Pat O’Burke was a poor Irishman with a large family, and one morning, waking up very early from cold and hunger, he decided to go shooting in a wood near his cottage. The wood belonged to Lord Northwood, a rich gentleman, Pat had no right to go there, but in it there were swarms of rabbits and flocks of birds that were good to eat, and Pat determined to take the risk. Suddenly he saw the owner, with a group of friends, coming towards him in the wood. There was a look of anger on Lord Northwood’s face as he caught sight of the gun in Pat’s hands. Pat’s heart sank with fear, but he saw there was no hope of escape, so he walked boldly(大胆) up to the company and said to Lord Northwood, “Good morning, sir, and what has brought you out so early this morning?” Lord Northwood, rather surprised, said he and his Mends were taking a little exercise to get an appetite(食欲) for their breakfast. Then, looking at Pat with suspicion(怀疑), he said, “but why are you out so early in the morning?” “Well, sir” said Pat, “I just came out to see if I could get a breakfast for my appetite.” The whole crowed burst into laughter at Pat’s ready wit(机智), and with a smile Lord Northwood walked on, leaving Pat to try his luck with the rabbits.
1. This is a story about ________.| A．a rich man who owned a big wood |
| B．a poor Irishman who lived all by himself |
| C．a clever man who tried to get something to eat |
| D．an Irish hunter with a large family |
| A．He was not expecting Pat at this early hour. |
| B．He knew Pat was coming for shooting. |
| C．He didn’t like the poor Irishman at all. |
| D．Pat had not told him he would come. |
| A．He had not expected such a bold question from Pat. |
| B．He wondered why Pat ran away. |
| C．Pat wasn’t afraid of him. |
| D．Pat had a gun in his hands. |
| A．Pat’s funny looks |
| B．Pat’s interesting remarks |
| C．Pat’s quick and humorous response |
| D．Pat’s promise to leave fight away |
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【推荐1】Tony Hawk, who I thought was bigger than life, came in the room and then the interview began.
As the world’s greatest skateboarder, he talked about how his life was not always so miraculous (奇迹般的). He mentioned one day he was skating on top of the world, and the next day the sport of skateboarding fell right on its face. Life for Tony has had its ups and downs, and what brought him back up was the way he believed in himself. One of the most tragic events in Tony’s life was that his father passed away. Although he suffered such pain, he never lost sight of his dream. He put his energy into his dream, which helped him overcome his sadness.
One part of Tony that completely impressed me is the way he accepts himself. His goal is never to do better than others, but to do his best. If he does the best he can, it doesn’t matter how anyone else takes him. That’s true and wise. As for me, I play baseball and things aren’t going so well, but I’m trying my hardest because that’s life. It’s how you approach those bad days that will keep you on top.
Confidence brought Tony to the next level. During our meeting he continually talked about the importance of following one’s dream. He also said, along with that, one needs to have a strong faith in one’s own ability to achieve that dream, no matter what challenges are presented.
By the end, I didn’t see the same guy who had walked through the door an hour earlier. Now I view him as more than a world-class skateboarder. He is also a normal person who has dealt with many of the same problems we all face, but the difference is that he is always able to rise above his problems by having faith in his dream.
1. What does the underlined part “fell right on its face” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Finished. | B．Continued. | C．Failed. | D．Happened. |
| A．accepts Tony Hawk’s suggestion |
| B．doesn’t want to play baseball anymore |
| C．wants to be as successful as Tony Hawk |
| D．has the same view of life as Tony Hawk |
| A．His achievement. | B．His unusual experience. |
| C．His confidence in winning the game. | D．His determination to realize his dream. |
| A．Simple. | B．Real. | C．Lucky. | D．Cautious. |
【推荐2】Tapping on the windshield (挡风玻璃) to get his attention, I asked, “Is your taxi available?”
He looked up at me, nodding, “I’m sorry. I was reading a letter.”
“I’m in no hurry,” I told him. “Go ahead and finish your letter.”
He shook his head, “I’ve read it several times.”
“Letters from home always mean a lot.” I said.
“This isn’t family.” he replied, “Old Ed was my oldest friend. He was a nice guy.”
“You said ‘was’. Does that mean—?”
He nodded, “Died a few weeks ago.”
“I’m sorry.”
After a brief silence, I heard him repeat: “I should have kept in touch. But things come up and we just don’t seem to find the time.”
“We used to find the time,” he handed the letter over to me. “Take a look.”
The letter began with “Old Friend,” and then referred to the good times they had had together.
