GED RLA - COMPREHENSION PRACTICE - 1 9 th AUG 2026 Spider - Man and the Philosophy of Responsibility When Spider - Man first appeared in comic books, he was presented as something different from many traditional superheroes. He was not simply a powerful figure who defeated villains and protected innocent people. He was also Peter Parker, an ordinary teenage r dealing with school, friendships, family problems, and the uncertainty of growing up. His unusual abilities created extraordinary possibilities, but they also created difficult moral responsibilities. This combination has made Spider - Man a useful charact er through which to examine questions that philosophers have considered for centuries. One of the most important philosophical ideas associated with Spider - Man is the relationship between power and responsibility. Peter Parker discovers that his abilities give him opportunities that ordinary people do not have. At first, however, he does not fully recognise that having the ability to help others may create an obligation to do so. His eventual understanding of respo nsibility suggests an important moral principle: people should consider not only what they are capable of doing but also how their choices affect others. This principle raises a difficult question. If a person has the ability to prevent harm, does that person have a moral duty t o act? Imagine that someone sees a stranger in serious danger and knows that they have the skills necessary to help. Walking away m ay be legal and personally convenient, but many people would still consider it morally wrong. Spider - Man represents the stronger version of this argument. Because he possesses abilities that most people lack, he is expected to accept responsibilities tha t most people never face. However, responsibility is not always straightforward. A person cannot solve every problem, and attempting to help can sometimes create new problems. Spider - Man frequently faces situations in which two choices both have negative consequences. Saving one pe rson might mean arriving too late to save another. Stopping a dangerous criminal might put bystanders at risk. These situations challenge the idea that morality is simply a matter of following a fixed set of rules. Philosophers have developed different ways of thinking about such choices. One approach, often associated with consequentialism, judges an action primarily by its results. From this perspective, the morally preferable decision would gen erally be the one th at produces the best overall outcome. Another approach focuses more strongly on duties and principles. According to this view, some actions may be morally required or forbidden regardless of their consequences. A third approach, known as virtue ethics, ask s what a good person would do and what a person's choices reveal about their character. Spider - Man's decisions can be examined through all three approaches. A consequentialist might ask which action saves the greatest number of people. Someone focused on duty might ask whether Spider - Man has an obligation to protect innocent people, even when doing so is personally costly. A virtue ethicist might consider whether his decision demonstrates courage, honesty, compassion, or self - control. The different approaches do not always produce the same answer, which demonstrates why moral decisions can be complicated. Spider - Man also illustrates the philosophical problem of free will. Peter Parker usually chooses whether to use his abilities for personal purposes or to help others. His choices therefore appear to be expressions of his freedom. Yet his experiences also i nfluence those choices. His relationships, losses, mistakes, and sense of responsibility shape the person he becomes. This ra ises a broader question: how free are our decisions when our circumstances strongly influence us? The question has significance beyond comic books. Most people do not possess superhuman abilities, but everyone has some degree of power over the lives of others. A student can choose whether to include or exclude a classmate. A person who witnes ses unfair treatment can decide whether to speak up. Someone with specialised knowledge can choose whether to use it to help others. These choices may seem small compared with Spider - Man's battles, but they involve the same basic question: What should we do when we have the ability to make a difference? Spider - Man does not provide a simple philosophical answer. Instead, his story suggests that having choices means accepting responsibility for those choices. His greatest challenge is not defeating a particular villain but deciding how he should use the abi lities and opportunities available to him. In this sense, Spider - Man's story is less about extraordinary powers than about an ordinary human problem: determining what we owe to other people. 1. What is the primary purpose of the passage? A. To explain how Spider - Man became one of the world's most popular superheroes B. To examine philosophical questions raised by Spider - Man's choices and responsibilities C. To compare Spider - Man's abilities with those of other traditional comic - book heroes D. To describe how different philosophers would respond to Spider - Man's enemies 2. Which statement best expresses the central idea of the passage? A. Superheroes are useful because they demonstrate how fictional characters defeat powerful enemies. B. Spider - Man's abilities demonstrate that extraordinary powers inevitably create difficult personal problems. C. Spider - Man's story provides a way to examine responsibility, morality, choice, and their consequences. D. Philosophical theories can explain why Spider - Man makes different decisions throughout his adventures. 3. According to the passage, why is Spider - Man particularly useful for examining moral responsibility? A. He possesses abilities that give him opportunities to help others in unusual circumstances. B. He regularly encounters villains who force him to choose between competing personal interests. C. He experiences ordinary problems that make his superhero identity difficult for others to understand. D. He follows philosophical principles that were specifically developed to explain superhero behaviour. 4. Which sentence from the passage best supports the idea that responsibility depends partly on a person's abilities? A. “He was also Peter Parker, an ordinary teenager dealing with school, friendships, family problems, and the uncertainty of growing up.” B. “His unusual abilities created extraordinary possibilities, but they also created difficult moral responsibilities.” C. “These situations challenge the idea that morality is simply a matter of following a fixed set of rules.” D. “His relationships, losses, mistakes, and sense of responsibility shape the person he becomes.” 