Unlock Elite Access: Level Up Your Preparation with Exclusive Content

Sociology Optional PYQ Solutions · Model answer

“Religion is said to have emancipated human beings on the one hand but it also alienates them on the other.” Bring out the paradoxical functions religion plays in a modern secular society.

  • UPSC 1990
  • Religion and Society

The statement captures a lasting tension in the sociology of religion. Karl Marx, following Ludwig Feuerbach, saw religion as alienation: human powers projected onto God and then worshipped as alien. Yet religion has also inspired freedom, dignity and resistance. In a modern secular society, where religion is differentiated from the state and becomes a matter…

You are reading the opening of the model answer. The full answer is part of Sociology Optional PYQ Solutions.

What the full answer covers

  • Religion as emancipation
  • Religion as alienation
  • Why the paradox sharpens in secular modernity
  • Conclusion

Unlock this answer and 1,500+ more

  • 1,500+ solved UPSC Sociology PYQs from 1985 to 2026, Paper-1 and Paper-2
  • Topic-wise across all 25 syllabus units, newest exam year first
  • A full model answer for every question, shaped to 10 or 20 marks, with thinkers and Indian examples
  • Read online on lotusarise.com, plus PDF download

₹1,499₹2,50040% off

Get Sociology Optional PYQ Solutions @ ₹1,499 →

One-time payment · 12 months of access · Instant access · UPI, cards, RuPay

See every Religion and Society question (58 solved) →Already enrolled? Log in