A New Concept of Human Beings Class 11 – Concept, MCQs & Notes PDF
Topic covered: A New Concept of Human Beings class 11 notes and MCQs questions: Changing Cultural Traditions (All single detail notes are exam-oriented).
We have discussed in-depth and exam-oriented pointers that can be asked in the board exam of class 11th about “A New Concept of Human Beings“ from the NCERT history notes for class 11th chapter 5 “Changing Cultural Traditions”.
Download the NCERT History for Class 11th Chapter 5 Changing Cultural Traditions Notes PDF
Download the NCERT History for Class 11th Chapter 5 Changing Cultural Traditions Notes PDF if you want a clear and readable explanation of how ideas, art, and knowledge began to change in medieval Europe. These notes walk you through the revival of Italian cities, the growth of universities, and the rise of humanism, showing how people started to look at history, science, and philosophy in new ways. You will also learn about the Arab contribution to knowledge, realistic art, architecture, the first printed books, and changing views about human beings and women. The chapter ends with important religious debates and scientific ideas like the Copernican Revolution, helping you understand how people began to read and interpret the universe differently.
A New Concept of Human Beings
1. Slackening of Religious Control:
- Humanist culture led to a reduction in religious control over human life
- Religion no longer dominated every aspect of life
2. Attitude towards Wealth and Power:
- Italians were attracted to material wealth, power and glory
- This attraction did not mean irreligion
3. Defence of Wealth as a Virtue:
- Francesco Barbaro (1390–1454) defended the acquisition of wealth
- He presented wealth as a human virtue
4. Humanist View on Pleasure:
- Lorenzo Valla (1406–1457) criticised the Christian ban on pleasure
- In On Pleasure, he argued against denial of enjoyment
- He believed that studying history leads to a life of perfection
5. Concern with Good Manners and Culture:
- Emphasis on polite speech
- Importance of correct dressing
- Focus on skills expected of a cultured person
6. Human Capacity for Self-Shaping:
- Humanism stressed that individuals could shape their own lives
- Life was not limited to power and money
7. Belief in Many-Sided Human Nature:
- Human nature was seen as complex and many-sided
- This belief challenged the feudal idea of three fixed social orders
8. Machiavelli on Human Nature:
- Niccolò Machiavelli, in The Prince (1513), described varied human qualities
- People could be generous or miserly, cruel or compassionate, faithful or faithless
9. Machiavelli’s View of Human Behaviour:
- He believed all men are bad
- Human desires are insatiable
- Self-interest is the strongest motive behind human actions
Next & Previous Topics of NCERT/CBSE History Class 11 Chapter 5: Changing Cultural Traditions
MCQs on NCERT History Class 11 Chapter 5 – A New Concept of Human Beings Class 11
Here are the top exam-oriented MCQ-type questions on “A New Concept of Human Beings Class 11” that you should prepare for your CBSE or state board exams:
Question 1. One important feature of humanist culture was:
A. Complete rejection of religion
B. Strengthening of Church control
C. Slackening of religious control over life
D. Growth of monasticism
Answer: C
Question 2. Humanists believed that attraction to wealth and power made Italians:
A. Completely irreligious
B. Anti-Christian
C. Not necessarily irreligious
D. Opposed to morality
Answer: C
Question 3. Which Italian humanist defended the acquisition of wealth as a virtue?
A. Lorenzo Valla
B. Niccolo Machiavelli
C. Francesco Barbaro
D. Petrarch
Answer: C
Question 4. Francesco Barbaro belonged to which city?
A. Florence
B. Rome
C. Venice
D. Milan
Answer: C
Question 5. Francesco Barbaro lived during:
A. 1300–1350
B. 1350–1400
C. 1390–1454
D. 1450–1500
Answer: C
Question 6. Lorenzo Valla’s book On Pleasure focused on:
A. Political power
B. Religious devotion
C. Criticism of pleasure
D. Defence of pleasure
Answer: D
Question 7. Lorenzo Valla believed that the study of history leads humans to:
A. Wealth
B. Power
C. A life of perfection
D. Religious salvation
Answer: C
Question 8. Lorenzo Valla criticised which Christian idea?
