৩৮তম বিসিএস লিখিত প্রশ্ন ইংরেজি

Subject Code : 003
Time – 4 hours Full Marks-200 Part-A

Marks Read the following passage and answer questions 1 to 7:

Fifty years ago, before the poor had become class conscious, there were several subjects, such as economics and imperial affairs, of which they were comparatively ignorant, In regard to these subjects they were prepared to accept the opinion of those who had studied them all their lives. Today, owing to the distrust(অবিশ্বাস) created by class propaganda, we can count on no such acquiescence(মৌনসম্মতি). An uneducated or untravelled person is unlikely today to give credence(বিশ্বাস) to the advice or information provided by somebody whom he assumes to belong to the capitalist class. He has been taught that the aim of the Conservative Party and its sponsors is to delude(প্রতারিত বা বিভ্রান্ত করা) the noble worker and to tell him lies. Thus the assertions(দাবি) of those who are really informed on a difficult subject are met by derisive(উপহাসমূলক) laughter; whereas the catchwords(দৃষ্টি-আকর্ষণী শব্দ) and headline stuff doled out(স্বল্প পরিমাণে ভাগ করে দেওয়া) by the party propagandists are taken to be incontestable truth and wisdom. This, since the days of Thersites(ট্রোজান যুদ্ধের একজন সৈনিক), has been the familiar device of demagogues(আবেগ নির্ভর বক্তৃতা). It is easier to laugh than to understand, easier to fester with suspicion of others than to glow with confidence. The proletariat(শ্রমিক সম্প্রদায়) always prefer the easier path, especially when they are assured that it is a praiseworthy(প্রশংসা যোগ্য) path leading directly to their own interests. Ages of acquiescence are always, so we are assured, followed by ages of denial; for several centuries mankind will accept the established order and continue to live, generation by generation, according to the old unquestioned pattern; then suddenly some ferment(সামাজিক, রাজনৈতিক উত্তেজনা ও আন্দোলনের অবস্থা) is introduced which sets the whole community bubbling and the crust is destroyed. During these periods of negation it is customary for those who direct the revolution to teach the people to deny and to distrust even the best and truest things that they are taught in the past; it is not only that they must deride the ancient formulas, it is also that they must suspect of the very worst motives of any of those who seek even to explain them. Today we have on each side of the great divide examples of both systems. To the East, we have an area of apparent acquiescence, in which many millions of men and women, who cannot all be stupid, accept as truth statements and ideas that to rational beings are palpably false. To the West, we have many millions of men and women, most of whom are intelligent and sentient, who refuse to accept as truth statements and ideas that really can withstand the most searching examination. This contrast between the gullible and the incredulous is an interesting, and to my mind, encouraging thing to observe. It suggests that those who believe everything that they are told are condemned to a mental stagnation that can only end in decay; whereas those who refuse to believe anything, even when told by reputable authorities, are doubtless being extremely silly, but are also very much alive. Those are the sort of people whom it is worthwhile trying to educate. But by what means are we to inculcate the habit of responsible thinking? Only, I suggest, by wily tact.

1. Answer the following questions in your own words. Do not copy any sentences from the passage above. 3×10 = 30

2. Write the meanings of the following words in English using contextual clues (The words are underlined in the passage): 1×5 = 5

3. Fill in the empty cells with appropriate words according to their parts of speech: 1×5 = 5

4. Give the synonyms for the following words and make sentences with the synonyms: 1×6 = 6

5. Break down the following sentence into four simple sentences without changing the meaning it conveys: 1×4 = 4
“To the West, we have many millions of men and women, most of whom are intelligent and sentient(সচেতন), who refuse to accept as truth statements and ideas that really can withstand the most searching examination.’.