5. What does the phrase “the stronger version of this argument” most likely refer to in paragraph 3? A. The belief that people should use special abilities when those abilities can protect others B. The belief that people should follow laws even when helping others becomes personally difficult C. The belief that people should avoid dangerous situations when their actions might create consequences D. The belief that people should accept responsibility only when their choices directly affect themselves 6. Which inference about Spider - Man's moral decisions is best supported by the passage? A. His decisions are difficult because helping one person can sometimes create problems elsewhere. B. His decisions are difficult because he rarely understands which philosophical theory applies. C. His decisions are difficult because protecting others usually prevents him from making personal choices. D. His decisions are difficult because different villains often disagree about what Spider - Man should do. 7. Why does the author introduce the example of saving one person while arriving too late to save another? A. To demonstrate that Spider - Man's responsibilities are usually impossible to fulfil successfully B. To demonstrate that moral choices can involve competing outcomes and difficult consequences C. To demonstrate that Spider - Man's abilities are less powerful than people generally assume D. To demonstrate that philosophical theories cannot be applied effectively to fictional characters 8. Which philosophical approach would most likely ask, “Which action produces the best overall result?” A. Virtue ethics C. Moral relativism B. Consequentialism D. Existentialism 9. How does the paragraph about philosophical approaches contribute to the development of the passage? A. It provides historical information about the philosophers who influenced Spider - Man's creation. B. It introduces several frameworks for analysing the difficult choices described earlier. C. It proves that one philosophical theory provides the correct explanation for Spider - Man's behaviour. D. It explains why Spider - Man's moral decisions are fundamentally different from ordinary human choices. 10. Which statement best describes the author's treatment of the three philosophical approaches? A. The author presents them as competing explanations that can produce different conclusions about choices. B. The author presents them as stages that people should follow when making difficult moral decisions. C. The author presents them as theories that have gradually replaced older ideas about responsibility. D. The author presents them as similar approaches that ultimately reach the same moral conclusion. 11. What does the passage suggest about virtue ethics? A. It evaluates actions mainly according to the number of people who benefit from them. B. It evaluates actions mainly according to whether they follow established moral duties. C. It considers what a person's choices reveal about their character and qualities. D. It considers whether a person had complete freedom when making an important decision. 12. Why does the author discuss free will after discussing moral responsibility? A. To show that responsibility is connected to the extent to which people can make meaningful choices B. To show that Spider - Man's responsibilities disappear whenever circumstances influence his decisions C. To show that philosophical theories generally disagree about whether human beings can control their actions D. To show that Spider - Man's personal experiences have prevented him from becoming an effective superhero 13. What is the most likely meaning of “expressions of his freedom” in paragraph 6? A. His decisions demonstrate his ability to make choices for himself. B. His actions demonstrate his desire to avoid responsibilities imposed by others. C. His abilities demonstrate his independence from ordinary human limitations. D. His experiences demonstrate his freedom from the consequences of his choices. 14. Which statement best describes the relationship between Spider - Man's experiences and his choices? A. His experiences completely determine his choices and prevent genuine independence. B. His experiences influence his choices while he still appears capable of making decisions. C. His experiences have little influence because his abilities determine most of his decisions. D. His experiences mainly create problems that prevent him from understanding moral principles. 15. Why does the author include examples involving students and people witnessing unfair treatment? A. To demonstrate that ordinary people face situations involving responsibility and moral choice. B. To demonstrate that ordinary people possess abilities that are comparable to Spider - Man's powers. C. To demonstrate that philosophical problems are more important in everyday life than superhero stories. D. To demonstrate that people generally make better moral decisions when their choices affect others. 16. Which statement best describes the overall organisation of the passage? A. It introduces a character, explains his history, compares his abilities, and evaluates his popularity. B. It presents a problem, describes several solutions, and recommends the most effective solution. C. It introduces an example, examines related philosophical ideas, and connects them to everyday life. D. It presents competing characters, compares their beliefs, and determines which character is morally correct. 17. What is the author's primary purpose in the final paragraph? A. To argue that Spider - Man should be considered a serious philosophical character rather than a fictional hero B. To summarise the passage's main idea that choices and abilities create responsibilities toward others C. To explain why Spider - Man's greatest enemies are less important than his personal relationships D. To demonstrate that philosophical theories cannot provide definite answers to moral questions 18. Which statement would the author most likely agree with? A. People are responsible only for consequences that they intentionally create themselves. B. People with greater abilities may have greater responsibilities toward those around them. C. People should always choose the action that produces the greatest benefit for the greatest number. D. People cannot be held responsible when their decisions have been influenced by their experiences. 19. Which piece of evidence from the passage best supports the author's conclusion that the issue applies beyond Spider - Man? A. “A person cannot solve every problem, and attempting to help can sometimes create new problems.” B. “A consequentialist might ask which action saves the greatest number of people.” C. “Someone with specialised knowledge can choose whether to use it to help others.” D. “The different approaches do not always produce the same answer, which demonstrates why moral decisions can be complicated.” 20. Which statement best describes the author's tone throughout the passage? A. Critical and dismissive C. Analytical and reflective B. Humorous and informal D. Enthusiastic and celebratory