【推荐3】Land Art, sometimes referred to as Earth Art or Earthworks, is a form of art which involves using physical landscapes to create art, taking art out of the museum and into the outside world. Modern Land Art movement really got going in the 1960s when American artists began creating Land Art on a large scale.Today, works of modern Land Art can be seen all over the world, sometimes right alongside much older pieces of Land Art created by people who lived thousands of years ago.

Land Art, which is not necessarily unchangeable, can take a number of forms. For example, in 1970 Robert Smithson created the Spiral Jetty (螺旋状防波堤), made of a collection of stones and mud, in the Great Salt Lake. The American artist made a large jetty in a spiral shape which sticks out into the waters of the lake.

Reshaping the landscape is a common characteristic of Land Art，which can be created by moving parts around. People can also add things to the environment to create Land Art, like salt, which is added to the Spiral Jetty. It is possible to use plants.In all cases, Land Art is immovable.

Land Art is designed to gradually form, change, and eventually decay (衰落). That’s one of the biggest differences between Land Art and most of the art one sees in the museums. Some works of art can exist only for a few hours or days. Others are exposed to rain and wind so that they develop and decay over time, which is part of the attractiveness in the eyes of the artists.

1. What do we know about Robert Smithson?

A．He is a great creative artist.

B．He lives near the Great Salt Lake.

C．He made the most famous Land Art.

D．He is a pioneer in creating Land Art.

2. What’s one of the unique characteristics of Land Art?

A．It shows the extreme beauty of nature.

B．It develops and decays gradually over time.

C．It combines the landscapes around completely.

D．It offers the artists a chance to get close to nature.

3. What is the passage mainly about?

A．Works of Land Art.

B．History of Land Art.

C．Changes of Land Art.

D．Introduction to Land Art.

【推荐1】Reading poetry can be challenging, but learning how to carefully move through a poem is also very rewarding.     1     However, by following the tips below, anyone can have the deeply rewarding experience of connecting to a great poem.

Feel various sounds. Poetry is made to be heard. You’re probably familiar with rhyming poems but there are many sound elements that poets use not only to make the poem sound beautiful, but to enhance the meaning or intention of a poem.     2     What do you notice about how it sounds? How does the sound enhance an overall theme, mood, or message?

    3     Many poems may use words or reference places or times in history that may be unfamiliar to you. Be curious enough to look up all the words and references by various means. You should also gather information about the poet and his life background. All of these can offer essential context to bring the poem to life.

Analyze the figurative (比喻的) language in the poem. Figurative language could be words that are repeated often in the poem or words that rhyme in each stanza (节). To get more into the figurative meaning of the poem, you should look at how the poet uses literary methods like metaphor (隐喻), simile, and imagery.     4    

Finally, you don’t have to fully understand it. If you like the way a poem sounds when you read it aloud, but don’t know what it “means”, that’s OK!     5     The great thing about art is that it can have lots of different meanings or seemingly no meaning at all and can sill be enjoyed. The same goes for poetry.

A．Consult the dictionary.

B．Curiosity kills the confusion.

C．They are often used to add deeper meaning to the poem.

D．Maybe it makes sense in a way that you can’t necessarily express.

E．Once you find a poem that interests you, read it out loud several times.

F．You should also pay attention to how the poet opens and closes the poem.

G．Unlike painting and music, poetry requires much extra effort to harvest its full effects.

【推荐2】No poem should ever be discussed or “analyzed”，until it has been read aloud by someone，teacher or student.Better still，perhaps，is the practice of reading it twice，once at the beginning of the discussion and once at the end，so the sound of the poem is the last thing one hears of it.

All discussions of poetry are，in fact，preparations for reading it aloud，and the reading of the poem is，finally，the most telling “interpretation” of it，suggesting tone，rhythm，and meaning all at once.Hearing a poet read the work in his or her own voice，on records or on film，is obviously a special reward.But even those aids to teaching can not replace the student and teacher reading it or，best of all，reciting it.

