Read the following comprehension carefully and answer the questions accordingly. Mahatma Gandhi believed that industrialisation was no answer to the problems that plague the mass of India's poor and that villagers should be taught to be self-sufficient in food, weave their own cloth from cotton and eschew the glittering prizes that the 20th century so temptingly offers. Such an idyllic and rural paradise did not appear to those who inherited the reins of political power.
The meaning of 'glittering prizes that the $$20^{th}$$ century so temptingly offers' is
Solution
"Glittering prizes" is a metaphor for the appeal of contemporary material rewards (wealth, technology, consumer goods) brought about by industrialisation and advancements in the 20th century. Gandhi opposes materialism and commercialisation in favour of rural self-sufficiency, which includes locally produced food and handcrafted clothing.
The only option that fits this is Option A: [pursuit of a commercialised material culture]. Gandhi promoted self-sufficiency (handwoven cloth, local food) vs. industrial "prizes" (factory goods, consumerism). "Glittering prizes" echoes shallow materialism, matching option A.
The other choices do not adequately convey this fundamental idea. Option B, ["Replacement of rural by urban interests,"] is overly general. More than just urban-rural transitions, the phrase specifically criticises materialism. The opposite is true of Option C ["Complete removal of poverty"); Gandhi believed that industrialisation was insufficient to alleviate poverty. Option D—the absence of corruption and violence—is meaningless. Economic decisions, not moral ones, are at play.
Option A is the correct choice.
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