I had graduated from college with an engineering degree and was working at Xerox, but I’d always dreamed of a career in comedy. For this reason I had taken Claire’s comedy class. According to her website, Claire was a “world-known” teacher of “comedy arts”. “So You Want to Do Stand-Up(单口相声)? ” She was telling me, in front of the entire class, that my comedy wasn’t any good.
“The problem with you,” she said, “is that you don’t act like an comedian. ”
I wasn’t exactly sure what Claire meant, but I understood that there were a lot of different ways to be funny and I wanted my comedy to be a reflection of myself: warm and easy-going. Most of all, I wanted to make jokes about the world I saw around me, like the crazy things that happened at work every day.
I learned an important lesson that night. Claire - the supposed comedy “expert”- didn’t know a thing about me or what I could do onstage. All Claire knew was what I looked like. For her, that was enough to decide who I should be.
Claire was the first industry expert to try to make me fit her expectations. But she surely wasn’t the last. Fighting against other people’s assumptions is a challenge I’ve had to face for most of my career. I’m hardly alone.
No matter who you are or where you go in this life, people are going to try to put you in a box. Once they put you there, they’re going to try to convince you that it’s the best place for you. But if they are wrong about you, you’ve got to stand up and let them know it. In comedy and in life, you can’t expect people to give you permission to be yourself. You have to march onstage, claim your space, tell your story, and live your truth. If you don’t do it, who will?
4. What can be inferred about the author from paragraph 1?
A.She was eager to learn comedy. |
B.She was a famous comedy artist. |
C.She majored in comedy in university. |
D.She was admired by her comedy teacher. |
5. How may the author describe herself?
A.Funny and crazy. | B.Warm and friendly. |
C.Crazy and stubborn. | D.Warm and admirable. |
6. What kinds of jokes did the author want to make?
A.Those that fit experts’ expectation. |
B.Those that reflected real daily life. |
C.Those that met the audience’s need. |
D.Those that fought against others’ assumptions. |
7. What might the author respond if she was wrongly judged?
A.Bear it. | B.Ignore it. |
C.Make it clear. | D.Make up for it. |