Q1. [1] medium initial-understanding
Consider the following statements about the impact of rinderpest in Africa:
Assertion (A): European planters and mine owners gained greater control over the African labour force after rinderpest swept through the continent.
Reason (R): The cattle plague wiped out the primary source of African livelihood and self-sufficiency, leaving Africans with no alternative but to seek wage employment.
Choose the correct option:
(A) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
(B) Both (A) and (R) are true, but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
(C) (A) is true, but (R) is false.
(D) (A) is false, but (R) is true.
- A Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
- B Both (A) and (R) are true, but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
- C (A) is true, but (R) is false.
- D (A) is false, but (R) is true.
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-26 13:39 · grounding rag
Model Answer
(A) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
Rinderpest destroyed 90% of Africa's cattle, ruining African livelihoods and self-sufficiency, which forced Africans into wage labour on European plantations and mines.
Explanation
The textbook clearly states that "the loss of cattle destroyed African livelihoods" and that "planters, mine owners and colonial governments now successfully monopolised what scarce cattle resources remained... to force Africans into the labour market." Both statements are true and R directly explains why A happened — loss of cattle (R) led to European control over labour (A).