I have come to think，in fact，that time spent reading a poem aloud is much more important than “analyzing” it，if there isn't time for both.I think one of our goals as teachers of English is to have students love poetry.Poetry is “a criticism of life”，and “a heightening(提升) of life”．It is “an approach to the truth of feeling”，and it “can save your life”．It also deserves a place in the teaching of language and literature more central than it presently occupies.

I am not saying that every English teacher must teach poetry.Those who don't like it should not be forced to put that dislike on anyone else.But those who do teach poetry must keep in mind a few things about its essential nature，about its sound as well as its sense，and they must make__room in the classroom for hearing poetry as well as thinking about it.

1. To have a better understanding of a poem，one should ________．

A．discuss it with others

B．analyze it by oneself

C．copy it down in a notebook

D．practise reading it aloud

2. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a function of poetry?

A．Extend your life.	B．Save your life.
C．Criticize life.	D．Heighten life.

3. According to the writer，one of the purposes of teaching English is to get students ________．

A．to understand life	B．to enjoy poetry
C．to become teachers	D．to become poets

4. The phrase “make room” in the last paragraph could be best replaced by “________”．

A．build a booth

B．provide equipment

C．leave a certain amount of time

D．set aside enough space

【推荐1】Absolutely Unputdownable Books You Have to Read

Flowers for Algernon

Daniel Keyes

If you don’t enjoy thrillers or sci-fi and stories about dragon-riding detectives, if you’re longing for something emotional, slow and gentle, this beautiful little book by Francoise Sagan is just what you need. Strongly recommended by psychological doctors, it’s a pleasant exception among traditional romance novels: you’ll find all of the advantages of high-quality literature here. And yes, it’s a real page-turner.

Orphans of the Sky

Robert A. Heinlein

A giant generation ship is sailing without guidance through the depths of the universe. Its passengers have long forgotten the outside world and believed in a pre-technological culture marked by superstition (迷信). This novel has brought Heinlein wide recognition, and will grasp you tight and won’t let you go for months (or even years) afterward. Are we, the digital generation, different from the passengers of that imaginary spaceship?

95 Pounds of Hope

Anna Gavalda

Adapted from the author’s own experience, this story is about the main things in life: choices we make, the power of love and devotion. The story of a thirteen-year-old boy who one day has to gather all his strength and courage and take a step towards adulthood proves once again that dreams do come true. After all, no matter how many pounds we have, we’re all trying not to lose hope.

A Certain Smile

Francoise Sagan

If you’re seeking a pleasant read, try this short story by Daniel Keyes. He’ll show you how a person feels going from a simple cleaner at a bakery, whose IQ is less than 60, to a genius and the most intelligent person on the planet. In a situation like this, is it possible to overcome your fears and cope with loneliness? Keyes offers his answer to this question.

1. What kind of book is Orphans of the Sky?

A．A science fiction.	B．A historical novel.
C．A detective story.	D．A fairy tale.

2. What is special about 95 Pounds of Hope?

A．It is not suitable for adult readers.	B．It is about a boy serving in army.
C．It is based loosely on a true story.	D．It brought its author great fame.

3. Which is the best choice for someone suffering from mental illness?

A．Flowers for Algernon	B．Orphans of the Sky
C．95 Pounds of Hope	D．A Certain Smile

【推荐2】As William Shakespeare is to literature in English, so is the poet Du Fu to the Chinese literary tradition. “We have Dante, Shakespeare and Du Fu. These poets create the very values by which poetry is judged,” remarked Harvard Professor Stephen Owen in Du Fu: China’s Greatest Poet, a BBC documentary that aired on April 7.

Aimed at introducing the charm and beauty of traditional Chinese literature to viewers around the globe, the documentary invited the famous British actor Ian McKellen, who played the wizard Gandalf in the film series The Lord of the Rings, to read 15 of Du’s poems that have been translated into English.

