Comprehension: (Que No. 1 - 5) Read the following passage and answer the…
2023
Comprehension: (Que No. 1 - 5)
Read the following passage and answer the questions given below it.
In the seventh and eighth centuries CE, Islam spread towards Spain and India. Islam came to India, particularly, with Muslim merchants, traders, holy men and conquerors over a passage of six hundred years. Although by the eighth century CE, Muslims had begun to construct in Sindh, Gujarat, etc., it was only in the early thirteenth century that large-scale building activity was begun by the Turkish State, established after the Turkish conquest of northern India. A noteworthy aspect of these migrations and conquests was that Muslims absorbed many features of local cultures and traditions and combined them with their own architectural practices. Thus, in the field of architecture, a mix of many structural techniques, stylised shapes, and surface decorations came about through constant interventions of acceptance, rejection or modification of architectural elements. These architectural entities or categories showcasing multiple styles are known as Indo-Saracenic or Indo-Islamic architecture. According to E. B. Havell, Hindus conceived manifestations of god everywhere in multiple forms as part of their religious faith whereas a Muslim thought of only one with Muhammad as His Prophet. Hence, Hindus adorned all surfaces with sculptures and paintings. Muslims, forbidden to replicate living forms on any surface, developed their religious art and architecture consisting of the arts of arabesque, geometrical patterns and calligraphy on plaster and stone.
Question:
Indo-Islamic architecture is also known as?
- A.
Indo-satanic architecture
- B.
Indo-saracenic architecture
- C.
Indo-saranian architecture
- D.
Indo-ceramic architecture
Attempted by 1 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Concept: In a reading-comprehension question, when the passage explicitly states that one term "is also known as" or "is known as" another term, the correct choice is the exact alternate term used by the passage itself — not a similar-sounding word, a misspelling, or an unrelated term.
Application: The passage states, "...are known as Indo-Saracenic or Indo-Islamic architecture." The question asks what Indo-Islamic architecture is also known as. Matching this directly against the passage's own wording gives the term Indo-saracenic architecture.
Cross-check (why the other options do not fit):
Indo-satanic architecture — a phonetic distortion of the term used in the passage; the word "satanic" never appears in the text.
Indo-saranian architecture — a similarly spelled variant that the passage never uses.
Indo-ceramic architecture — refers to pottery/ceramics, an unrelated term that does not appear anywhere in the passage.
Since only one option reproduces the passage's own wording for the alternate name, that option is the answer.