Individualism or Society IELTS Reading Answers
![ielts logo](/v3/images/homepage/desktop/ielts_material_logo.png)
![ielts img](/v3/images/article/cta-assets/cta-3-img-mob.webp)
Limited-Time Offer : Access a FREE 10-Day IELTS Study Plan!
The human trait known as individualism can be understood in two distinct ways. The first implies an individual’s aspiration to self-reliance or independence, and the need to exist as individual human beings. The second, by contrast, is understood as a social theory which prioritises freedom of action by individuals over the authority of an all-powerful state. As far as the second conception is concerned, individualism as a discrete construct of Western thought really came to the fore with the onset of capitalism in the late seventeenth century. The two most influential English political philosophers of that period —and since —Hobbes and Locke, outlined ideal models of government of a distinctly individualist hue. In their view, the state’s function was to protect a citizen’s individual liberties and interfere with any citizen’s actions only when those actions violated another individual’s right to act freely. For both, society is nothing more than an agglomeration of individuals; it has no reality independent of the individuals that make it up.
In practice, in the context of late twentieth and early twenty-first century developed societies, the term ‘individualism’ is generally congruent with a world view whose adherents wage a metaphorical low-level war against what they perceive to be the incessant and incremental growth in the power of the state. True individualists would undoubtedly argue that society’s attempts to regulate the individualist’s two most closely guarded spheres of personal liberty — economic and civil — will always represent individualism that is most keenly fought over battlegrounds. This strongly individualistic view of the role of society is often referred to as ‘libertarianism’.
An intriguing characteristic of those professing to be libertarians is that they can happily disagree, equally vehemently, with a government policy on, say, education, from either a distinctly ‘left’ or a distinctly ‘right’ libertarian perspective. Indeed, commentators and opinion formers in the mass media readily admit that one of the most fascinating aspects of these manifestations of modern individualism of either kind is just how frequently both claim 30 to be the authentic standard bearers of libertarianism. Thus anarchists arguing for their particular vision of libertarianism would never be seen dead breaking bread with right wing neo-liberal libertarians – or vice versa.
In the 1980s, champions of ‘deregulation’ announced their mission to ‘set the people free’ from the suffocating yoke of ‘big government’ or the ‘stranglehold of regulation’. So it was that in Britain enterprises once state-owned were privatized and public utilities such as telecoms, gas, electricity, and water were rapidly sold off. Moreover, unified transport systems took on multiple identities when the networks of trains and buses, most of which had previously been owned by the state, were put up for sale and then snapped up by a host of individual private companies.
It is fair to say that notwithstanding the social and political manifestations of individualism, which are still pillars of orthodoxy in many developed western countries – such as the USA and Britain – probably the most striking evidence of the enduring strength of individualism, and just how deeply this view of society has permeated all fields and forms of the contemporary arts, is the celebrity culture that surrounds us nowadays. Being famous, or better, being famous for just being famous has become almost an article of faith for wannabes everywhere. The seemingly insatiable public appetite for reality TV and tabloid newspapers, in addition to the all-pervasive celebrity photo journalism that fills a plethora of ubiquitous glossy magazines, are living testimony to Andy Warhol’s dictum that anyone ‘can be famous for fifteen minutes’ these days.
But the cult of celebrity alone does not convey the enduring power of individualism. Pause to reflect for a moment, and try to think of one truly great film, play, or popular song that could ever have achieved such universal acclaim without an individual voice at its narrative core. Surely, this is why Frank Sinatra timelessly strikes a chord with the individualist in all of us when he sings ‘I did it my way’.
Questions 1-6
Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in the Reading Passage? Write
YES if the statement agrees with the views of the writer.
NO if the statement contradicts the views of the writer.
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this.
