UPSC Mains Answer Writing – Chapter 8: History and Culture (20 MCQs)

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UPSC Mains Answer Writing – Chapter 8: History and Culture (20 MCQs) – 20 questions, subject: Mains Answer Writing. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

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1.  

The frame "features – examples – significance" suits mainly:

Correct Answer: C [art and architecture questions]

Explanation:

Art and architecture questions are answered by listing features, naming an example for each and closing with significance.

2.  

For a question on a literary source, the third part of the frame is:

Correct Answer: C [limits]

Explanation:

The literary-source frame is source – content – limits, so limits such as bias or gaps come third.

3.  

By Shanmugam IAS Academy's count of GS Paper I history questions (2013–2025), the section with the fewest questions is:

Correct Answer: C [post-independence India]

Explanation:

about 7 of 91 items, the fewest of the four sections.

4.  

The Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan series The History and Culture of the Indian People had as its general editor:

Correct Answer: B [R. C. Majumdar]

Explanation:

R. C. Majumdar was its general editor; the first volume was The Vedic Age.

5.  

In an answer on the contributions of the Gupta and Chola periods, Aryabhata belongs under the:

Correct Answer: A [Gupta period]

Explanation:

Aryabhata completed the Aryabhatiya in 499 CE, in the Gupta age, so he belongs under Gupta science.

6.  

Which of the following is usually cited as a reason why the English East India Company's armies, mostly of Indian soldiers, defeated the larger armies of Indian rulers?

Correct Answer: B [regular pay, drill and discipline]

Explanation:

Regular pay, drill and discipline made sepoy units steady in battle.

7.  

The frame "stage – strand – base" is meant for:

Correct Answer: A [freedom-struggle questions]

Explanation:

Stage – strand – base names the stage, the ideological strands within it and the social groups each drew in.

8.  

When the freedom struggle is divided into three periods for answer writing (1885–1905, 1905–1919 and a third), the third period is:

Correct Answer: D [1920–1947]

Explanation:

The three periods are 1885–1905, 1905–1919 and 1920–1947, so 1920–1947 is the third.

9.  

Which is an example of regional balance in a Bhakti answer?

Correct Answer: A [Alvars, Kabir, Chaitanya and Namdev]

Explanation:

Alvars (Tamil Nadu), Kabir (north), Chaitanya (Bengal) and Namdev (Maharashtra) cover four regions of India.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. A quotation question needs at least one qualification.
2. In art questions, features can be listed without examples.
3. If unsure of a year, the century is a safer choice.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 3 only]

Explanation:

Quotation answers need a qualification and a century is safer than a guessed year; features without examples is a listed trap.

11.  

Assertion (A): Culture answers can close with a living link such as a World Heritage site.

Reason (R): A link to the present shows continuity, which the examiner can credit quickly.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Closing with a living link is recommended precisely because it shows continuity that the examiner can credit quickly.

12.  

A question that asks for 'the main contributions' of a period is best framed as:

Correct Answer: C [fields – examples – legacy]

Explanation:

A contributions question is answered field by field, with examples and the legacy.

13.  

The Indian History Congress was founded in:

Correct Answer: D [1935]

Explanation:

The Indian History Congress was founded in 1935 and held its first session at Poona that year.

14.  

Subaltern Studies was first edited by:

Correct Answer: B [Ranajit Guha]

Explanation:

Ranajit Guha edited the first volume of Subaltern Studies, published in 1982.

15.  

The Indian Council of Historical Research was set up in:

Correct Answer: C [1972]

Explanation:

The Indian Council of Historical Research was established by the Government of India in 1972.

16.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Indian History Congress founded
2. Thapar's A History of India, Volume 1
3. History and Culture of the Indian People begins
4. Subaltern Studies, first volume

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [1-3-2-4]

Explanation:

1935, 1951, 1966, 1982.

17.  

"Persian literary sources reflect the spirit of the age" is best answered with the frame:

Correct Answer: D [source – content – limits]

Explanation:

A question on literary sources needs the source named, what it shows, and its limits such as court bias.

18.  

In the frame "FES" for art and architecture answers, FES stands for:

Correct Answer: A [Features, Examples, Significance]

Explanation:

FES is the art frame Features–Examples–Significance.

19.  

The 2019 question on 1857 as a culmination of earlier rebellions is best treated as:

Correct Answer: D [an event question linking earlier rebellions to 1857]

Explanation:

The question asks how far earlier rebellions led up to 1857, so it is an event question linking the two.

20.  

A useful rule for history and culture answers is that each heading should carry:

Correct Answer: A [two named items]

Explanation:

Two named monuments, texts, persons or events show knowledge without long description.

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