Mains Practice Questions

1. The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.

Quotes to Enrich Your Essay:

• William Blake: “To see a world in a grain of sand and a heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour.”
• Anaïs Nin: “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.”
• Mahatma Gandhi: “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” (Implies that internal transformation precedes external change).

Theoretical and Philosophical Dimensions:

• Epistemology and Perception:
  • Immanuel Kant’s philosophy suggests that we experience the world through our own mental frameworks; changing these frameworks changes our reality.
  • Constructivism argues that "truth" and "discovery" are often internal realizations rather than external findings.
• The Difference Between Sight and Insight:
  • Darshan in Indian philosophy isn't just "seeing" a deity or truth, but experiencing a revelation that alters one's worldview.
  • Plato’s Allegory of the Cave: The "voyage" was not leaving the cave physically, but the intellectual realization that the shadows were not reality.
• Scientific Paradigm Shifts:
  • Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions: Progress happens not by gathering more data (landscapes) but by shifting paradigms (new eyes)—e.g., moving from Newtonian physics to Quantum Mechanics.

Policy and Historical Examples:

• Reframing Resources:
  • Japan’s Industrialization: Lacking natural resources (landscapes), Japan used "new eyes" to see human capital and technology as their primary wealth, becoming a global power.
  • Israel’s Agriculture: Instead of seeing a desert as barren, they viewed it through the lens of drip-irrigation technology, turning it into arable land.
• Historical Social Reforms:
  • Raja Ram Mohan Roy: He did not change the scriptures but looked at them with "new eyes" of reason and humanity to abolish Sati.
  • The Renaissance: It wasn't the discovery of new lands that sparked the Renaissance, but a new perspective on human potential (Humanism) and classical arts.

Contemporary Examples:

• Environmental Paradigms (Circular Economy):
  • Waste to Wealth: Traditionally, waste was seen as something to discard. The "new eyes" of the Circular Economy view waste as a raw material (e.g., converting plastic into roads or fuel).
• International Relations:
  • Indo-Pacific Strategy: The geography of the Indian Ocean didn't change, but the strategic "eyes" of the world shifted to view it as a single geopolitical construct rather than separate oceans.
• Social Justice and Inclusion:
  • Divyangjan (Persons with Disabilities): The shift from viewing disability as a medical defect to a social rights issue (Social Model of Disability) represents "new eyes" toward inclusivity.

2. Justice is the first condition of humanity.

Quotes to Enrich Your Essay:

• Martin Luther King Jr.: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
• John Rawls: “Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought.”
• Wole Soyinka: “Justice is the first condition of humanity.” (The prompt itself).

Theoretical and Philosophical Dimensions:

• The Foundation of Social Contract:
  • Thinkers like Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau argue that humans transition from a "state of nature" (chaos) to a "civil society" (humanity) primarily to secure justice and rights.
  • Without justice, society devolves into Matsyanyaya (the law of the fish), where the strong eat the weak.
• Niti vs. Nyaya (Amartya Sen):
  • Niti refers to organizational propriety and behavioral correctness, while Nyaya stands for realized justice. Humanity requires Nyaya—the actual removal of injustice—not just laws on paper.
• Dharma as Cosmic Justice:
  • In Indian philosophy, Dharma sustains the world. When justice (Dharma) collapses, humanity faces an existential crisis (Yuga-anta).

Policy and Historical Examples:

• Consequences of Denying Justice:
  • French Revolution (1789): The monarchy failed to provide economic and social justice, leading to a violent restructuring of society.
  • Partition of India (1947): A failure to ensure a sense of political justice and security among communities led to one of history's most tragic migrations.
• Restorative Justice and Healing:
  • South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission: Post-Apartheid, the focus was not just on punishment but on restoring the humanity of both victims and perpetrators through justice.
  • The Nuremberg Trials: Established that "following orders" is no excuse for crimes against humanity; justice supersedes hierarchy.

Contemporary Examples:

• Climate Justice (CBDR):
  • Common But Differentiated Responsibilities: The global south argues that humanity cannot tackle climate change without "justice"—meaning developed nations must pay for their historical emissions.
• Economic Inequality:
  • Universal Basic Income (UBI) Debates: In an era of AI and automation, ensuring economic justice is becoming a condition for maintaining human dignity and preventing social collapse.
• Digital Rights:
  • Privacy as a Fundamental Right (Puttaswamy Judgement): Recognizing that in the digital age, justice includes control over one's own data and digital identity