“For the last 30 years it’s been mostly just Christmas cards. Never a real letter. I’m not good at writing.” He added.
“It must have made you feel good, didn’t it?” I said.
The driver said something I couldn’t understand. As we were getting close to our destination, I skipped to the last paragraph. It was signed, Your Old Friend, Tom.
“Your friend’s name was Ed. Why did he sign it Tom?”
“I’m Tom,” he explained, looking as if he were trying to see something in the distance.
When I got to my hotel room I didn’t unpack right away. First I had to write a letter and mail it.
1. What can we learn about the driver from the passage?| A．He lost his oldest friend. |
| B．He never got in touch with his old friend. |
| C．He thought nothing matters more than friendship. |
| D．He was so focused on writing a letter in the beginning. |
| A．A Christmas card. | B．The time spent with Old Ed. |
| C．The letter the writer was reading. | D．The friendship between the driver and his friend. |
| A．Because he missed his friends very much. |
| B．Because he formed the habit of writing letters. |
| C．Because he happened to have time to write a letter. |
| D．Because he didn’t want to have the same regret as the driver. |
| A．A sincere heart. | B．A letter never sent. |
| C．Memories of an old friend. | D．All good things must come to an end. |
February 7 marks the 200th anniversary of the writer’s birthday. To mark this date, BBC writer Alex Hudson listed six things Dickens gave the modern world. Let’s take a look at two of them.
A White Christmas
Dickens is described as “the man who invented Christmas” － not the religious festival, but the cultural aspects that we associate with the festive season today.
In the early 19th century, Christmas was barely worth mentioning, according to critic and writer Leigh Hunt. The committee which ran the Conservative Party even held ordinary business meetings on Christmas Day－unthinkable in the West nowadays, when everyone but the most necessary workers takes at least three days off.
Many people believe that Dickens’ popular descriptions of the festive period became a blueprint for generations to come. In his classic novel, A Christmas Carol, he not only put forward the idea of snow at Christmas, but also painted a picture of glowing warmth－“home enjoyments, affections and hopes”.
In his biography of Dickens, Peter Ackroyd wrote: “Dickens can be said to have almost single-handedly created the modern idea of Christmas.”
“Dickens” poverty(贫穷)
Dickens was one of the first to take an honest look at the underclass and the poor of Victorian London.He helped popularize the term “red tape” to describe situations where people in power use needless amounts of bureaucracy(官僚作风) in a way that particularly hurts the weaker and poorer members of society.
“Dickensian” has now become a powerful word for describing an unacceptable level of poverty. In 2009, when the president of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in the UK wanted to talk about poverty in some areas of Britain, she did not use words like “terrible” or “horrific”, but rather described it as “life mirroring the times of Dickens”.
1. The article is mainly about____________
| A．a brief introduction to Charles Dickens |
| B．Charles Dickens’ influence on the world |
| C．the characters in Charles Dickens’ stories |
| D．Charles Dickens’ achievements in literature |
| A．Because he created both religious and culture festival. |
| B．Because all his novels have something to do with Christmas. |
| C．Because one of his novels helped to shape Christmas celebrations. |
| D．Because he was the first man to have proposed celebrating Christmas. |
| A．Dickensian is widely used to describe the Christmas |
| B．Charles Dickens’ novels reflect the true life at his age |
| C．Every person can take three days off for Christmas |
| D．The theme of Charles Dickens’ stories is about poverty |
As a writer, I know about winning contests – and about losing them. I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection letter from the publisher. I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories. What if she doesn’t win the contest again? That’s the strange thing about being a parent. So many of our own past scars and destroyed hopes can resurface in our children.
A revelation (启示) came last week when I asked her, “Don’t you want to win again?” “No,” she replied, “I just want to tell the story of an angel going to first grade.”
I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously (自发地) told them. Telling myself that I was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall, I offered suggestions for characters, conflicts and endings for her tales. The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly “guided” by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson. I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it.
Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks. Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade, I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting my daughter’s experience.
While stepping back was difficult for me, it was certainly a good first step that I will quickly follow with more steps, putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked. All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment, grow and find their own voices.
