Applyo - College Application Platform

CAT 2020 Slot 3 VARC Question & Solution

Reading ComprehensionEasy

Question

The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.

The dominant hypotheses in modern science believe that language evolved to allow humans to exchange factual information about the physical world. But an alternative view is that language evolved, in modern humans at least, to facilitate social bonding. It increased our ancestors’ chances of survival by enabling them to hunt more successfully or to cooperate more extensively. Language meant that things could be explained and that plans and past experiences could be shared efficiently.

Options

Since its origin, language has been continuously evolving to higher forms, from being used to identify objects to ensuring human survival by enabling our ancestors to bond and cooperate.
From the belief that humans invented language to process factual information, scholars now think that language was the outcome of the need to ensure social cohesion and thus human survival.
Most believe that language originated from a need to articulate facts, but others think it emerged from the need to promote social cohesion and cooperation, thus enabling human survival.
Experts are challenging the narrow view of the origin of language, as being merely used to describe facts and label objects, to being necessary to promote more complex interactions among humans

Solution

One predominant viewpoint: language originated to exchange factual information

An alternative viewpoint: language originated to facilitate social bonding and consequently, to ensure human survival.

The summary needs to highlight these two core viewpoints. Option C does this without deviating from the discussion.

Option A: The evolution of language is not the focal point here; the views held in this regard are. {"language has been continuously evolving to higher forms"} Thus, we can eliminate this option since it comes across as a misrepresentation.

Option B: This is a trap wherein the statement captures both the core viewpoints but there is a distortion involved: "...From the belief ..."  to "...scholars now..." indicates a shift in the viewpoint. However, this is not the case - the author simply states two prevalent perspectives on the subject. 

Option D: is again a distortion since experts are not "challenging any views; the author simply highlights the presence of two viewpoints {no conflict presented}

Hence, Option C is the correct answer.