6. Make sentences of your own with each of the following words and phrases (Copying of any sentence from the passage above must be avoided): 1×10 = 10
(a) propaganda (b) give credence to (c) derisive (d) demagogue (e) fester with (f) glow with (g) ferment (h) customary (i) apparent
(j) withstand

7. Summarize the passage in your own words (100 words).

8. Write a letter to the editor of an English Daily on the growing importance 20
of rational thinking in our social and national life.
Part-B

9. Write an essay in about 1000 words on any one of the following topics: 50
(a) The Rohingyas: Victims of Genocide
(b) Blue Economy in Bangladesh: Prospects and Challenges
(c) Impact of Social Media on Young Generation

10. Translate the following text into Bangla:
The burgeoning bustle of life is identified as one of the main reasons for waning reading habit. Life has been so busy that people can hardly manage time for reading. The pressure of livelihood has mounted tremendously, thrusting people in earning bread, in all desperation. A money-centric corporate culture is sweeping life away, making people crazy for pomp and prosperity in the form of land, flat, car and other amenities. Reading is a secondary concern or no concern at all. There is no time for reading in fact. Even they cannot find time for reading newspaper. They just skim through the headlines. They can hardly read anything with profound concentration due to time constraint. They are always in a hurry to finish their assignments in vocation. It is really a hard time, witnessing a famine of reading. Proliferation of information technology has also contributed to the change in reading habit. But we must bear in mind that reading habit is the mark of civility of a nation. Reading books and other materials of learning makes individuals enlightened, elevating their level of intelligence.

11. Translate the following text into English: ২৫
সংস্কৃতি হলো জীবনের ও পরিবেশের উৎকর্ষসাধনের ও উন্নতিবিধানের এবং ইচ্ছানুযায়ী ইতিহাসের গতি নির্ধারণের চিন্তা ও চেষ্টা। জীবন ও পরিবেশ অবিচ্ছেদ্য সম্পর্কে যুক্ত। জীবন পরিবেশ থেকেই উদ্ভূত এবং পরিবেশের সঙ্গে সংলগ্ন ও পরিবেশের উপর নির্ভরশীল। এ দুইয়ের একটির উন্নতি অন্যটির উন্নতির উপর নির্ভরশীল। উন্নতি আপনিতেই ঘটে না, সাধন করতে হয়। উন্নতির প্রক্রিয়ায় মানুষই কর্তা। একমাত্র মানুষেরই সংস্কৃতি আছে, অন্য প্রাণীর নেই। মানুষ সেই জৈবিক সামর্থ্যের অধিকারী যার বলে সে ব্যক্তিগত ও যৌথ প্রয়াসে সংস্কৃতির পরিচয় দিতে পারে। বিবর্তনের যে পর্যায়ে এসে মানুষ সংস্কৃতি সৃষ্টি করতে সক্ষম হয়েছে তার পূর্ব পর্যন্ত অন্য প্রাণীর সঙ্গে মানুষের পার্থক্য ছিল না। জীবনযাত্রার মধ্য দিয়ে মানুষের নিজেকে এবং নিজের সঙ্গে পরিবেশকে সুন্দর, সমৃদ্ধ ও উন্নত করার যে প্রবণতা, চিন্তা ও চেষ্টা লক্ষ্য করা যায়, তারই মধ্যে নিহিত থাকে তার সংস্কৃতি। ব্যক্তির জীবনে যেমন, সমষ্টির জীবনেও তেমনি সংস্কৃতিচেতনা ও সংস্কৃতি আছে। দর্শন, বিজ্ঞান ও শিল্পকলা সৃষ্টির মধ্য দিয়ে, উন্নতিশীল রাষ্ট্রব্যবস্থা, সমাজব্যবস্থা ও জীবনপদ্ধতি প্রবর্তনের মধ্য দিয়ে মানুষ তার সাংস্কৃতিক সামর্থ্যের পরাকাষ্ঠা প্রদর্শন করে থাকে। সংস্কৃতির মর্মে আছে উন্নত হওয়ার ও উন্নত করার এবং সমৃদ্ধ হওয়ার ও সমৃদ্ধ করার প্রবণতা, ইচ্ছা, আকাঙ্ক্ষা ও চেষ্টা। সংস্কৃতির সঙ্গে সম্পর্ক আছে রুচি, পছন্দ, সমাজবোধ, আহার্য, ব্যবহার্য, পরিপার্শ্ব, বিচারক্ষমতা, গ্রহণ-বর্জন ও প্রয়াস-প্রচেষ্টার।