1. What do we learn from the first paragraph?
| A．A lot of amusements compete for children’s time nowadays. |
| B．Children have lots of fun doing mindless activities. |
| C．Rebecca is much too busy to enjoy her leisure time. |
| D．Rebecca draws on a lot of online materials for her writing. |
| A．She was constantly under pressure to write more. |
| B．Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers. |
| C．She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer. |
| D．Her road to success was full of pain and frustrations. |
| A．She believed she possessed real talent for writing. |
| B．She was sure of winning with her mother’s help. |
| C．She wanted to share her stories with readers. |
| D．She had won a prize in the previous contest. |
| A．trying not to let her daughter enjoy her own life |
| B．trying to get her daughter to do the thing as the author wished |
| C．making sure that her daughter would win the contest |
| D．helping her daughter develop real skills for writing |
“Even though I have many difficulties in my life, I don’t want people to feel bad for me,” Sam said during a TED talk.
Progeria affects approximately one in every 4 million to 8 million newborns. Right now, there are only about 200 children living with it worldwide. The genetic(基因的) change tied to it causes those with the disease to produce the protein progerin, which blocks normal cell function.
His view on life is extremely inspiring. He had to face challenges no one else could even dream of. As children with progeria age rapidly, they suffer from a loss of body fat and hair and an inability to gain weight. That didn’t keep Sam down, though.
“All in all, I don’t waste energy feeling bad for myself,” Sam said. “I surround myself with people that I want to be with. And I keep moving forward.”
This boy from Boston was so amazing, famous people and athletes wanted to take him under their own. Last Saturday night could have been an amazing moment for Sam. One of his favorite teams, the New England Patriots, wanted to make him their honorary captain during a playoff game.
Instead, it just was’t meant to be. Sam passed away before he had a chance to stand next to his team, so they held a moment of silence before the game for him.
Sam’s unbelievable view on life, and his deep effect on others, is hard to forget. He was presented with so many challenges in life but he wasn’t afraid to face them. Be more like Sam, this wonderful teen. Surround yourself with positive people, love them and move forward.
1. We can infer from the passage that Sam Berns was ________.
| A．very fat | B．very thin |
| C．good-looking | D．young-looking |
| A．of great intelligence |
| B．of complete failure |
| C．with an optimistic view on life |
| D．with a passive view on life |
| A．Cell. | B．Change. | C．Progerin. | D．Progeria. |
| A．To praise Sam Berns for his hardwork. |
| B．To show how famous Sam Berns was. |
| C．To encourage readers to live a positive life. |
| D．To show how Sam Berns dealt with challenges. |
【推荐3】I still had a few minutes, so I swung into the cafeteria to grab a coffee. That’s when I spotted him: a threatening-looking punk rocker with biker leathers and black leather boots.
Honestly, his look scared me, so I quickly went out trying to avoid a potential encounter.
It was 1988, and I was a “mature” journalism student, heading to my favorite elective: Sociology-Study of Deviance. Our gray-haired professor was a straight shooter. He usually brought in guest speakers who represented “deviance”. Our guest speakers included an outlandish dancer, a tarot-card reader or even an alcohol addict. And when I was curious that day to see who this session’s speaker was, “Mr. punk rocker” walked in.
He started to talk in a soft voice and told us he was a university student, who lived with his grandma who needed help in every aspect. Therefore, he moved in with her and helped with the cooking and shopping, cleaning and laundry. He made sure she took her meds and tried to make her laugh at least once a day. He described it as a “win-win” for both of them, but I suspected that it was a lot tougher than he made it sound.
And then he said: “I just figure it’s normal for you to feel negative about me because of the way I look. But isn’t that the reason for the existence of such a course named Study of Deviance?”
Wow. Just wow.
“It’s hair and clothing,” he said. “I don’t plan to look this way forever, but for now I like it, and do you think it makes me deviant?”
Every so often, I think about that young man. He’d be about fifty now and couldn’t realize how he influenced me. Because of his visit that day, my kids were allowed to wear whatever they wanted, as long as it was relatively clean and not morally abusive. They are upright and kind kids although they sometimes surprise us with red hair or strange trousers. And I am also happy that I do my selective of Sociology-Study of Deviance well.
1. The underlined word deviance in the passage is closest in meaning to ________.| A．dressing. | B．style | C．abnormality | D．maturity |
| A．He was dressed in a frightening way on purpose in order to surprise the students. |
| B．He recognized the author and tried to tutor her during the session. |
| C．He wasn’t aware that many people misjudged him. |
| D．His behaviors didn’t match the appearance he presented. |
| A．Because she has learned to enjoy varied fashion styles. |
| B．Because she didn’t miss any of the course sessions. |
| C．Because she knows appearance doesn’t equal one’s quality. |
| D．Because she understands how to educate her kids. |
