CAT RC passages are not random. Over eight years of papers from 2017 to 2025, a clear genre fingerprint has emerged. Knowing what genre you are reading before you finish the first paragraph changes how you approach the questions.
Philosophy passages are the most frequent genre in CAT RC. They deal with abstract ideas about knowledge, existence, morality, language, consciousness and society. The writing is dense and the argument is rarely stated directly. The author builds a case through a series of claims and qualifications. In these passages, the main idea question is often the hardest because the author's position is buried inside several layers of qualification.
To prepare, read Aeon Essays regularly. Philosophy passages reward slow, careful reading more than any other genre.
Science passages explain a phenomenon, a discovery, or a debate within a scientific field. The language is precise and the argument is usually structured as a claim followed by evidence. These passages are often the most accessible in terms of language, but the questions test whether you understood the mechanism being explained or the distinction being drawn.
Read Smithsonian Magazine and Scientific American for this genre.
Economics passages analyse markets, policy, trade, inequality or business behaviour. The Economist is the primary source and its writing style is the benchmark. These passages assume some comfort with economic concepts and move quickly through complex arguments. The tone is often analytical and occasionally ironic.
Read The Economist weekly. Even one article per week makes a measurable difference over six months.
History passages examine a period, an event, a civilisation or an idea across time. Culture passages look at how societies think, create and organise meaning. Both genres require you to follow a narrative thread while tracking the author's interpretive claims. The writing is often elegant and the argument is developed through example rather than direct statement.
Read Smithsonian and The Atlantic for this genre.
Psychology passages examine how people think, behave and feel. They often introduce a research finding and then explore its implications. These passages test your ability to distinguish between what a study shows and what the author infers from it. The questions frequently ask about the author's attitude toward the research they are describing.
Arts and literature passages examine a work, a movement, an artist or the role of creative expression in society. They require you to follow an aesthetic or cultural argument rather than a purely logical one. The author's tone is often more personal and the claims are more interpretive than in science or economics passages.
Politics passages analyse power, democracy, ideology, law or international relations. They are often drawn from analytical publications like The Economist or Foreign Affairs. The argument is usually structured around a tension between two competing principles or systems. Watch for the author's evaluative language when identifying tone.
Nature passages cover ecology, climate, evolution, oceans and animals. They often blend scientific finding with philosophical or ethical implication. The author typically presents data and then argues for what it means for human behaviour or policy. These passages are increasingly common in recent CAT papers.
Culture and identity passages examine gender, religion, society, anthropology and language. They are often the most contested in terms of author's position, which is why tone questions are especially common in this genre. The author rarely states their evaluative stance directly and builds it through example and implication.
Education passages examine how learning happens, how knowledge is structured, and how institutions shape thinking. They are less frequent than philosophy or science passages but appear regularly. Critical thinking and logic passages in this genre test whether you can follow a meta-argument about reasoning itself.
Every GRADFLIX essay is assigned to one of these genres and written in the exact style of a CAT RC passage from that genre. The RC questions are built to test the same skills that CAT tests in each genre. Reading on GRADFLIX gives you calibrated practice across the full genre distribution of the exam.
GRADFLIX has 140 plus essays across philosophy, psychology, science and technology, history and civilisation, economics and society, arts and literature, politics and governance, nature and environment, culture and identity, and education and knowledge, all written in CAT passage style with RC questions.
Explore by GenrePhilosophy, science and technology, economics, history and culture, and psychology are the ten genres in CAT RC. Philosophy passages are the most frequent.
No. CAT RC passages are almost entirely non-fiction. Fiction and literary passages are rare and have become less common in recent years.
Philosophy passages are generally considered the hardest because the author's position is rarely stated directly and the argument moves through several layers of qualification.
The first paragraph usually signals the genre through its vocabulary and the type of claim it makes. Philosophy passages open with abstract questions. Science passages introduce a phenomenon or finding. Economics passages reference markets, policy or behaviour.