Customs and traditions suppress reason leading to obscurantism. Do you agree?

Theme

T49 Family, marriage, traditions & social values

What UPSC asks in this theme

Questions ask whether marriage as a sacrament is losing value, how society maintains continuity of values, whether customs suppress reason, and whether joint families depend on economic factors.

What to cover

• Marriage: sacrament vs contract, changes due to education and urbanisation
• Joint to nuclear family and its causes
• Continuity and change in traditional values
• Customs, superstition and rational thinking

Writing the answer

• Use sociological terms and present examples

These notes are for the whole theme, built from all 4 of its PYQs. UPSC does not publish model answers.