NIOS Class 12 History Chapter 22 The World in 1900: The Nineteenth Century Legacy

NIOS Class 12 History Chapter 22 The World in 1900: The Nineteenth Century Legacy, Solutions to each chapter is provided in the list so that you can easily browse throughout different chapters NIOS Class 12 History Chapter 22 The World in 1900: The Nineteenth Century Legacy and select need one. NIOS Class 12 History Chapter 22 The World in 1900: The Nineteenth Century Legacy Question Answers Download PDF. NIOS Study Material of Class 12 History Notes Paper 315.

NIOS Class 12 History Chapter 22 The World in 1900: The Nineteenth Century Legacy

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Also, you can read the NIOS book online in these sections Solutions by Expert Teachers as per National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) Book guidelines. These solutions are part of NIOS All Subject Solutions. Here we have given NIOS Class 12 History Chapter 22 The World in 1900: The Nineteenth Century Legacy, NIOS Senior Secondary Course History Solutions for All Chapter, You can practice these here.

The World in 1900: The Nineteenth Century Legacy

Chapter: 22

HISTORY

TEXT BOOK QUESTIONS AND THEIR ANSWERS

INTEXT QUESTIONS 22.1

Q. 1. What proportion of the human populations outside of Europe were rural in 1900?

Ans: 75-95%.

Q. 2. Were most of the world’s super- cities (>10,000 people) in 1900 in Europe or outside of it?

Ans: Inside of Europe.

Q. 3. Why was there a significant literacy-gap’  between urban centres and rural areas by 1900?

Ans: Urban areas were sites of industrial production and commercial distribution. Literacy was most useful or relevant in such areas and less useful in rural areas.

Q. 4. What were indications of high literacy in the world of 1900?

Ans: High levels of primary school attendance and large circulation of news- papers.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 22.2

Q. 1. Which countries in 1900 were shifting towards use of fossil fuels?

Ans: Britain, France, Germany, U.S. were some of the fossil fuels dependent countries of 1900. 

Q. 2. Where were such fuel supplies located in 1900?

Ans: Many rich supplies of fossil fuels were located outside of Europe and the U.S. in 1900.

Q. 3. Did international trade benefit the colonies of the great powers in 1900? 

Ans: Colonies suffered from unequal trade. They produced mainly low-cost food and raw materials for the industrialising countries.

Q. 4. While the total supply of food in the world grew rapidly during the last part of the nineteenth century, many people lost food security. Why?

Ans: Large number of people produced food for others distant from them and consumed larger quantities of goods produced by others.

Q. 5. How was language use and access to education related to colonial rule?

Ans: Colonial rulers used language and education to create new social differences and retard growth of national consciousness.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 22.3

Q. 1. What were the ‘natural rights’ recognized by liberals?

Ans: Resistance to oppression, private property, choice of religion, freedom of speech and expression, participation in government.

Q. 2. Why were liberals in principle opposed to government regulation of economic activity?

Ans: Liberals believed that individuals pursuing self-interest in economic activity would serve the good of all better than a powerful regulating authority ‘government’.

Q. 3. Describe the shifting class argument of the later 19th century with regard to liberalism and conservatism.

Ans: Early in the 1800s conservatives were mostly members of the land owning classes or their dependents while liberals were often active in manufacturing and commerce. By 1900, members of the traditional land-owning class had combined with business people to support liberalism. Meanwhile, some traditional ‘liberals’ came to support conservatism.

Q. 4. Explain the Marxist conception of equality and Marxists’ understanding of basis of inequality.

Ans: Marxists believed human inequality was due to access or lack of access to the means of production. By eliminating private property and putting resources under (national) state control, people would become really equal.

Q. 5. Give one example of a country in 1900 where Marxists were very successful in mobilizing working class people.

Ans: Germany, where the Social Democratic Workers Party won most votes from the working classes.

