QUESTION 6(c)
GS4
10 marks
“A system of morality which is based on relative emotional values is a mere illusion, a thoroughly vulgar conception which has nothing sound in it and nothing true.” — Socrates. What does this quotation mean to you?
WRITE IN
7 min
150 words
What the examiner wants
Explain what Socrates' rejection of morality based on feelings means to you.
What does it mean to youAnswer exactly what the question asks.
Demand-wise check
- 1Meaning: morality must rest on reason and universal truth, not changing emotions≈30 words
- 2Why: emotions are subjective and inconsistent; they can justify prejudice≈30 words
- 3Counter-view: emotions like compassion guide moral action (Hume)≈30 words
- 4Balance: reason checks emotion; both needed for civil servants≈30 words
Open in about 20 words and close in about 20.
Answer plan
MeaningReasonsCounter-viewPersonal viewConclusion
Where marks usually go
- No counter-view, e.g. Hume's view that compassion and sentiment drive moral action
- No example, e.g. mob anger justifying lynching versus reasoned rule of law
Draw this
- Scale: reason vs emotion
Value addition
- ThinkerSocrates: 'Virtue is knowledge' — wrongdoing comes from ignorance of the good.Plato's dialogues
- ThinkerHume: 'Reason is, and ought only to be the slave of the passions.'.David Hume, A Treatise of Human Nature
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 23 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Vidushi Singh · AIR 13 · Page 5 ↗Same syllabus reference
- G Sanjana · AIR 55 · Page 3 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 3 ↗Same syllabus reference
Links open original public sources. MainsBuddy does not host these answer sheets.
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 7 minutes, then get it checked.