ENGLISH

for SSC EXAMS 2023

By Ananya Ma'am
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SSC Exams
(Comprehension
Passage - II)

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 10 Questions

Que. 1 Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow.
In 2014, two psychologists at the University of California, Berkeley, launched an online course with a
lofty goal: teaching students how to be happy, through both science and practice, in just eight weeks. No big
deal, right?
The amazing thing: It seemed to work. Thousands of students took the Science of Happiness course (which is
still free to audit on edX, a provider of open online courses) and learned about the science of connection,
compassion, gratitude and mindfulness. Perhaps more importantly, they also completed a series of simple
activities that research suggests increase happiness. Those who fully participated saw their positive feelings
increase each week. They reported feeling less sadness, stress, loneliness, anger and fear, while at the same time
experiencing more amusement, enthusiasm and affection, as well as a greater sense of community. During the
course, students' happiness and life satisfaction increased by about 5%. And that boost remained even four
months after the course ended (though it's difficult to fully untangle that result; it could've been from doing the
activities, the students' new understanding of the psychology of happiness, or something totally different).
How does this work? Can you really change how happy you are that easily? According to the research, yes. Even
during challenging times, like the coronavirus pandemic. "There's a misconception that happiness is built-in and
that we can't change it," says Laurie Santos, a professor of psychology at Yale University who teaches a free
Coursera class called The Science of Well-Being. One popular theory that suggests we can affect our feelings is
the happiness pie chart, proposed in a 2005 paper (PDF) published in the Review of General Psychology. At the
time, researchers suggested that while 50% of your happiness is determined by your genes and 10% by your life
circumstances, 40% is determined by your daily activities. Though this breakdown has faced criticism (that it's
too simple, and doesn't take into account how your genes and environment interact), it taps into an idea that's
fairly widely accepted: At least some of your happiness is within your control. "The science shows that our
circumstances -- how rich we are, what job we have, what material possessions we own -- these things matter
less for happiness than we think," Santos says. (Research does show that wealthier people are happier than
poorer people -- but not by a ton.)
Another big misconception? That happiness is the same as a consistently positive emotional state, says Emiliana
Simon-Thomas, who co-teaches Berkley's The Science of Happiness course and is also the science director of
Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center. Being happy doesn't mean you feel pure joy and cheerfulness every
hour of every day. Humans aren't designed that way (and think of how annoying you'd be if you were). You
experience setbacks, problems, the loss of loved ones. And those negative feelings are an essential part of your
emotional life, too. Happiness, experts say, means accepting negative experiences, and having the skills to
manage and cope with them, and to use them to make better decisions later. "We think happiness is like a
Facebook reel of vacations and achievements and checkboxes for life goals," Simon-Thomas says. "But people
who pursue happiness in that sort of belief system end up being less happy than people who define happiness in a
more overarching, quality-of-life way."

Which of the following is not a misconception related to happiness?

1. happiness is built-in and that we can't change it

2. happiness is the same as a consistently positive emotional state
3. human beings are designed to feel pure joy and cheerfulness all the time.
4. happiness is like a Facebook reel of vacations and achievements and checkboxes for life goals

Que. 2 What is the meaning of happiness according to the given passage?

1. Happiness is the same as a consistently positive emotional state.

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 2. Happiness is about how rich we are, what job we have, what material possessions we own.
3. Happiness is like a Facebook reel of vacations and achievements and checkboxes for life goals
4. acknowledging negative experiences, managing and coping with them and using them to make better
decisions later.

Que. 3 Which of the following words in the passage mean the same "comprehensive or all-embracing" and "
the state of being conscious or aware of something" respectively.

1. Gratitude and Compassion

2. Overarching and Mindfulness
3. Consistent and Well-being
4. Understanding and Emotional

Que. 4 The 2005 paper on happiness published in the Review of General Psychology faced criticism because:

1. It indicated that wealthier people are always happier than poorer people by a margin.
2. Happiness is determined by your emotional state and belief system.
3. It doesn't take into account the interplay between genes and environment.
4. Happiness is dependent on your genes and not external factors.