Q. 6. Socialists (Marxists) are the most consistent opponents of imperialism. Why?

Ans: Socialists believed that the division of society between capitalists and proletarians was occurring on a global scale. Therefore, proletarians of all countries/colonies should be interested in struggles against oppressive capitalists everywhere.

TERMINAL EXERCISE

Q. 1. In what ways did industrialization alter ancient pattern of human existence?

Ans: (i) Industrialization altered ancient pattern of human existence. Most of the people all over the world were settled agriculturists in 1900, which cultivated crops and animals and lived in villages. In many parts of the world people existed as nomads, grazing herds of animals, and many were tribal hunter- gatherers.

(ii) Cities had existed since ancient times in many parts of the world, but they were limited in size and population.”

(iii) However, capitalist industrialization led to urbanisation and faster growth of population in cities. By 1900 Europe had a larger concentration of cities than any other region in the world; more than 100 cities had a population of at least 1,00,000 people, and there were six European cities with about 10,00,000 inhabitants.

(iv) Europe and America had the largest cities, whereas in Asia and Africa large expanses of territory contained few cities and many stagnated and declined compared to hundreds of years earlier.

(v) In general human populations of Asia, Africa and South America in 1900 were 75-95% rural, or living in villages and dependent on agriculture. Industrializing Europe, or Americas and Australia where people of European origin had settled, either already had or were close to having 50% urban population, i.e., living in towns and cities..

(vi) Industrialization led to the creation of capitalist classes and salaried middle classes which included teachers, doctors, engineers, clerks etc. Besides there were a large number of factory workers who depended for their livelihood on their labour for which they got wages.

(vii) Another characteristic of industrialization was that production and sharing of knowledge in society became more closely connected than before with urban life. By 1900 most industrial societies required that both boys and girls receive basic education, at least upto the age of thirteen or fourteen. There arose a knowledge and cultural gap between urban and rural people. As a whole, adult literacy in some western societies by 1900 was between 60% and 90%, while it was much less in non-western societies.

Q. 2. How did industrialization change patterns of global production and trade? 

Ans: (i) Industrialization greatly changed the patterns of global production and trade. It altered the pattern of agriculture to shift its priorities towards the cash crops they might trade in. This pattern of production for export was greatly expanded during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. For example, Indian peasants produced opium that British entrepreneurs exported to China. Indian merchants too had a hand in this.

(ii) Both production and trade were geared to the interests of the ruling power. As a result,a larger number of people around the world came to produce things that they did not themselves consume, while they consumed things produced elsewhere by others.

Q. 3. How were liberalism and socialism opposed to one another, even though both sought to achieve human liberation?

Ans: (i) Liberals believe that individuals have some ‘natural rights’ including the right to resist oppression, accumulate property, freedom of religion, right to express their opinions freely and so on. They believed that governments and rulers must be made to respect these rights.

(ii) They thought formulation of public laws and constitutions were the best method of creating and enforcing these rights. These laws and constitutions were the best safeguard against arbitrary exercise of power by rulers and government machinery.

(iii) They also objected to state authorities dictating the religious beliefs of their people through national churches, as religion was a private matter.

(iv) With the growth of popular movements liberalism was forced to acknowledge the extension of political and citizenship rights to all members of society and not just the propertied classes. These included rights to form organisations and participate in elections.

(v) Liberalism is also connected with certain economic ideas. Liberals saw people as economic agents, as producers and consumers of goods and services. They saw these as important aspects of their personalities and self expression of individuals. But to them it was not the labourer but the profit seeking merchants, shopkeepers and manufacturers who were the heroes.

(vi) They also argued for free trade. So far economy the best government is that which governs least and leaves everything to the market operations.

(vii) By 1900 many liberals argued that government should intervene in a minimal fashion by introducing some welfare measures for the poorer sections of society-like education and health. But their basic ideas remain till today. They represented mainly the interests of propertied people.