1 There are two discrete interpretations of the term individualism.
2 The rise of individualism caused disquiet among governments in Europe.
3 The prominence of individualism as a concept coincided with the rise of capitalism.
4 Hobbes and Locke had little impact in the late 1700s.
5 Hobbes and Locke’s ideas about the state were not pro-individualist.
6 Individual liberties must be preserved because they guarantee protection against the state.
Questions 7-11
7 According to individualists, which two areas of personal freedom must be protected from state regulation?…..
8 What name is given to the view that society should not limit individuals’ rights to do as they wish?……………
9 Before the 1980s, who owned most of the transport networks in Britain?
10 According to the writer, what is the clearest evidence of the continuing importance of individualism in society?…
11 According to the writer, what feature must a film or song have to make it popular?……..
Questions 12 and 13
12 What strange trait does the writer mention about individualists?
A They can hold completely opposite political positions.
B They do not often disagree with government policy.
C Their opinions are shaped by the mass media.
D They have different views on the role of the government in education.
13 Which of the following statements best summarizes the writer’s view of individualism?
A Individualism has become less important since its conception in the late seventeenth century.
B The adherents of individualism disagree over how much the government should regulate personal liberty.
C The strength of individualism is reflected in many aspects of contemporary politics and culture.
D Individualism is the cause of most conflicts in society today.
Reading Answers1
1 Answer: Yes
Question type: Yes/No/Not Given
Answer location: Paragraph 1, line 1
Answer explanation: The selected line says that “The human trait known as individualism can be understood in two distinct ways.” This tells us that. Hence the answer is Yes.
2 Answer: Not Given
Question type: Yes/No/Not Given
Answer location: N.A.
Answer explanation: As it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this due to lack of any reference to disquiet among governments in Europe, the answer is Not Given.
3 Answer: Yes
Question type: Yes/No/Not Given
Answer location: Paragraph 1, line 5 – line 6
Answer explanation: The mentioned line of the paragraph says that “As far as the second conception is concerned, individualism as a discrete construct of Western thought really came to the fore with the onset of capitalism in the late seventeenth century.” This sentence points out that prominence (came to the fore) of individualism as a concept coincided with the rise (onset) of capitalism in the late seventeenth century. Hence the answer is Yes.
4 Answer: No
Question type: Yes/No/Not Given
Answer location: Paragraph 1, line 6- line 8
Answer explanation: In the specified line, it is stated that “… in the late seventeenth century. The two most influential English political philosophers of that period —and since —Hobbes and Locke, outlined ideal models of government of a distinctly individualist hue.” In other words, the impact of Hobbes and Locke were huge in the late 1800s (seventeenth century) unlike what is mentioned in the statement. Hence, the answer is No.
5 Answer: No
Question type: Yes/No/Not Given
Answer location: Paragraph 1, line 8- line 11
Answer explanation: The mentioned lines from Paragraph A says that “In their view, the state’s function was to protect a citizen’s individual liberties and interfere with any citizen’s actions only when those actions violated another individual’s right to act freely. For both, society is nothing more than an agglomeration of individuals; it has no reality independent of the individuals that make it up.” It is clear that both Hobbes and Locke gave more importance to individuals rather than the state or society. Hence the answer is No.
6 Answer: Yes
Question type: Yes/No/Not Given
Answer location: Paragraph 2, line 4- line 6
Answer explanation: The lines of Paragraph B says that “True individualists would undoubtedly argue that society’s attempts to regulate the individualist’s two most closely guarded spheres of personal liberty — economic and civil — will always represent individualism that is most keenly fought over battlegrounds.” As it is clear that individual liberties, especially economic and civil, must be preserved because they guarantee protection against the state, the answer is Yes.
7 Answer: economic, civil
Question type: Short Answer
Answer location: Paragraph 2, line 4- line 6
Answer explanation: The lines of Paragraph B says that “True individualists would undoubtedly argue that society’s attempts to regulate the individualist’s two most closely guarded spheres of personal liberty — economic and civil — will always represent individualism that is most keenly fought over battlegrounds.” So, it is clear that the two areas of personal freedom that must be protected from state regulation are economic and civil. Hence the answer is economic, civil.