The one-hour film traces the poet’s life experiences in detail. Born in 712, Du lived in the reign of the Emperor Xuanzong of Tang(712—756), a time marked by extraordinary prosperity, inclusiveness and glorious cultural accomplishments.

However, as An Lushan’s rebel army floored the empire, the 43-year-old Du, the former civil servant at the Tang court, had to take his family out of his hometown, and faced starvation and sufferings. Through ups and downs, the poet never stopped writing and about 1,500 poems have been kept over the ages.

Even though he never held a high position in the government, Du still cared about common people. For example, in the poem My Cottage Unroofed by Autumn Gales, he wrote that “Could I get mansions covering ten thousand miles, I’d house all poor scholars and make them beam with pleasure”.

“That is why he is honored as the Poet Sage by later generations. A difficult life and his spirit of concern about the world helped him create so many masterpieces,” Shi Wenxue, a cultural critic based in Beijing, told the Global Times.

Without doubt Du is a cultural symbol of ancient China, but his brilliant works and core spirits have also inspired people outside China. As the documentary notes, his work represents a precious cultural heritage for the entire world, not just China.

1. What can we know about the documentary?

A．It introduces Shakespeare.

B．Du Fu is acted by Ian McKellen in it.

C．Its target audience is Chinese.

D．It shows 15 of Du Fu’s poems to the audience.

2. What does the underlined word “That” in paragraph 6 refer to?

A．The concern about common people.

B．My Cottage Unroofed by Autumn Gales.

C．The low position in the government.

D．The sentence of the poem.

3. What inspired Du’s creation most according to Shi Wenxue?

A．His work experience.

B．Hard life and his caring spirit.

C．An Lushan’s rebel army.

D．The Tang Dynasty’s cultural background.

4. In which section of a website may this text appear?

A．Entertainment.	B．Health.
C．Literature.	D．Science.

【推荐3】Harper Lee, whose 1961 novel To Kill a Mockingbird on the racial troubles of the American deep south, has died at the age of 89.
Until last year, Lee had been something of a one-book literary legend. To kill a Mockingbird sold more than 40 million copies around the world and earned her a Pulitzer prize, remaining a towering presence in American literature. Another novel, Go Set A Watchman, was controversially published in July 2015 as a “sequel” to Mockingbird, though it was later confirmed to be Mockingbird’s first draft.
But from the moment Mockingbird was published to almost instant success, the author consistently avoided public attention. Lee had lived for several years in a nursing home near the house in which she had grown up in Monroeville, Alabama—the setting for Maycomb of her famous book. Her neighbor for 40 years, Sue Sellers, said, “She was such a private person. All she wanted was privacy, but she didn’t get much. There was always somebody following her around.”
James Naughtie, BBC Books Editor, commented on the novels of Harper Lee: “I think she stands, particularly among American readers, as someone who shone a light into a very dark place. She was writing at a time when people were beginning to lift the lid on everything in the South which they’d chosen not to understand. That all changed in the 1960s. So I think her status for writing that book in its extraordinarily direct way will remain.
1. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．Lee became successful with stories on American south.

B．People owe Lee’s success to luck to some degree.

C．Mockingbird makes Lee a wonder in American literature.

D．Mockingbird was a bestseller by selling 40 million copies.

2. What does “Maycomb” in Paragraph 3 probably refer to?

A．A nursing home.

B．Lee’s hometown.

C．A fiction place.

D．A main character.

3. Which best describes Americans’ attitude towards racial troubles before the 1960s?

A．Tolerant.

B．Unconcerned.

C．Sympathetic.

D．Dissatisfied

4. What can we learn from the text?

A．Lee based all her stories on her life.

B．Lee had to avoid being followed by her fans.

C．Lee wrote Go Set A Watchman before Mockingbird.

D．Lee lived in the house where she grew up for the whole life.