Eugene O'Neill, who was born in 1888, in New York, was a leading American drama writer and the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1936. His father was a successful touring actor. Because of that, Eugene spent his early childhood in hotels, on trains, and backstage. Although later in his life he grew to hate his father for not giving him security（安全感）in his early years and a loving, comfortable family, he had the theater in his blood.
As a student, O'Neill went to boarding schools（寄宿制学校）but spent the summers in a moderate house his family owned. He left Princeton University in 1907, only about one year after he entered it, to start what he later called his real education in “life experience”。 At the age of 24, he was employed as a reporter and poetry column writer for the New London Telegraph, where he worked for only a few months.
O'Neill didn't cut a figure in playwriting until the summer of 1916, when he was in a peaceful village of Provincetown, Massachusetts, where some young writers and artists had founded an experimental theater. Before that, he had written awkward plays that were hardly accepted by the mainstream of American theater. While O'Neill was only one of those whose plays were produced by the theater, he led the group to success because of his contribution within the next few years. Between 1916 and 1920, the theater produced all of O'Neill's one-act plays. By the time his first full-length play, Beyond the Horizon, was produced on Broadway on February 2, 1920 at the Morosco Theater, the young playwright already had a small fame.
Theater critics（评论家）spoke highly of Beyond the Horizon for its tragic realism. The play brought O'Neill more public attention, as well as his first Pulitzer Prize. Besides that, he won another three for Anna Christie, Strange Interlude, and Long Day's Journey into Night. Over the next two decades, O'Neill continued to gain fame nationally and globally. He became the most widely translated and produced dramatist after Shakespeare and Bernard Shaw.
1. What might inspire O'Neill's love for theater?| A．His father's job. | B．The support of his family. |
| C．Hotel rooms he had lived in. | D．Stories he had heard on trains. |
| A．He didn't want to study in a boarding school. |
| B．He wanted to receive real education from life. |
| C．He got a job from the New London Telegraph. |
| D．He was quite unsatisfied with the university life. |
| A．Show interest. | B．Hold a degree. |
| C．Attract attention. | D．Receive an award. |
| A．It inspired him to create another three dramas. |
| B．It drew theater critics' attention to tragic realism. |
| C．It helped him win more fame in the field of theater. |
| D．It made him the most widely translated dramatist. |
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【推荐1】A new documentary called Silver Surfers shows the inspiring story of a group of teens helping elderly people to improve the quality of their lives by teaching them how to make use of the Internet. Rosemary Raynes, the director of the documentary, got the idea when talking to her sisters Poppy and Amy about a project they had started several years before in Kinston, Canada. The two teenagers had a clear goal: they wanted to help elderly people to feel more connected to other people, through the use of the Internet.
The two teenagers started the project after seeing how the Internet had changed their own grandparents’ lives. Their grandparents could use the Internet at a basic level but wanted to become more skillful. After the two girls had given them a few basic IT lessons, they were able to use the computer confidently, and became eager users of Facebook and email.
The two students were so inspired by the success that they got several of their friends to join them. Together, they started to visit a local home for elderly people. Many of the people there couldn’t even switch on a computer without help. But the young people were amazed how much they had learned after only a few lessons.
It’s interesting to see how the silver surfers featured in the documentary all had very different interests. Some of them wanted to use Facebook to stay in touch with family members. Others were eager to get ideas for travelling, playing an instrument or cooking.
Through the project, silver surfers have got good results: 89-year-old Sheila, together with a friend, managed to create a YouTube cooking class; 93-year-old Marilyn succeeded in making a rap video; Albert, 89, used the Internet to reconnect online with people he hadn’t seen for many years.
The project has been met with great interest in several countries, and a number of follow-up projects have been started. They are all aimed at helping elderly people to explore the benefits of technology, have fun, and stay in touch with others—thanks to a wonderful project by two teenage girls.
1. What does the documentary Silver Surfers show?| A．Elderly people’s achievements impress the world. |
| B．Teenagers teach elderly people to use the Internet. |
| C．Elderly people come together with long-lost friends. |
| D．Teenagers help elderly people master cooking skills. |
| A．To explain the effect of follow-up projects. |
| B．To suggest the good topics for documentary. |
| C．To prove positive outcomes achieved by the project. |
| D．To encourage more teenagers to take part in the project. |
| A．Home Projects for Directors | B．Great Success for a Documentary |
| C．When Silver Surfers Get Connected | D．How the Internet Saves Silver Surfers |
The success of Blue Origin’s space tourism flights has caused concerns among the public. Many say it is a rich person’s game that is unnecessary when Earth badly needs help.