8 Answer: libertarianism
Question type: Short Answer
Answer location: Paragraph 2, line 4- line 7
Answer explanation: The lines of Paragraph B says that “True individualists would undoubtedly argue that society’s attempts to regulate the individualist’s two most closely guarded spheres of personal liberty — economic and civil — will always represent individualism that is most keenly fought over battlegrounds. This strongly individualistic view of the role of society is often referred to as ‘libertarianism’. ” It states that the name is given to the view that society should not limit individuals’ rights to do as they wish is libertarianism. Hence the answer is libertarianism.
9 Answer: the state
Question type: Short Answer
Answer location: Paragraph 4
Answer explanation: The paragraph says that “In the 1980s, …Moreover, unified transport systems took on multiple identities when the networks of trains and buses, most of which had previously been owned by the state,… ” From this line, we can conclude that before the 1980s, the state owned most of the transport networks in Britain. Hence the answer is the state.
10 Answer: celebrity culture
Question type: Short Answer
Answer location: Paragraph 5, line 3 – line 5
Answer explanation: The provided lines says that “… probably the most striking evidence of the enduring strength of individualism, and just how deeply this 45 view of society has permeated all fields and forms of the contemporary arts, is the celebrity culture that surrounds us nowadays.” As it is clear from the statement that the clearest evidence of the continuing importance of individualism in society is celebrity culture, the answer is celebrity culture.
11 Answer: individual voice
Question type: Short Answer
Answer location: Paragraph 6, line 1 – line 3
Answer explanation: The given line says that “Pause to reflect for a moment, and try to think of one truly 55 great film, play, or popular song that could ever have achieved such universal acclaim without an individual voice at its narrative core.” This statement points out that a feature that a film or song should have to make it popular is individual voice. Hence the answer is individual voice.
12 Answer: D
Question type: Multiple Choice Questions
Answer location: Paragraph 3, line 1 – line 3
Answer explanation: The following lines from Paragraph 3 says that “An intriguing characteristic of those professing to be libertarians is that they can happily disagree, equally vehemently, with a government policy on, say, education, from either a distinctly ‘left’ or a distinctly ‘right’ libertarian perspective.” From this reference, we can conclude that libertarians, people with strongly individualistic views, have different views on the role of the government in education. Hence the answer is D.
13 Answer: C
Question type: Multiple Choice
Answer location: Paragraph 5, line 3- line 4
Answer explanation: The specified lines state that “ …the enduring strength of individualism, and just how deeply this view of society has permeated all fields and forms of the contemporary arts…”. It means that the strength of individualism is reflected in many aspects of contemporary politics, culture and every other aspect of the society. Hence the answer is C.
Practice IELTS Reading based on question types
![ielts logo](/v3/images/homepage/desktop/ielts_material_logo.png)
![ielts img](/v3/images/article/cta-assets/cta-2-img-mob.webp)
Start Preparing for IELTS: Get Your 10-Day Study Plan Today!
Explore other Reading Articles
![British Architecture - IELTS Reading Answers](https://ieltsmaterial-content.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/blogContent/blogContent/ielts/blog/banner-images//ielts_british-architecture-ielts-reading-answer_1725527264.webp)
Janice Thompson
![The Evolution of Language IELTS Reading Answers](https://ieltsmaterial.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/8-4.jpg)
Janice Thompson
![Bondi beach IELTS reading answers](https://ieltsmaterial.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/3-20.jpg)
Janice Thompson
Recent Articles
![IELTS Reading Note Completion with Tips & Practice Tests](https://ieltsmaterial-content.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/blogContent/blogContent/ielts/blog/banner-images//ielts_ielts-reading-note-completion_1723639723.webp)
Kasturika Samanta
![IELTS Reading Topics and Examples of Question Types](https://ieltsmaterial-content.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/blogContent/blogContent/ielts/blog/banner-images//ielts_ielts-reading-topics_1723096220.webp)
Kasturika Samanta
Post your Comments