CRACK RC with ECLECTIC READING

The concept of Eclectic Reading:

Eclectic Reading refers to the habit of reading from diverse genres. Such a person has a wide range of
subject knowledge. It doesn't make the person a subject expert on all the genres. One person can have
mastery over limited number of genres. However, a wide range of knowledge base makes one develop an
effective and wholesome personality, the trait every top B-School wants its students to display.

The main genres which have contributed to CAT and NON-CAT reading comprehension passages are:
Business and Economics, Political Theory, Current Affairs, Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, Science
and Technology, Environmental studies, Cultural Studies, Social Science (History, Geography, Politics),
Arts and Humanities, Current Affairs/Trend, Reviews, Abstract or inter-disciplinary subjects and so on...

The list is not, by any mean, exhaustive.

However, let's take a look at the CAT 2016 passages. This is a memory based recreation. There were five
passages. The sources of the passage were:
Passage 1 (6 questions) - https://aeon.co/essays (Genre- Anthropology)
Passage 2 (3 questions) - http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate (Genre- Current Trend / Feminism)
Passage 3 (3 questions) - http://theconversation.com (Genre-Environmental Studies)
Passage 4 (6 questions) - http://cobap.org/book-review-rebirth-education (Reviews / Business and
Economics)
Passage 5 (6 questions) - http://www.wsj.com/articles (Genre - Cultural Studies)
One problem with identifying genres is the blurred or overlapping boundaries of the scopes of different
subjects. No subject is an island.
The passage on Environmental studies can also be called a passage on Eco-tourism. A passage on
feminism by default belongs to the arena of Politics. However Cultural Studies and Current Affairs too can
stake a claim. Hence, one must not be rigid about defining the boundaries of any passage.

One has to do just one thing: CULTIVATE A DIVERSE READING HABIT

How to develop an eclectic reading habit:

For the sake of convenience, let's divide the genres into two categories.
1. Academic subjects
2. Non-academic topics
ACADEMIC SUBJECTS:
Genres that belong to this category are:
I. Business and Economics
It's arguably the most important area for an MBA aspirant. You will anyway read it in the B-school. Why
not start now?
The way to tackle this genre is to:

Learn 50 important terms in Economics. Refer to any glossary of Economic terms found online. Our
Eclectic Reading sheet is helpful too.
Understand the basic concepts of Economics i.e. the concepts covered in the intermediate level
Go through the budget analysis

Sources to read passages related to Business and Economics:

Economic and Political Weekly (EPW)

The Economist
 Articles related to Economics in any of the leading newspapers (The New York Times, The Guardian, The
Hindu, The Atlantic etc.)
http://www.businessinsider.com/these-are-the-20-economics-papers-that-you-must-read-2012-9?IR=T (At
least read the summary of the papers)
https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-economics-and-business/ (Read at least 5 articles to get an
idea of the jargons)

2. Political Theory
This is one area that we can't or shouldn't ignore. Our opinions or attitude is shaped by our understanding
of the political theories governing our times.
The way to tackle this genre is to:

Refer to any glossary found online. Our Eclectic Reading sheet on the topic is also very helpful.
Every era is defined by a core set of political beliefs. Try to go through the concepts of communism,
humanism, and feminism. These are the theories that dominate our era.
Go through the different types of governments found in the world. What defines democracy? How does
autocracy work?

Sources to read passages related to Political Theory:

Economic and Political Weekly (EPW)

http://journals.sagepub.com/home/ptx (Though one needs to subscribe to this journal, one can simply
google a few free articles. Read at least 5 to 6 articles)
https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/vocabulary-political-words/
The Wall Street Journal and its eco-political analysis section
The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
https://www.questia.com/library/politics-and-government/political-science/political-theory

3. Philosophy
It is the subject that everyone wants to read but no one ever does. Hence, this proves to be the Waterloo for
every student. Called the Mother of All Sciences, Philosophy can invade the arena of any other subject.
Hence, we can get passages on Political Philosophy, Linguistic Philosophy, and Religious Philosophy etc.
To get an experience of the havoc Philosophy can wreak in CAT, kindly solve the CAT 2006 passages.
You will then understand the concept of 'baptism by fire'.
You can never 'tackle' Philosophy. However, you are most welcome to the world of 'thoughts and reason'.
Here are a few tips:

Read Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder. It covers the names and theories of almost all major
philosophers. If you can't read the complete book, read its summary.
Go through our Eclectic Reading Sheet on Philosophy
Identify five schools of thought in Philosophy. Read at least two articles on each school.

Suggested Reading:

http://global.oup.com/us/companion.websites/9780199812998/studentresources/pdf/perry_glossary.pdf
Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder / The story of Philosophy by Will Durant
http://www.philosophy.org/ (Read articles from here)
https://philosophynow.org/selection (It gives free articles)
 Make sure that you read about THE Friedrich Nietzsche and Jacques Derrida. If you can understand these
two, you will not only crack RC but also get rid of any social life as everyone will maintain a respectable
distance from your overbearing intellect J

Jokes aside, Philosophy is the subject behind the Verbal Logic section.

