Read the following lines and answer the question that follows by choosing the correct option :
I felt myself dwarfed standing next to the majestic Emperor Asoka. Asoka led two lives, one as a ruthless conqueror and the other as a compassionate ruler. The man I stood beside was the one who had just returned from conquest. But victory had been obtained at a heavy cost: the battle of Kalinga claimed the lives of at least 300,000 people and an equal number were wounded. I saw everyone looking at Asoka who fell on his knees and removed his armour and crown. His face was pale, reflecting the death surrounding him. He looked at the sky. He saw the bright cool moon shining and God's grace pouring down on mother earth. And he looked down at the horror he had created, making blood flow everywhere. In that moment of beauty and horror - the silver moonlight and the suffering and pain on the ground, when Nature itself seemed to speak out against what he had wrought, Ahimsa Dharma was born. Emperor Asoka embraced God's command to propagate love for human beings through this doctrine.
When he says, "I felt myself dwarfed standing next to the majestic Emperor Asoka", the author:
(A) is talking about the difference in height.
(B) is trying to convey the ruthless nature of Asoka and thus felt terrified.
(C) is trying to convey how great a King Asoka was.
(D) does not like King Asoka.
(E) is pointing out the duality in King Asoka's life.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below :
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → (C) Only
(A) is talking about the difference in height — False.
- Wrong meaning: to feel dwarfed is to feel small and unimportant beside someone great.
- It is not about actual height.
(B) is trying to convey the ruthless nature of Asoka and thus felt terrified — False.
- Contradicted: the author calls Asoka "majestic".
- The line speaks of awe, not fear.
(C) is trying to convey how great a King Asoka was — True.
- Feeling dwarfed beside "the majestic Emperor Asoka" shows how great the author found him.
(D) does not like King Asoka — False.
- Contradicted: nothing in the line shows dislike.
- "Majestic" is a word of admiration.
(E) is pointing out the duality in King Asoka's life — False.
- Wrong part of the passage: the two lives of Asoka are described in the next sentence.
- The quoted line itself speaks only of his greatness.