Que. 5 What was the outcome of the Science of Happiness course on the students?

1. They learnt how to control their happiness under any circumstance.

2. They reported feeling lesser negative emotions and experienced more positions emotions.
3. They could maintain a consistently positive emotional state.
4. They never experienced negative emotions after the course.

Que. 6 Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow.
Mike and Morris lived in the same village. While Morris owned the largest jewelry shop in the village,
Mike was a poor farmer. Both had large families with many sons, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren. One fine
day, Mike, tired of not being able to feed his family, decided to leave the village and move to the city where he
was certain to earn enough to feed everyone. Along with his family, he left the village for the city. At night, they
stopped under a large tree. There was a stream running nearby where they could freshen up themselves. He told
his sons to clear the area below the tree, he told his wife to fetch water and he instructed his daughters-in-law to
make up the fire and started cutting wood from the tree himself. They didn’t know that in the branches of the
tree, there was a thief hiding. He watched as Mike’s family worked together and also noticed that they had
nothing to cook. Mike’s wife also thought the same and asked her husband ” Everything is ready but what shall
we eat?”. Mike raised his hands to heaven and said,” Don’t worry. He is watching all of this from above. He will
help us.” The thief got worried as he had seen that the family was large and worked well together. Taking
advantage of the fact that they did not know he was hiding in the branches, he decided to make a quick escape.
He climbed down safely when they were not looking and ran for his life. But, he left behind the bundle of stolen
jewels and money, which dropped into Mike’s lap. Mike opened it and jumped with joy when he saw the
contents. The family gathered all their belongings and returned to the village. There was great excitement when
they told everyone how they got rich. Morris thought that the tree was miraculous and this was a nice and quick
way to earn some money. He ordered his family to pack some clothes and they set off as if on a journey. They
also stopped under the same tree and Morris started commanding everyone as Mike had done. But no one in his
family was willing to obey his orders. Being a rich family, they were used to having servants all around. So, the
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 one who went to the river to fetch water enjoyed a nice bath. The one who went to get wood for fire went off to
sleep. Morris’s wife said,” Everything is ready but what shall we eat ?” Morris raised his hands and said, ” Don’t
worry. He is watching all of this from above. He will help us.” As soon as he finished saying, the thief jumped
down from the tree with a knife in hand. Seeing him, everyone started running around to save their lives. The
thief stole everything they had and Morris and his family had to return to the village empty-handed, having lost
all the valuables that they had taken with them.

Why Mike decided to leave the village?

1. He wanted to escape from the situation.

2. He was jealous of Morris.
3. He thought he would earn more in the city than in the village for his family.
4. He didn't want to live in the village.

Que. 7 One word for describing Morris's family:

1. Defiance
2. Embrace
3. Accede
4. Comply

Que. 8 What did Mike mean by, "Don’t worry. He is watching all of this from above. He will help us”?

1. He meant god is seeing everything and having faith in him.

2. He knew about the thief.
3. He wanted to tell his family about the thief indirectly.
4. He didn't mean anything.

Que. 9 Did the thief give the jewels to Mike?

1. Yes, he gave the jewels as a gift.

2. No, he gave it out of sympathy.
3. Yes, because he liked his obedient family.
4. No, he forgot to take the jewels with him.

Que. 10 Which of the following best describes Mike's character?

1. Mike was diligent in his life.

2. Mike was lazy in his life.
3. Mike was gluttonous in his life.
4. Mike was idle in his life.

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 10 Questions

Que. 1 Correct Option - 3

Que. 2 Correct Option - 4

Que. 3 Correct Option - 2

Que. 4 Correct Option - 3

Que. 5 Correct Option - 2

Que. 6 Correct Option - 3

Que. 7 Correct Option - 1

Que. 8 Correct Option - 1

Que. 9 Correct Option - 4

Que. 10 Correct Option - 1

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 By Ananya Ma'am

ENGLISH COMPLETE ENGLISH BY ANANYA SINGH FOR

PREPARATION BY ANANYA SSC CPO
SINGH

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