Direction for the following 4 (four) items: Read the following four passages and answer the items (51-54) that follow. Your answers to these items should be based on the passages only.

Nothing can exist in a natural state which can be called good or bad by common assent, since every man who is in a natural state consults only his own advantage, and determines what is good or bad according to his own fancy and insofar as he has regard for his own advantage alone, and holds himself responsible to no one save himself by any law; and therefore sin cannot be conceived in a natural state, but only in a civil state, which is decreed by common consent what is good or bad, and each one holds himself responsible to the state.

Which one of the following statements best reflects the central idea of the passage given above?

Correct Option: The conceptions of what is right or wrong exist due to the formation of a state.

Step-by-Step Explanation:

1. Understanding the Passage:
The passage argues that in a "natural state," individuals act solely out of self-interest and determine according to their own personal perspective what is good or bad. Because individuals in a natural state are answerable to no common authority or law, concepts such as "sin" or universally agreed definitions of good and bad cannot exist.
It explicitly states that these moral classifications—what is decreed by common consent to be good or bad—can only exist in a "civil state" where individuals are held responsible to the state.

2. Evaluating the Options:

• Option 1: "The conceptions of what is right or wrong exist due to the formation of a state."
  This directly reflects the passage's argument that notions of good/bad (right/wrong) and sin can only be conceived in a civil state established by common consent. Thus, this is the central idea.


• Option 2: "Unless a ruling authority decides as to what is right or wrong, no man would be morally right."
  This option misinterprets the text. The passage speaks about the societal definition/conception of good and bad, not individual moral righteousness being granted by a ruling authority.


• Option 3: "Man is inherently immoral and selfish in a natural state."
  The passage mentions that a person acts for their own advantage in a natural state, but it explicitly emphasizes that "sin" (immorality) cannot even be conceived in a natural state because there is no common standard. Calling man "immoral" in a natural state contradicts the text's assertion that moral concepts do not exist prior to the state.


• Option 4: "The idea of what is right or wrong is necessary for the survival of human species."
  Survival of the human species is never mentioned or implied in the passage.

Conclusion:
Therefore, the statement that best captures the central idea of the passage is "The conceptions of what is right or wrong exist due to the formation of a state."