A. Charity
B. Prayer
C. Obedience
D. Injunction against pleasure
Answer: D
Question 9. Concern with good manners during the humanist period included:
A. Military discipline
B. Religious rituals
C. Polite speech and correct dress
D. Agricultural skills
Answer: C
Question 10. Humanists believed that individuals could shape their lives through:
A. Religion alone
B. Fate
C. Means other than power and money
D. Church authority
Answer: C
Question 11. The humanist belief in shaping one’s own life reflects:
A. Blind faith
B. Individual potential
C. Feudal loyalty
D. Divine will
Answer: B
Question 12. Humanists believed that human nature was:
A. Fixed and uniform
B. God-controlled
C. Many-sided
D. Sinful by birth
Answer: C
Question 13. The belief in many-sided human nature went against:
A. Monarchy
B. Guild system
C. Three orders of feudal society
D. Trade practices
Answer: C
Question 14. Feudal society believed in how many social orders?
A. Two
B. Three
C. Four
D. Five
Answer: B
Question 15. Which book by Machiavelli is referred to in the passage?
A. Discourses
B. The Republic
C. The Prince
D. Utopia
Answer: C
Question 16. The Prince was written in:
A. 1453
B. 1486
C. 1513
D. 1550
Answer: C
Question 17. According to Machiavelli, men possess:
A. Only good qualities
B. Only evil qualities
C. Various contrasting qualities
D. Fixed moral traits
Answer: C
Question 18. Machiavelli believed that men are naturally:
A. Virtuous
B. Selfless
C. Bad
D. Religious
Answer: C
Question 19. According to Machiavelli, human desires are:
A. Limited
B. Moral
C. Insatiable
D. Divinely controlled
Answer: C
Question 20. The most powerful motive behind human actions, according to Machiavelli, is:
A. Religion
B. Honour
C. Self-interest
D. Fear
Answer: C
Question 21. Machiavelli especially discussed human nature in relation to:
A. Priests
B. Merchants
C. Princes
D. Peasants
Answer: C
Question 22. Machiavelli argued that men are judged based on:
A. Birth
B. Wealth
C. Their qualities and actions
D. Religion
Answer: C
Question 23. Which of the following qualities is NOT mentioned by Machiavelli?
A. Generous
B. Miserly
C. Brave
D. Intellectual
Answer: D
Question 24. Machiavelli’s ideas reflect which humanist value?
A. Blind obedience
B. Idealism
C. Realism about human nature
D. Religious morality
Answer: C
Question 25. The humanist attitude towards pleasure shows a shift from:
A. Art to science
B. Faith to reason
C. Medieval religious control
D. Trade to agriculture
Answer: C
Question 26. Humanists viewed wealth mainly as:
A. A sin
B. A distraction
C. A possible virtue
D. A religious duty
Answer: C
Question 27. The concern for manners reflects emphasis on:
A. Military discipline
B. Courtly behaviour
C. Monastic life
D. Peasant customs
Answer: B
Question 28. Humanist culture stressed the importance of:
A. Community over individual
B. Individual over Church
C. Church over state
D. Nobility over merit
Answer: B
Question 29. Humanism challenged feudal society mainly by rejecting:
A. Land ownership
B. Fixed social roles
C. Warfare
D. Trade
Answer: B
Question 30. Which thinker linked history with human perfection?
A. Barbaro
B. Machiavelli
C. Valla
D. Dante
Answer: C
Question 31. The idea that humans can shape their own lives reflects:
A. Fatalism
B. Human potential
C. Religious obedience
D. Political loyalty
Answer: B
Question 32. The passage suggests that humanists were:
A. Anti-religion
B. Anti-morality
C. Less controlled by religion
D. Controlled by the Church
Answer: C
Question 33. Machiavelli’s view of humans is best described as:
A. Idealistic
B. Moralistic
C. Practical and realistic
D. Spiritual
Answer: C
Question 34. Humanism believed culture included:
A. Only religious learning
B. Manners, learning and debate
C. Warfare skills
D. Trade techniques
Answer: B
Question 35. The overall theme of the passage reflects:
A. Decline of feudalism
B. Rise of human-centered thinking
C. Growth of monarchy
D. Spread of Christianity
Answer: B