In the passage on the nation and family, choose the correct word to complete the sentence "This is understandable because both the nation and the family are social relations of _____."

Introduction / Context:
The passage now explains why the metaphor of the nation as a family is understandable. It states that this is because both the nation and the family are relations of blank. The missing noun must refer to the type of social bond that is based on birth, blood, or close familial ties. The question checks familiarity with the term kinship, which is central in sociology and anthropology when describing family relations and extended social ties.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The sentence compares the nation and the family as social relations.
• The blank must refer to the type of connection that families represent.
• Options are family, bonding, kinship, acquaintance, affection.
• The context is academic discussion of social relations, not casual everyday talk.

Concept / Approach:
Kinship is the technical term for the system of social relationships that arise from blood ties, marriage, and adoption. When the passage says relations of kinship, it positions both nation and family as networks of related people, at least metaphorically. Our approach is to find the noun that best matches this formal social science vocabulary and fits the pattern relations of blank in an academic style.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Try relations of family. This repeats the word family and is not the correct phrase. Step 2: Try relations of bonding. Bonding is a process, not a type of relation, and the phrase is not standard. Step 3: Try relations of kinship. This is a widely used expression in sociology and anthropology. Step 4: Try relations of acquaintance. Acquaintance suggests casual knowledge of others, not deep family ties. Step 5: Try relations of affection. Affection is an emotion and does not precisely describe structural social relations. Step 6: Conclude that kinship is the best and most accurate choice.

Verification / Alternative check:
We can verify by considering typical academic phrases: systems of kinship, kinship networks, relations of kinship. These are standard in social science writing. They clearly denote family based relations. Since the passage has already used the family metaphor for the nation, it is natural to assert that both are relations of kinship. None of the other options fits the formal register and structural meaning required here, making kinship the correct completion.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Family: Repeating the word family would not create a meaningful phrase like relations of family in this context. Bonding: Describes a process of forming ties, but relations of bonding is an unusual and vague expression. Acquaintance: Refers to casual social familiarity, weaker than the deep ties the metaphor suggests. Affection: An emotion, not a structured social relation. Kinship, by contrast, refers to a structured set of relations founded on birth and marriage, exactly the idea being discussed.

Common Pitfalls:
Some learners might choose bonding because they associate it with emotional closeness, but they overlook the formal tone and the need for a technical term. Others might incorrectly think that kinship only means blood relation and forget that the nation can be metaphorically described using this term. Remember that exam passages often rely on important discipline specific vocabulary like kinship.

Final Answer:
The correct answer is kinship, giving the sentence This is understandable because both the nation and the family are social relations of kinship.