Read the following passage and answer the questions : An essential function of…

2022

Read the following passage and answer the questions :

An essential function of hegemony involves convincing people to support the existence of a social system that does not support them in return. Marginalised groups do not often protest or revolt against ideologies that overwhelmingly support privileged groups because, on some level, they consent to being dominated. This statement prompts an immediate question: Why would anyone consent to such an arrangement? While dominant ideologies may reflect the desires and interests of socially powerful groups, for these ideologies to remain dormant or hegemonic, they must also feature an additional promise. It is in the best interest of the marginalized groups to accept these beliefs as well. Put another way, members of socially powerful groups act to have their world view accepted as the universal way of thinking, and members outside these groups come to accept some of these ideologies because they appear beneficial in some way. This is referred to as a process of spontaneous consent because it is typically informal or unnoticed. The best way to understand the spontaneous consent of hegemony is through an example. A number of ideological components within a nation’s higher education system may not be in the best interests of students. One dominant belief suggests that college students should pay for their own education. Despite being affected by the belief, they accept it, and the ideology survives. When such consent fails, however, the concept of hegemony also explains how dominant ideologies evolve to contain this failure through a process of flexible appropriation. In such a situation, it is likely that dominant cultural institutions will absorb any challenging beliefs, integrate them into the hegemonic matrix, and re-establish the previous norm. As a result, hegemonic systems never go away. They simply change form through a process of constant give and take between social groups. Hegemonic ideological structures maintain control in part through the never-ending process of integration and appropriation of marginalised ideologies.

According to the passage, when spontaneous consent fails, the dominant ideology survives because of its

Answer: B. Flexible appropriationConceptIn reading comprehension, identify the causal mechanism the passage gives for an outcome. Distinguish that mechanism from the actors involved, the…

  1. A.

    Social Power

  2. B.

    Flexible appropriation

  3. C.

    Beneficial features

  4. D.

    Ideological components

Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: B

Concept

In reading comprehension, identify the causal mechanism the passage gives for an outcome. Distinguish that mechanism from the actors involved, the initial incentive, and examples of the ideology.

Application

  1. The passage first explains spontaneous consent: marginalised groups accept dominant beliefs because those beliefs appear beneficial.

  2. It then considers what happens when consent fails: dominant institutions absorb challenging beliefs, integrate them into the hegemonic matrix, and restore the previous norm.

  3. The passage names this adaptive process flexible appropriation; this is the mechanism by which the dominant ideology changes form and survives.

Contrast

  • Influence held by privileged groups identifies who exercises hegemony, not the survival mechanism described after consent fails.

  • Apparent advantages explain why spontaneous consent may arise, not how the system responds to a challenge.

  • Institutional beliefs, such as students paying for education, are examples carried within the system rather than its adaptive process.

Therefore, the dominant ideology survives because of flexible appropriation.

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