responsibility attracts investment capital as well as customer loyalty, creating a virtuous circle. Some companies quickly embraced the new ethos that consumers boycotted products they considered unethical and others purchase products in part because their manufacturers were responsible. With global warming on the minds of many consumers lots of companies are racing to ‘outgreen’ each other. The most progressive companies are talking about a triple bottom line-profit, planet and people – that focuses on how to run a business while trying to improve environmental and worker conditions.
This is a time when the only thing that has sunk lower than the American public’s opinion of Congress is its opinion of business. One burning question is how many of these Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives are just shrewd marketing to give companies a halo effect? After all only 8 percent of the large American corporations go through the trouble of verifying their CSR reports, which many consumers don’t bother to read. And while social responsibility is one way for companies to get back their reputations consumers too need to make ethical choices.

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  1. models

  2. visions

  3. perfection

  4. paradigms

  5. values

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

The passage states that Americans are putting their money where their ideals are, meaning they support businesses that align with their principles and beliefs. In this context, ideals refers to moral or ethical principles that guide behavior - which are essentially values. The other options (models, visions, perfection, paradigms) do not capture the meaning of deeply held principles.

Multiple choice

What can possibly be the moral of the story?

Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the question given below. Certain words/phrases have been printed in bold to help you locate them while answering the question.

Once upon a time there lived a vicious king, Raja Shankara - short-tempered and temperamental. "God I am'", he said to his image as he stared into the mirror everyday, many times a day. He was obsessed with himself. He loved noone but himself. He was blinded towards the injustice in his kingdom because he had little time for his subjects. He wasted most of his time in pouring milk and honey over himself.

Interruption in his possessed life was dealt with stern reprimanding and sometimes on petty issues he would behead his servants. Provoked by his evil advisor Twishar, he went on with his self-indulged life, unaware of the plot his very devoted advisor was planning. A plot to dethrone the king, rule the kingdom with his wicked ways only to harness wealth and the reputation of a King.

 One morning the king was on his usual morning horseback rounds but returned to the palace with an intense look on his face. He locked himself inside his palatial room only to unlock it at sundown. Just as the doors cracked open and Raja Shankara emerged from it, his wife rushed to embrace him. She feared a damaging incident had occurred.

The king spoke seldom that day and awoke the next day to make a proclamation to his servants and subjects. The whole kingdom feared what was in store for them from their angry king. But to their surprise he said to all gathered, "From now on I will be a different king. A softer and a patient king.”

True to his words from that day onwards, the king had truly turned on a new leaf; he cleaned out the corruption and injustice in a tender manner with punishments aimed to renew the person from within.

One fine day his evil advisor gathered courage to ask the reason for his paradigm shift. And the king answered, "When I went on horseback that morning a month ago, I noticed a dog brutally chasing a cat. The cat managed to sneak into a hole only after the dog bit her leg, maiming her for life. Not far, the dog barked at a farmer who picked up a sharp stone and hit it straight in the dog's eye. Bleeding profusely, the dog yelped in pain. As the farmer walked on, he slipped on the edge of the road and broke his head.

All this happened in a matter of minutes before me and then I realized that evil begets evil. I thought about it deeply and was ready to give up my worldly life for the betterment of my subjects. I wanted to give up evil in me as I did not want evil to encounter me."

Sniggering away, the immoral advisor thought what a perfect time it was to dethrone the king, because the king had grown kind hearted and patient and would not endeavour a combat. Thinking how he would plan his attack, he stumbled over a step that took him hurling down the remaining steps, bringing him stop with a crash. He howled in pain only to discover he had broken the bones in both his legs.
  1. Believe in yourself

  2. Money is not everything in life

  3. Don't trust people

  4. Better late than never

  5. As you sow so shall you reap

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

Phrase 'Evil begets evil' and the incident that took place with the person who planned to dethrone explain the moral of the story to be 'as you sow so shall you reap'.