Question
After several defeats in wars, Robert Bruce went in exile and wanted to commit suicide. Just before committing suicide, he came across a spider attempting tirelessly to have its net. Time and again, the spider failed but that did not deter it to refrain from making attempts. Such attempts by the spider made Bruce curious. Thus, Bruce started observing the near-impossible goal of the spider to have the net. Ultimately, the spider succeeded in having its net despite several failures. Such act of the spider encouraged Bruce not to commit suicide. And then, Bruce went back again and won many a battle, and the rest is history.
Which one of the following assertions is best supported by the above information?
Official answer and solution
- Official answer
- D
- From
- Official GATE 2013 answer key
Solution
Identify the core moral/logical lesson supported by the narrative of Robert Bruce observing the spider.
In the passage:
- Robert Bruce was in deep despair after multiple war defeats and was on the verge of ending his life (committing suicide).
- He observed a spider that failed repeatedly yet persisted relentlessly until it achieved its goal.
- This demonstration of persistence in the face of repeated failure motivated Bruce to abandon his suicidal despair, regain hope, and successfully return to battle.
Evaluating the assertions:
- (A) "Failure is the pillar of success" is an idiomatic proverb, but does not capture Bruce's near-suicidal state and recovery of hope.
- (B) "Honesty is the best policy" is irrelevant.
- (C) "Life begins and ends with adventures" is irrelevant.
- (D) "No adversity justifies giving up hope" directly targets the central theme: no matter how severe the setbacks (adversity), giving up hope (or one's life) is never justified, as persistence can ultimately overcome difficulty.
Hence, assertion (D) is best supported.
D
The answer is the one in the official GATE answer key. The solution is this site's own explanation.
Source
- Paper
- GATE 2013 Computer Science and Information Technology (CS)
- Question
- 63 of 65, printed as GA Q.63
- Section
- General Aptitude
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