‘The Making of a Global World’ MCQs are given here with answers to help students prepare MCQs type of questions for the CBSE Class 10 History exams. Click here for more study materials on class 10 History.
Q. Read the extract and answer the questions given below:
It was not enough merely to clear lands for agriculture. Railways were needed to link the agricultural regions to the ports. New harbours had to be built and old ones expanded to ship the new cargo. People had to settle on the lands to bring them under cultivation. This meant building homes and settlements. All these activities in turn required capital and labour. Capital flowed from financial centres such as London. The demand for labour in places where labour was in short supply – as in America and Australia – led to more migration. (NCERT Textbook Page 58)
1. Why was there a need to clear lands?
A. To fulfil the high demand for foodgrains
B. To make new harbours
C. To make new ports
D. To build financial centres
2. Which of the following steps was taken to transport food grains to the ports for shipping?
A. New railway tracks laid
B. Old harbours repaired
C. New harbours built
D. Demand for labour increased
3. Which among the following steps was taken to bring more land under cultivation?
A. New harbours were built
B. Railways were built
C. More crops were produced
D. Homes and settlements were built
Answers:
1. A. To fulfil the high demand for foodgrains
In the late 18th century, the population in Britain grew at a very fast rate. Due to the high population, the demand for food grains went up. To fulfil the need for food grains, the land was cleared for agriculture.
2. A. New railway tracks laid
Railways were needed to transport food grains to the ports for shipping. So new railway tracks were laid to link agricultural regions to the ports.
3. Homes and settlements were built
People had to settle on the lands to bring them under cultivation. So, homes and settlements for farmers were built to bring more land under cultivation.
Q. The image depicts the transportation of meat and other perishable items on a ship. Which among the following methods was used in the 19th century to transport perishable items over long distances?
Select the correct answer.
A. Smoking
B. Freezing
C. Canning
D. Salting
Answer:
B. Freezing
Many animals fell sick, lost weight and were deemed unfit for consumption by the time they reached Europe. The problem was solved with the introduction of refrigerated ships, which controlled the temperature within, enabling the transport of perishable items over long distances.
Q. Read the extract and answer the questions given below:
Many years later, Dorothea Lange, the photographer who shot this picture, recollected the moment of her encounter with the hungry mother:
‘I saw and approached the hungry and desperate mother, as if drawn by a magnet … I did not ask her name or her history. She told me her age, that she was thirty-two. She said that they (i.e., she and her seven children) had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields, and birds that the children killed … There she sat … with her children huddled around her, and seemed to know that my pictures might help her, and so she helped me …’
From: Popular Photography, February 1960. (NCERT Textbook Page 71)
1. Why did the hungry mother let Dorothea Lange click her picture?
A. To become popular
B. To highlight the plight of the poor
C. To popularise migrant worker camp
D. To earn some money
2. What does the picture of the migrant mother represent?
A. Symbolises migration
B. Symbolises hunger and poverty
C. Symbolises family ties
D. Symbolises good photography skills
3. How did the photograph of the migrant mother become powerful?
A. It won sympathy for the migrants.
B. It was highly-priced.
C. It won photography awards.
D. It attracted political attention towards depression.
Answers:
1. B. To highlight the plight of the poor
In 1936, the hungry mother allowed Dorothea Lange to photograph her family because she thought it might help her and the plight of the working poor.
2. D. Symbolises hunger and poverty
The picture is about a hungry mother. The picture symbolises hunger, poverty and hopelessness.
3. C. It won the sympathy for the migrants.
The photograph of the migrant mother was very powerful. It made people sympathetic for the migrants.
Q. Why was economic development given importance by nationalist leaders of newly independent colonies of Asia and Africa?
A. Capitalist ideology overshadowed the colonies.
B. Independent colonies had to compete with Western countries.
C. Society was burdened with poverty.
D. Independent colonies had to improve relations with America and Europe.
Answer:
C. Society was burdened with poverty.
Years of colonial rule led to the drain of economic and natural resources from the colonies, leaving them poor and lacking in resources. When these colonies in Asia and Africa became independent, a major challenge before them was economic development, specifically, agricultural and industrial development. So, the newly independent colonies gave importance to economic development.
Q. What was the reason behind the introduction of floating exchange rates in the world?
A. Inability of the dollar to maintain its value in relation to gold
B. Rapid growth of developing countries in the world
C. Rise of communism
D. Easy trade between Europe and America
Answer:
A. Inability of the dollar to maintain its value in relation to gold
The US dollar was no longer the world’s principal currency and failed to maintain its value in relation to gold. This eventually led to the fall of the system of fixed exchange rates and the introduction of a system of floating exchange rates.
Q. Read the extract and answer the questions given below:
Sir Henry Morton Stanley in Central Africa
Stanley was a journalist and explorer sent by the New York Herald to find Livingston,a missionary and explorer who had been in Africa for several years. Like other European and American explorers of the time, Stanley went with arms, mobilised local hunters, warriors and labourers to help him, fought with local tribes, investigated African terrains, and mapped different regions. These explorations helped the conquest of Africa. Geographical explorations were not driven by an innocent search for scientific information. They were directly linked to imperial projects. (NCERT Textbook Page 61)
1. Who had sent Sir Henry Morton Stanley to find Livingston?
A. New York Herald
B. European missionaries
C. Local people
D. American explorers
2. Why was Henry Morton Stanley sent to find Livingston?
A. He had been in Africa for several years.
B. He could mobilise local hunters.
C. He was a missionary.
D. He was an expert explorer.
3. Which of the following were the real benefits of the explorations of Sir Henry Morton Stanley?
A. Mobilised local hunters
B. Helped in the conquest of Africa
C. Provided tourism information
D. Mapping of different regions
Answers:
1. A. New York Herald
Stanley was a journalist and explorer sent by the New York Herald to find Livingston.