For Jane Smith, co-founder of Space View, the industry is not preventing Earth from help, but helping its inhabitants better understand their world.
“Space exploration has played an important role in forming our understanding of our planet,” Smith said in an interview. “The most downloaded image in history is Earthrise that was taken in 1968 by Apollo astronauts as they circled the moon. Taking the photo was not on their schedule of activities but they were so struck by the scene that they rushed to record it. That one photograph helped humanity see Earth as a planet in space, and inspired an upward environmental movement.”
Space View, founded in 2019, is a firm using a giant balloon to send humans into the stratosphere (平流层). It is designing a luxurious capsule (豪华太空舱) that fts six passengers, who can relax in seats or enjoy a snack while flying 20 miles above Earth.
Smith explained that eventually, millions of people will have exciting space experience. Tickets for a ride through Space View currently run $125,000 a seat, but Smith said the “long-term vision is to bring pricing down significantly”. “A ticket price of, say, $30,000 — $840,000 would make the space trip affordable to many millions of people,” she added.
When asked about the public comments, Smith answered, “When people visit space and experience our Earth from that splendid point, they connect deeply with our planet and the singular human family that inhabits it. It broadens their perspective (视角) and they return with a deepened understanding of social and environmental causes.”
1. What do the public think of Blue Origin’s space tourism fights?| A．Successful. | B．Pollutive. | C．Beneficial. | D．Costly. |
| A．To review the history of the photo. |
| B．To express respects to Apollo astronauts. |
| C．To remind people of the beauty of the space. |
| D．To explain the significance of space exploration. |
| A．It has made much money from space tourism. |
| B．It aims to make space tourism popular. |
| C．It plays a part in Blue Origin’s flights. |
| D．It has sent six passengers into space. |
| A．Is Space Tourism a Rich Person’s Game? |
| B．Can Everyone Experience Space Tourism? |
| C．Why Should the Public Know about Space? |
| D．How Has Space Tourism Developed Rapidly? |
【推荐3】Tips for Your Best Visit to Legoland California
•Stay Close
Four hotels are within walking distance of the main gate, the newest of which resembles a medieval castle. Guests get an hour of early access to the theme park.
•Use the App
Not only does Legoland Mobile App function as a map, but shows relatively accurate wait time for every ride and special deals for park shops. You can use it to purchase or upgrade your tickets too.
•Go Fishing
The Sea Life Aquarium is here to impress you with kinds of fishes, rays, sharks, reptiles, and amphibians. Extra admission is required.
•Take a Class
In the Imagination Zone, kids above nine and grown-ups can sign up for free classes to build Lego robots. Younger kids can have fun building race cars and testing them on tracks.
•See a Show
Legoland California rolls out various live entertainment experiences throughout the day. Children particularly will love a 15-minute show where human actors sing and dance their way through a plot from Lego Friends.
In a word, Legoland California is definitely a must-see place. Visit www.legoland.com/California to plan your trip NOW. We're always at your service.
1. How can Legoland Mobile App help?| A．Buy souvenirs. | B．Book hotel rooms. |
| C．Cancel tickets. | D．Show directions. |
| A．Live in a medieval castle. | B．Attend classes with a cost. |
| C．Enjoy music and dance. | D．See some animals for free. |
| A．To offer solutions. | B．To give suggestions. |
| C．To describe a park. | D．To promote a destination. |
【推荐1】Four famous classic Italian writers
When it comes to Italian literature, many people come up with Dante. But there are many other famous Italian authors. Below are four recommended writers and their masterpieces.
Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533)
Ariosto is best known for his epic(史诗般的) poem Orlando Furioso, which was published in 1977. As a poet always with new ideas, Ariosto invented the way of“singing the poem to the audience”. The poem presents a rich variety of characters, which has been an encouragement for many paintings and musical works.
Italo Calvino (1923-1985)
Calvino was the author of If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler published in 1979. The novel differs from others for its unique description of a frame story — a unifying story within which several tales are related. It has encouraged musicians like Sting to create their works. At the time of his death in 1985, Calvino was one of the world’s most translated Italian writers.
Umberto Eco (1932-2016)
Eco wrote The Name of the Rose, a historical murder mystery novel published in 1980. In the story, he skilfully applied the use of signs and symbols to it. A number of his books deal with the meaning and understanding of communication.
Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873)
Manzoni is most famous for his novel The Betrothed published in 1827. The novel was regarded to be connected with Risorgimento, the Italian unification movement in the 19th century. Probably we can say, without this great novelist and this masterpiece of world literature, Italy wouldn’t be Italy.
