SYBCom Sem3 Compehension Passage 7 Why Are Beggars Despised? George Orwell

 Passage 7 Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.

Why Are Beggars Despised?  George Orwell

It is worth saying something about the social position of beggars, for when one has consorted (be/spend time) with them, and found that they are ordinary human beings, one cannot help being struck by the curious attitude that society takes towards them. People seem to feel that there is some essential difference between beggars and ordinary 'working' men. They are a race apart—outcasts, like criminals and prostitutes. Working men 'work,' beggars do not 'work'; they are parasites, worthless in their very nature. It is taken for granted that a beggar does not 'earn' his living, as a bricklayer or a literary critic 'earns' his. He is a mere social excrescence (abnormal ugly outgrowth), tolerated because we live in a humane age, but essentially despicable (shameful/unworthy).

Yet if one looks closely one sees that there is no essential difference between a beggar's livelihood and that of numberless respectable people.

Beggers do not it is said; but then, what is work? A navy works by swinging a pick. An accountant us by adding up figures. A beggar works by standing out of doors in all weathers and getting varicose veins, chronic bronchitis, etc. It is a trade like any other; quite useless of course- but, then, many reputable trades are quite useless.

And as a social a beggar compares well with scores of others. He is honest compared with the sellers of most patent medicines, high minded compared with a Sunday newspaper proprietor, amiable compared with a hire-purchase tout (vender) —in short, a parasite, but a fairly harmless parasite. He seldom extracts more than a bare living from the community, and, what should justify him according to our ethical ideas, he pays for it over and over in suffering. I do not think there is anything about a beggar that sets him in a different class from other people, or gives most modern men the right to despise (hate) him.

Then the question arises, Why are beggars despised? -for they are despised, universally. I believe it is for the simple reason that they fail to earn a decent living. In practice nobody cares whether work is useful or useless, productive or parasitic; the sole thing demanded is that it shall be profitable. In all the modern talk about energy, efficiency, social service and the rest of it, what meaning is there except 'Get money, get it legally, and get a lot of it'? Money has become the grand test of virtue. By this test beggars fail, and for this they are despised. If one could earn even ten pounds a week at begging, it would become a respectable profession immediately.

 Questions and Answers:

1.       List the three different ways by which society differentiates between beggars and ordinary  'working' men.

       Ans:  - Beggars do not "work" while ordinary men do.

                  - Beggars are seen as parasites, while ordinary men are considered productive.

                  - Beggars are viewed as a separate, despised class, similar to criminals and prostitutes,

                     unlike ordinary men.

2.        Identify the word that indicates that the second paragraph contradicts what is stated in the first paragraph.

Ans:  The word "Yet" indicates the contradiction.

3.       'It is a trade like any other. . . ' What does 'it' refer to in this sentence?

Ans: “It” refers to begging.

4.       What qualities does the writer assign to a beggar?

Ans: The writer describes a beggar as honest, high-minded, amiable, and a fairly harmless          parasite.

5.       According to the writer, why are beggars despised?

Ans: Beggars are despised because they fail to earn a decent living and do not make a profit,

 which is the modern test of virtue.

6.       What is the most important factor about work?

Ans: The most important factor about work, according to the passage, is that it should be profitable.

7.       Which test do beggars fail?

Ans: Beggars fail the test of making money or being profitable.

8.       Do you think that the writer is sympathetic towards beggars? Justify your answer.

Ans: Yes, the writer is sympathetic towards beggars. (May be sarcastically.) He argues that beggars are no different from others, challenges the negative perception of them, and highlights their suffering and honesty.

9.       The writer mentions a number of other jobs/professions in the passage.  List these out.

Ans: The jobs/professions mentioned are bricklayer, literary critic, navy, accountant, sellers of patent medicines, Sunday newspaper proprietor, and hire-purchase tout.

10.  Change the voice in the following sentences.

               a. Why are beggars despised?   

               Ans: Why do people despise beggars?

               b. A beggar does not earn his living.

               Ans: His living is not earned by a beggar.

11.  Find out the meanings of the following words:

a. Consorted: Associated with or spent time with.  

b. Excrescence: An abnormal or unwanted growth.  

c. Navy: A laborer or worker who performs physical tasks like digging.  

d. Proprietor: The owner of a business or property.

e. Amiable: Friendly and pleasant.

 f. Tout: A person who sells something, often in an aggressive or annoying way.

 g. Parasite: A person who lives off others without giving anything in return. 

12.  Fill in the blanks with the correct option:

               a. Beggars are compared with  (compared to) other  ‘working' men.

               b. Shailesh paid for  (paid off) his telling a lie.

13.  Fill in the blanks with appropriate prepositions:

              a. The attitude   of    people has to change.

              b. A crowded bus passed by  .

              c. The cat jumped into   the box.