2. A. He had been in Africa for several years.
Stanley was a journalist and explorer sent by the New York Herald to find Livingston, a missionary and explorer who had been in Africa for several years.
3. B. Helped in the conquest of Africa
Sir Stanley went with arms, mobilised local hunters, warriors and labourers to help him, fought with local tribes, investigated African terrains and mapped different regions. These explorations helped the conquest of Africa.
Q. Which among the following factors explain the straight borders of some African countries?
A. Rivalry between African tribal chiefs
B. Division of natural resources between African countries
C. Easy transport of goods from one region to another
D. European powers wanting to avoid disputes
Answer:
D. European powers wanting to avoid disputes
European powers like England, Germany, France were attracted to the mineral resources and vast lands of Africa and wanted to conquer them. To avoid disputes, they drew the borders to demarcate their territories.
Q. Read the extract and answer the questions given below:
The First World War, as you know, was fought between two power blocs. On the one side were the Allies – Britain, France and Russia (later joined by the US); and on the opposite side were the Central Powers – Germany, Austria-Hungary and Ottoman Turkey. When the war began in August 1914, many governments thought it would be over by Christmas. It lasted more than four years. The First World War was a war like no other before. The fighting involved the world’s leading industrial nations which now harnessed the vast powers of modern industry to inflict the greatest possible destruction on their enemies. (NCERT Textbook Page 68)
1. Where was the First World War fought?
A. Europe
B. Asia
C. North America
D. Africa
2. Which of the following is true about the First World War?
A. Three power blocs fought the war.
B. Britain, Russia and France were allied powers.
C. Leading agricultural goods-producing nations participated.
D. The period of the war was 1914–20.
3. Why was the First World War a war like no other before?
A. Only Europe was affected by the war.
B. Biological weapons were used on a massive scale.
C. US was a participant in the war.
D. The scale of death and destruction was large.
Answers:
1. A. Europe
The First World War was mainly fought in Europe, but its impact was felt around the world.
2. B. Britain, Russia and France were allied powers.
The two power blocs that fought the war were the Allies comprising Britain, France and Russia; and the Central Powers comprising Germany, Austria-Hungry and Ottoman Turkey.
3. D. The scale of death and destruction was large.
In the First World War, 9 million people died and 20 million were injured. The scale of death and destruction was very large due to the use of industrial arms.
Q. Which among the following factors can be considered as a positive outcome of the First World War?
A. Development of trade between Europe and Asia
B. Increase in employment rate in Britain
C. Women began working outside the home
D. Economic prosperity of Britain
Answer:
C. Women began working outside the home
One of the positive outcomes of the First World War was reorganisation of entire society. As men went to fight the war, women took up the jobs that were earlier performed by men.
Q. Which among the following factors shaped post-World War II reconstruction?
A. Establishment of United Nations
B. Rise of Communism in China
C. Emergence of USA as a dominant power
D. Dominance of Britain
Answer:
C. Emergence of USA as a dominant power
After World War II, USA emerged as a major political, military and economic superpower. It took a lead in establishing economic institutions that aimed at maintaining economic stability all over the world.
Q. Which among the following factors is true with respect to IMF?
A. Deals with external surpluses
B. Veto power over key decisions with UK
C. Established by Global Economic Symposium
D. Commenced financial operations in 1945
Answer:
A. Deals with external surpluses
IMF (International Monetary Fund) was established to deal with external surpluses and deficits of member countries. Britain had surplus with India that was used to balance trade deficit with other countries.
Q. Which among the following aspects is true with respect to indentured labour migration from India?
A. Indentured labourers worked in plantation and railway construction projects.
B. Most of the workers came from northeastern states.
C. The labourers were hired permanently.
D. Important destinations for indentured migrants were Brazil, Argentina and Chile
Answer:
A. Indentured labourers worked in plantation and railway construction projects.
Indentured labourers worked on plantations, road and railway construction projects and mines around the world.
Q. Indentured labourers were given numbers and their names did not matter to the employers. How did it impact the indentured labourers?
A. Usage of similar-sounding names
B. Adoption of new culture
C. Loss of identity and respect
D. Superiority complex
Answer:
C. Loss of identity and respect
The labourer had to work in harsh conditions and was paid a meagre amount by the employer. They were not treated as human beings but as a commodity and were numbered. This led to the loss of identity as well as dignity.
Q. Slaves captured from Africa grew cotton and sugar in American plantations for European markets. Why were African slaves preferred for plantations in America?
A. Cheap and had endurance to hard labour
B. Eager to permanently settle down in America
C. Friendly trade relation between Europe and Africa
D. Expert in farming
Answer:
A. Cheap and had endurance to hard labour
African slaves were an inexpensive source of labour. They could endure hard labour as well as extreme climate.
