Once a society accepts a secular mode of creativity, within which the

Question

Once a society accepts a secular mode of creativity, within which the creator replaces God, imaginative transactions assume a self-conscious form. The tribal imagination, on the other hand, is still to a large extent dreamlike and hallucinatory. It admits fusion between various planes of existence and levels of time in a natural and artless manner. In tribal stories, oceans fly in the sky as birds, mountains swim in water as fish, animals speak as humans and stars grow like plants. Spatial order and temporal sequence do not restrict the narrative. This is not to say that tribal creations have no conventions or rules, but simply that they admit the principle of association between emotion and the narrative motif. Thus stars, seas, mountains, trees, men and animals can be angry, sad or happy.

It might be said that tribal artists work more on the basis of their racial and sensory memory than on the basis of a cultivated imagination. In order to understand this distinction, we must understand the difference between imagination and memory. In the animate world, consciousness meets two immediate material realities: space and time. We put meaning into space by perceiving it in terms of images. The image-making faculty is a genetic gift to the human mind—this power of imagination helps us understand the space that envelops us. With regard to time, we make connections with the help of memory; one remembers being the same person today as one was yesterday.

The tribal mind has a more acute sense of time than the sense of space. Somewhere along the history of human civilization, tribal communities seem to have realized that domination over territorial space was not their lot. Thus, they seem to have turned almost obsessively to gaining domination over time. This urge is substantiated in their ritual of conversing with their dead ancestors: year after year, tribals in many parts of India worship terracotta or carved-wood objects representing their ancestors, aspiring to enter a trance in which they can converse with the dead. Over the centuries, an amazingly sharp memory has helped tribals classify material and natural objects into a highly complex system of knowledge.

One of the main characteristics of the tribal arts is their distinct manner of constructing space and imagery, which might be described as 'hallucinatory'. In both oral and visual forms of representation, tribal artists seem to interpret verbal or pictorial space as demarcated by an extremely flexible 'frame'. The boundaries between art and non-art become almost invisible. A tribal epic can begin its narration from a trivial everyday event; tribal paintings merge with living space as if the two were one and the same. And within the narrative itself, or within the painted imagery, there is no deliberate attempt to follow a sequence. The episodes retold and the images created take on the apparently chaotic shapes of dreams. In a way, the syntax of language and the grammar of painting are the same, as if literature were painted words and painting were a song of images.    1 
 1. What does the author mainly use the description of tribal imagination to show?

(A) That tribal art is unstructured and chaotic
(B) That tribal creativity allows fluid movement across space, time, and existence
(C) That tribal art lacks conventions and rules
(D) That tribal imagination is less developed than secular imagination
(E) That tribal narratives are created without memory or tradition

2 
 2. What does the author explain as the main difference between imagination and memory?

(A) Imagination is learned through culture, while memory is inherited biologically
(B) Imagination helps humans understand space, while memory helps them understand time
(C) Imagination is dominant in secular societies, while memory is dominant in tribal societies
(D) Imagination is emotional, whereas memory is logical
(E) Imagination and memory perform identical functions in human consciousness

3 
 3. Why do tribals in India worship their dead ancestors, according to the passage?

(A) To preserve artistic traditions passed down over generations
(B) To express respect and gratitude toward earlier generations
(C) To gain a sense of control over time rather than over space
(D) To record historical events through ritual practices
(E) To seek protection from supernatural forces

4 
 4. Why do non-human living forms show human emotions in tribal narratives?

(A) Because tribal art is primitive and underdeveloped
(B) Because tribal narratives ignore all artistic rules
(C) Because tribal stories follow a self-conscious creative process
(D) Because tribal narratives allow emotional and existential fluidity
(E) Because tribal narratives are created mainly for ritual purposes

5 
 5. What role does the third paragraph play in the passage?

(A) It describes the historical origins of tribal art
(B) It explains the distinction between imagination and memory that supports the argument
(C) It provides detailed examples of tribal rituals and practices
(D) It challenges the idea that tribal art follows any conventions
(E) It summarizes the entire passage

guddo · Answer

The author contrasts tribal imagination with secular creativity to show how tribal art freely blends space, time, emotion, and existence. Tribal creativity relies more on memory and association than on structured, self-conscious imagination, leading to fluid, dreamlike narratives and imagery.

1. What does the author mainly use the description of tribal imagination to show?

(A) That tribal art is unstructured and chaotic

Incorrect. The author explicitly says tribal art is not without conventions.