(viii) The socialists represented the interests of the working people, and argued that in industrialist capitalist societies the old tyranny of the monarchy and the aristocracy had been replaced by that of the propertied capitalist bourgeoisie. Some earlier socialists, such as Louis Blanc and Robert Owen believed that co- operatives of producers would lead to more equal sharing of profits.

(ix) Karl Marx believed that workers would never be fairly rewarded under the capitalist system. This would happen only if all enterprises were commonly owned i.e., if the state owned them for the equal benefit of all.

(x) He said that in a communist society when all means of production were held in common and were not private property, each person will contribute according to his/her capacity and receive according to his/her needs. Social justice, therefore, required abolition of private property. Classes would also cease to exist in a society which was equal.

(xi) According to him the ultimate goal of the socialist movements was the establishment of such a society.

(xii) He also said that since the ruling classes would not cooperate in this, a revolution was necessary. There should be communist parties and strong and committed working class movements.

Multiple Choice Questions

Tick (✓) the correct answer. 

Q. 1. The study of human populations their rates of growth and shifting patterns of settlements, is called:

(a) archaeology.

(b) palaeontology. 

(c) demography. 

(d) anthropology.

Ans: (c) demography. 

Q. 2. What led to urbanisation and faster growth of population in cities?

(a) Socialist industrialization.

(b) Capitalist industrialization. 

(c) British industrialization.

(d) American industrialization.

Ans: (b) Capitalist industrialization. 

Q. 3. The process of industrialization began in western Europe after about:

(a) 1600

(b) 1700

(c) 1750

(d) 1800

Ans: (b) 1700

Q. 4. Capitalism means:

(a) accumulated wealth.

(b) accumulated property. 

(c) land acquisition by the government.

(d) both (a) and (b)

Ans: (d) both (a) and (b)

Q. 5. Capitalists were directly engaged in: 

(a) industrial production.

(b) trading.

(c) administration. 

(d) all of the above.

Ans: (d) all of the above.

Q. 6. The Asian city, which contained large members of businessmen, shopkeepers and other sections of middle classes and also labourers by 1900 was:

(a) Bombay. 

(b) Patna.

(c) Dakar.

(d) Paris.

Ans: (a) Bombay. 

Q. 7. Adult literacy in some western societies by 1900 was:

(a) between 60% and 90% 

(b) 80%

(c) 52%

(d) 37%

Ans: (a) between 60% and 90% 

Q. 8. Who of the following was largely a coal powered society in 1900?

(a) France.

(b) Germany.

(c) Britain.

(d) all of the above.

Ans: (d) all of the above.

Q.9. The British were engaged in oil in:

(a) Jharkhand.

(b) Pakistan. 

(c) Panama.

(d) Assam.

Ans: (d) Assam.

 Q. 10. Before 1900 Indonesia was a colony of:

(a) France.

(b) Britain.

(c) Holland.

(d) Japan.

Ans: (c) Holland.

Q. 11. Liberals believed that individuals have some:

(a) fundamental rights. 

(b) natural rights.

(c) natural duties.

(d) religious rights.

Ans: (b) natural rights.

Q. 12. Liberals saw people as:

(a) economic agents.

(b) producers.

(c) consumers of goods and services.

(d) All of the above.

Ans: (d) All of the above.

Q. 13. Conservatives came mainly from:

(a) land owning sections of society.

(b) capitalists society.

(c) affluents in rural areas. 

(d) urban affluents.

Ans: (a) land owning sections of society.

Q. 14. For whom the old social order was the best defence against the chaos of the modern world? 

(a) capitalists.

(b) conservatives.

(c) communists.

(d) None of the above.

Ans: (b) conservatives.

Q. 15. The socialists represented the interests of the:

(a) capitalists. 

(b) conservatives.

(c) working people. 

(d) industrialists.

Ans: (c) working people. 

Q. 16. The natural right recognized by liberals was:

(a) resistance to oppression.

(b) private property.

(c) freedom of speech.

(d) all of the above.

Ans: (d) all of the above.