SSC CGL 2025 Tier-I · 12 September 2025, Shift 1 · English Comprehension · Question 17 of 100

Text as printed on a candidate's response sheet for this shift; answer per SSC's tentative key as marked on that sheet. Solution last reviewed 11 September 2026.

Read the following passage and answer the questions based on the passage:
While education and wisdom are often conflated in colloquial discourse, a discerning mind perceives a fundamental divergence between the two. Education is the formal acquisition of knowledge, often measured through degrees, academic accolades, and proficiency in structured disciplines. It is delivered through systematic curricula, institutionalized assessment, and theoretical frameworks. However, wisdom transcends this rigidity; it is the judicious application of knowledge to real-life contexts, enriched by experience, introspection, and emotional intelligence. An individual may be extensively educated yet remain bereft of wisdom if they lack the discernment to apply their learning ethically and effectively. Conversely, many wise individuals—farmers, artisans, elders—may not possess formal education, but their decisions exhibit prudence and sagacity cultivated through lived realities. Thus, education equips the mind, but wisdom enriches the soul. In an era dominated by information overload and algorithmic thinking, the schism between the two has widened. Educational institutions often prioritize rote memorization and standardized testing over critical thinking and moral reasoning. Consequently, society produces individuals proficient in problem-solving but deficient in decision-making that requires empathy, patience, or foresight. Wisdom, being innately human, cannot be downloaded or fast-tracked; it is earned through trial, failure, reflection, and a nuanced understanding of human nature. Furthermore, while education is temporally bounded—ending with formal schooling or academic milestones—wisdom is a lifelong pursuit. It does not boast certificates but manifests in humility, ethical consistency, and the ability to navigate ambiguity with grace. Ultimately, the highest form of intelligence lies not merely in knowing what is right, but in consistently choosing to do it, especially when it is inconvenient.

Who, according to the author, can be wise despite lacking formal education?

(a)Scientists
(b)School children
(c)Elders and artisans
(d)Technocrats

Answer

Why

Correct — C. The passage names them: "many wise individuals—farmers, artisans, elders—may not possess formal education, but their decisions exhibit prudence and sagacity cultivated through lived realities."

Artisans and elders are two of the three groups in that list, so option (c) is lifted straight from the text.

Why the others are wrong

(a)
Scientists — Scientists are not in the list. The passage's examples of people who are wise without formal education are farmers, artisans and elders.
(b)
School children — School children are inside formal education, the very thing these wise people are said to lack. They are not named in the list either.
(d)
Technocrats — Technocrats are never mentioned. Nothing in the passage presents them as wise without schooling; its examples are farmers, artisans and elders.

Concept

A detail question — who, according to the author — is answered by finding the sentence that names the group, not by judging who seems wise.

The signpost is Conversely. The sentence before it describes an educated person who lacks wisdom; Conversely brings in the reverse case, the wise person without schooling, and names "farmers, artisans, elders".

The keyed option names two of the passage's three groups and leaves out farmers. That is fine: nothing in it goes beyond what the passage says.

Key facts

The passage's list of the wise without formal education: "farmers, artisans, elders".
Their wisdom is "cultivated through lived realities".
Conversely introduces the reverse of the case just described.

Study next

Signpost words that flip a case: conversely, on the contrary, by contrastDetail questions where the keyed option is a subset of a list in the passageEliminating options the passage never mentions

Common traps

Choosing a group that sounds wise in general, such as scientists, without checking the passage's list
Rejecting the key because it names only two of the three groups

The same passage is examined at English Q.15 (how wisdom is acquired) and Q.16 (what wisdom enriches the soul means). Here the answer is a phrase lifted from one sentence.

Related PYQs

No directly related past PYQ was found.

Read the following passage and answer the questions based on the passage:
While education and wisdom are often conflated in colloquial discourse, a discerning mind perceives a fundamental divergence between the two. Education is the formal acquisition of knowledge, often measured through degrees, academic accolades, and proficiency in structured disciplines. It is delivered through systematic curricula, institutionalized assessment, and theoretical frameworks. However, wisdom transcends this rigidity; it is the judicious application of knowledge to real-life contexts, enriched by experience, introspection, and emotional intelligence. An individual may be extensively educated yet remain bereft of wisdom if they lack the discernment to apply their learning ethically and effectively. Conversely, many wise individuals—farmers, artisans, elders—may not possess formal education, but their decisions exhibit prudence and sagacity cultivated through lived realities. Thus, education equips the mind, but wisdom enriches the soul. In an era dominated by information overload and algorithmic thinking, the schism between the two has widened. Educational institutions often prioritize rote memorization and standardized testing over critical thinking and moral reasoning. Consequently, society produces individuals proficient in problem-solving but deficient in decision-making that requires empathy, patience, or foresight. Wisdom, being innately human, cannot be downloaded or fast-tracked; it is earned through trial, failure, reflection, and a nuanced understanding of human nature. Furthermore, while education is temporally bounded—ending with formal schooling or academic milestones—wisdom is a lifelong pursuit. It does not boast certificates but manifests in humility, ethical consistency, and the ability to navigate ambiguity with grace. Ultimately, the highest form of intelligence lies not merely in knowing what is right, but in consistently choosing to do it, especially when it is inconvenient.