Which of the following statements is true about a subclass and private fields?

A subclass does not inherit private fields, which is why this statement is true. In object-oriented programming, when a class is declared as a subclass of another class (the superclass), it gains access to the public and protected fields of the superclass, allowing it to utilize and interact with them. However, private fields remain inaccessible to the subclass because they are encapsulated within the superclass. This encapsulation is a fundamental principle of information hiding in object-oriented design.

By keeping certain fields private, a superclass can control how those fields are accessed or modified, thereby maintaining the integrity of the data. While the subclass has the power to define its own fields and methods, it cannot directly interact with private fields of the superclass, enforcing a clear boundary between the two levels of the class hierarchy. Therefore, the assertion that a subclass does not inherit private fields accurately reflects this concept of encapsulation in object-oriented programming.