4. Psychology
It is a subject that most of us can relate to. It helps us understand ourselves by exposing our innermost
beliefs. Passages on Psychology are normally interesting to read.
Ways to get started:

Read 20 -30 terms of Psychology. Understand the concept of the conscious, the subconscious, and the
unconscious.
Read Freud. He has shaped the evolution of modern Psychology.
Read on NLP (Neuro-linguistic programming). Even all those 'self-help' books help too.

Suggested reading:

http://www.psyarticles.com/
https://www.nytimes.com/topic/subject/psychology-and-psychologists?mcubz=0
http://tetw.org/Psychology
The Road less traveled by M. Scott Peck. Read the chapter on Love.
http://steveandreas.com/articles.html

5. Sociology
It is an interesting subject. It deals with topics that we all know about. However, Sociology helps us
understand our society better. It also makes us unravel the hidden mechanisms behind the social rules we
all have taken for granted. It is closely associated with Anthropology and Philosophy. It is also THE
subject for understanding marriage and divorce!!!
Ways to develop a basic understanding of Sociology:

Read at least 20-25 terms of Sociology. Familiarize yourself with at least 15 terms of Anthropology.
Read on issues related to gender identity, demographic trends, terrorism, and immigration.
Most human rights issue fall under the purview of this topic. Hence all the current affairs articles refer to
Sociology. Cultural Studies is a subset of this subject.

Suggested Reading:

https://www.sociologicalscience.com/category/articles/
http://journals.sagepub.com/home/ics
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/topic/sociology
https://www.questia.com/library/sociology-and-anthropology/cultures-and-ethnic-groups/cultural-studies
http://www.humanrights.com/what-are-human-rights/universal-declaration-of-human-rights/articles-01-
10.html

6. History and Geography

Luckily, most of us have a basic knowledge of this subject. Hence, passages on these topics don't appear
impossible to solve.
Suggested reading to strengthen our familiarity with Social Sciences:
 https://www.journals.elsevier.com/social-science-research/most-downloaded-articles
Articles on India's freedom struggle, ancient Indian civilization, and the different kings/dynasties. Try to
read at least 2 articles on each of these topics.
https://www.theguardian.com/education/socialsciences
A short history of nearly everything by Bill Bryson. This book is priceless.
A people's history of the world by Chris Harman. It's another gem.

7. SCIENCE
It should not be a difficult to handle subject. All of us have read Science. We just need to remember the
following:

Those failed (mercifully) attempts at weird experiments trying to blow ourselves up in the Chemistry lab
That Physics class on Light and Velocity that made us wonder if we could actually create "The cloak of
invisibility''
The class on Newton's laws and Einstein's E=MC^2 which turned us into prospective creators of The Time
Machine
Those awkward Biology classes which resulted in a lot of giggles and a few detentions
The class on Astrophysics which led us into "the UFO'' phase

Sources which will help us relive our glorious school days:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/news/space_time/astrophysics
http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.list/tagNo/4/tags/cell--amp--molecular-biology
https://learningenglish.voanews.com/z/954
The science page of any leading newspaper
http://tetw.org/Science_and_Technology

NON ACADEMIC TOPICS:

Genres that belong to this category are Current Affairs/Trend, Technology or the latest trends in
technology, Environmental studies, Cultural Studies, Arts and Humanities, Reviews, and Abstract essays.
If you are familiar with the academic topics, you shouldn't face any problem in these types of passages.
Suggested Reading list:

Any magazine like The Frontline, The Week, or The Economist

Try articles on websites like Nautilus, Aeon.org, and The wall street journal
Read the free blogs of The New York Times, The Guardian, The New Yorker, The Speaking Tree etc.
At least two editorials a day. Refer to the above mentioned newspapers
Blogs of some famous personalities. Bachi Karkaria and Jug Suraiya are two fantastic writers. They will
help you tackle those abstract or funny passages.
www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/top-10-most-inspirational-bloggers-the-world.html
TedTalk related articles
Read articles written by Chimamanda Adichie
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2008/mar/09/blogs
Articles by Flavia Agnes, JK Rowling, or Neil Gaiman

As we enter the "slog overs" of CAT we need to remember a few things:

This is a lengthy list. However, you are not supposed to read all the blogs or articles. Just try to read 5
random blogs from each site mentioned.
 Don't try to understand everything. That's humanly impossible, unless you are Tyrion Lannister.
Read at least 5 book reviews and 5 movie reviews. Roger Ebert was an influential movie reviewer. His
website is really helpful. Oprah Winfrey's book club is legendary.
CAT normally gives passages which are neutral and thought provoking. Hence, understanding the motive
of the author is more important than understanding each and every word. Please refrain from cramming up
facts mentioned in the passage.

All the best for CAT. May the force be with you!
Bharati
Along with Team CL