1. What can we know about Orlando Furioso?| A．It has influenced musical works. | B．It was published in 1979. |
| C．It was written by Manzoni. | D．It has been translated into many languages. |
| A．A unique describing style. | B．The use of signs and symbols. |
| C．A mix of new ideas. | D．The history of a movement. |
| A．Ludovico Ariosto. | B．Italo Calvino. |
| C．Umberto Eco. | D．Alessandro Manzoni. |
One day Mark Twain was going to a small town because of his writing. Before he was going to leave, one of his friends said to him that there were always a lot of mosquitoes in the town and told him that he’d better not go there. Mark Twain waved his hand and said, “It doesn’t matter. The mosquitoes are no relatives of mine. I don’t think they will come to visit me.”
After he arrived at the town, Mark Twain stayed in a small hotel near the station. He went into his room, but when he was just about to have a rest, quite a few mosquitoes flew about him. The waiters felt very sorry about that. “I’m very sorry, Mr. Mark Twain. There are too many mosquitoes in our town.” One of them said to him.
Mark Twain, however, made a joke, saying to the waiter, “The mosquitoes are very clever. They know my room number. They didn’t come into the wrong room.” What he said made all the people present laugh heartily.
But that night Mark Twain slept well. Do you know why? That was because all the waiters in the hotel were driving the mosquitoes away for him during the whole night.
1. Why did Mark Twain go to the town?
| A．To make a speech. |
| B．To see one of his friends. |
| C．To see one of his relatives. |
| D．To do something for his writing. |
| A．Their hotel was too small. |
| B．The room was not very clean. |
| C．They did something wrong to Mark Twain. |
| D．There were quite a few mosquitoes in the room. |
| A．Mark Twain made a joke |
| B．Mark Twain gave the waiters some nice presents |
| C．the mosquitoes didn’t come into the wrong room |
| D．the mosquitoes knew Mark Twain’s room number |
| A．Mark Twain didn’t have a good rest that night. |
| B．No mosquitoes troubled Mark Twain in the night. |
| C．There were not mosquitoes in the hotel any longer. |
| D．The owner of the hotel looked after Mark Twain well at night. |
【推荐3】“We have Dante, Shakespeare and Du Fu (712—770). These poets create the very values by which poetry is judged,” said Harvard professor Stephen Owen in Du Fu: China’s Greatest Poet, a BBC documentary.
Despite the fact that Du Fu is usually mentioned in the same breath as Dante and Shakespeare, he has remained largely unknown in the Western world for long. However, with the screening of the first English-language documentary featuring the poet, the days of Du Fu as China’s best-kept literary secret seem to be just numbered.
It is written and presented by Michael Wood, a skilled television historian who also directed other China-related documentaries such as The Story of China and The Story of China’s Reform and Opening-Up.
From the Yellow River to the Yangtze Gorges, and down to the forested hills of Hunan province, Wood visited a number of places such as the poet’s birthplace Gongyi in Henan province and the Tang Dynasty capital Chang’an, today’s Xi’an. Along the way, he met and talked to ordinary people, dancers and musicians, who helped to tell the fantastic story of the poet. Interviews with famous scholars specializing in Chinese literature also helped present a clearer picture of the poet’s life experiences, literary significance and his friendship with Li Bai, another great Chinese poet.
Born in 712, Du Fu lived in the Tang Dynasty, a time marked by extraordinary cultural achievements. However, after a wave of civil unrest (动乱), Du Fu, the former civil servant at the Tang court, was forced to become a porter, and suffered from starvation. Through ups and downs, the poet never stopped writing, pouring out his concern for his country and people as well as celebrating the simple joys of life.
“Du’s poetry reflects the country’s historical events mirrored in his own spiritual journey, so he becomes a part of the emotional vocabulary of Chinese culture,” said Stephen Owen, who in 2016 finished the eight-year-long project to translate Du Fu’s 1,400 poems into English.
1. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 imply?| A．Du Fu created the values of poetry. |
| B．The West will know more about Du Fu. |
| C．The Chinese will keep Du Fu’s poems secret. |
| D．Du Fu will become one of the top 3 poets. |
| A．Du Fu’s colorful life experiences. |
| B．Local people’s admiration for Du Fu. |
| C．Famous scholars’ research findings on Du Fu. |
| D．Michael Wood’s effort in making the documentary. |
| A．Inspiring and helpful. |
| B．Tough and responsible. |
| C．Easy-going and careful. |
| D．Generous and hardworking. |
| A．Du Fu’s poems are translated into English |
| B．Du Fu’s poetry wins the world’s recognition |
| C．A BBC documentary reflects Chinese culture |
| D．A BBC documentary presents China’s Shakespeare |