(B) That tribal creativity allows fluid movement across space, time, and existence

Correct. The passage emphasizes fluid movement across space, time, and levels of existence, shown by flying oceans, talking animals, and flexible narrative order.

(C) That tribal art lacks conventions and rules

Incorrect. The author clearly states tribal creations do have conventions and rules.

(D) That tribal imagination is less developed than secular imagination

Incorrect. The author does not claim tribal imagination is inferior, only different.

(E) That tribal narratives are created without memory or tradition

Incorrect. The passage stresses strong memory and tradition in tribal cultures.

Answer: (B)

2. What does the author explain as the main difference between imagination and memory?

(A) Imagination is learned through culture, while memory is inherited biologically

Incorrect. Imagination is described as a genetic gift, not culturally learned.

(B) Imagination helps humans understand space, while memory helps them understand time

Correct.  Imagination gives meaning to space through images, while memory connects us to time .

(C) Imagination is dominant in secular societies, while memory is dominant in tribal societies

Incorrect. This is discussed later, not defined as the main difference.

(D) Imagination is emotional, whereas memory is logical

Incorrect. The author does not frame the distinction as emotional vs logical.

(E) Imagination and memory perform identical functions in human consciousness

Incorrect. The passage explicitly separates their functions.

Answer: (B)

3. Why do tribals in India worship their dead ancestors, according to the passage?

(A) To preserve artistic traditions passed down over generations

Incorrect. The ritual is not about preserving art traditions.

(B) To express respect and gratitude toward earlier generations

Incorrect. Respect is not the stated reason.

(C) To gain a sense of control over time rather than over space

Correct. The author says tribals turned from controlling space to  seeking domination over time , expressed through ancestor rituals.

(D) To record historical events through ritual practices

Incorrect. The rituals are not described as historical record-keeping.

(E) To seek protection from supernatural forces

Incorrect. Protection is not mentioned.

Answer: (C)

4. Why do non-human living forms show human emotions in tribal narratives?

(A) Because tribal art is primitive and underdeveloped

Incorrect. The author does not call tribal art primitive.

(B) Because tribal narratives ignore all artistic rules

Incorrect. The passage says tribal art has rules, just flexible ones.

(C) Because tribal stories follow a self-conscious creative process

Incorrect. Self-conscious creativity is linked to secular art, not tribal art.

(D) Because tribal narratives allow emotional and existential fluidity

Correct. Tribal narratives allow  emotional and existential fluidity , letting stars, seas, and animals feel emotions.

(E) Because tribal narratives are created mainly for ritual purposes

Incorrect. Ritual use alone does not explain emotional attribution.

Answer: (D)

5. What role does the third paragraph play in the passage?

(A) It describes the historical origins of tribal art

Incorrect. It is not a historical survey.

(B) It explains the distinction between imagination and memory that supports the argument

Correct. It explains the imagination–memory distinction and shows how tribal focus on time supports the broader argument.

(C) It provides detailed examples of tribal rituals and practices

Incorrect. Rituals are mentioned, but not as detailed examples for their own sake.

(D) It challenges the idea that tribal art follows any conventions

Incorrect. The paragraph does not deny conventions.

(E) It summarizes the entire passage

Incorrect. It does not summarize the whole passage.

Answer: (B)

laborumplaceat · Answer

WHy can it not be A for question 1 - the author mentions that the tribal art is chaotic ?

And for question 5, isn't 2nd paragraph about "distinction between imagination and memory"?

guddo · Answer

Q1: Why not A

The passage uses “dreamlike,” “hallucinatory,” and “apparently chaotic,” but the author immediately qualifies this by saying tribal creations do have conventions and rules, just not rigid sequence or spatial order. So “unstructured and chaotic” as a main point is too strong. The main point is  fluid mixing across space, time, and existence , not “it’s a mess.”  A overstates.

Q5: Why not your point about paragraph 2
 
You’re right that the “imagination vs memory” distinction is introduced in the second paragraph. The third paragraph’s job is to apply that distinction to the tribal mind (stronger sense of time, rituals with ancestors, classification via sharp memory) to support the overall argument. So the role of paragraph 3 is: it uses the earlier distinction and shows how it explains tribal focus on time.  It’s application, not introduction.

Once a society accepts a secular mode of creativity, within which the

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Once a society accepts a secular mode of creativity, within which the

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