Indicating a photograph, Mukesh said, "This mans son is my fathers son." Who is the person in the photograph?

Difficulty: Easy

Correct Answer: Mukesh's father

Explanation:


Introduction / Context:
This is a classic verbal reasoning question involving a statement about a photograph. The goal is to decode the sentence and convert it into clear relationships using simple algebra like thinking. Many exam questions use similar structures such as "my fathers son", "my mothers only daughter" and so on.



Given Data / Assumptions:

  • Mukesh is speaking while pointing to a photograph of a man.
  • He says, "This mans son is my fathers son."
  • "My father" refers to Mukesh father.
  • "My fathers son" can refer either to Mukesh himself or to any brother he may have.
  • We assume usual family relations and that the exam wants a single clear answer.


Concept / Approach:
The heart of the problem is the expression "this mans son is my fathers son". We can treat "my fathers son" as a person X who is a child of Mukesh father and is male. The sentence then says that "this mans son" is exactly that same person X. If two people have the same son and standard assumptions are used, they are the same father. This leads to the conclusion that the man in the photograph is Mukesh father.



Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Let F be Mukesh father. Then "my fathers son" means a son of F. That person can be Mukesh or his brother.Step 2: Let M be the man in the photograph. "This mans son" means a son of M.Step 3: The statement says that these two people are the same: a son of M is the same person as a son of F.Step 4: Under normal exam assumptions, if M has a son who is the same person as a son of F, then M and F are the same man. In other words, the man in the photo is Mukesh father.Step 5: Therefore the answer is that the person in the photograph is Mukesh father.


Verification / Alternative check:
Take a concrete example. Assume Mukesh name is M, his father is Ram. Ram has two sons: Mukesh and Rohan. Mukesh points to a man and says, "This mans son is my fathers son." That man could be Ram himself, whose son is Mukesh or Rohan. For any other man, his son would not automatically be a son of Ram. To satisfy the sentence for all normal cases, the man must be the father of Mukesh.



Why Other Options Are Wrong:
If the man were Mukesh uncle, then his son would be Mukesh cousin, not a son of Mukesh father. If the man were Mukesh brother, then "this mans son" would be Mukesh nephew, again not a direct son of Mukesh father. If the man were Mukesh grandfather, his son would be Mukesh father, not "my fathers son". The option "Mukesh himself" is also wrong because Mukesh cannot point to his own son and still make the statement in that form.



Common Pitfalls:
Students sometimes think too literally and get confused by the phrase "my fathers son", forgetting that it can refer to more than one person. The key is to notice that the sentence is saying that the son of the man in the photo and a son of Mukesh father are the same person. Once you combine those, the only consistent solution under exam style assumptions is that the man is Mukesh father.



Final Answer:
The person in the photograph is Mukesh's father.

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