| tear down; weigh on; account for; at the mercy of; approve of; broaden one’s mind; swing into action |
2. The kite was up and down overhead
3. The reasons
4. In recent years, many enterprises
5. Among the biggest achievements was the
2 . “What if I told you that I murdered Basil?”
“You couldn’t murder anyone, Dorian. He probably fell into the Seine from a bus. By the way, where’s that wonderful portrait he did of you? Oh! I remember now. You told me years ago that you sent it to Selby Manor and that it got lost or stolen on the way. What a pity! I wanted to buy it. I wish I had now.” Lord Henry said.
“I never really liked it,” said Dorian.
“How have you kept your youth, Dorian? You must have some secret. I’m only ten years older than you are, and I’m wrinkled and old. Please, tell me your secret. To get back my youth, I’d do anything in the world, except take exercise, get up early, or be respectable.”
When Dorian arrived home that night, he sent his servant to bed, and sat down on the sofa in the library. Then he began to think about his life.
“I’ve been an evil influence on my friends, and I’ve ruined the lives of many good young people,” he thought, “Ah! Why did I pray for the portrait to grow old, and for me to stay young? I worshiped beauty and eternal youth, but they ruined me. It’s better not to think of the past. Nothing can change that. I must think of the future. James Vane is dead. Alan Campbell is dead, too. He shot himself one night in his laboratory.”
“I’m safe now,” he continued. “Basil painted the portrait that ruined my life. I can’t forgive him for that. Everything is the portrait’s fault.”
He began to wonder about the portrait. “If I’m good, maybe the portrait will become beautiful again,” he thought. “I’ll go and look.”
He took the lamp from the table and went upstairs. As he unlocked the door, he smiled. “Yes, I’ll be good,” he thought, “I won’t be frightened of this portrait any more.”
He went upstairs to the room and locked the door. Then he pulled the purple cloth off the portrait. He gave a cry of pain. The portrait was more horrible. His face looked more evil. There was new blood on the hand and on the feet.
Dorian trembled with fear. Dorian looked round the room and saw the knife that stabbed Basil Hallward. It was bright and shining.
“This knife killed the artist, and now it will kill the artist’s work,” he thought.
He grabbed the knife, and then he stabbed the portrait with it.
1. What do we know about Lord Henry from the passage?| A．He doubted slightly whether Dorian murdered Basil. |
| B．He would do whatever he could to get back his youth. |
| C．The portrait he wanted to buy was stolen by Selby Manor. |
| D．The truth about how Dorian kept his youth was hidden from him. |
| A．Dorian admitted he was badly affected by his friends. |
| B．Alan Campbell shot himself one night in his laboratory. |
| C．Dorian blamed his sufferings on the portrait and Basil. |
| D．Dorian wanted to kill himself so that the portrait could become normal. |
| A．Admired. | B．Deserved. | C．Maintained. | D．Ignored. |
| A．Because the portrait aroused too much curiosity of his friends. |
| B．Because the portrait reflecting his soul made him suffer great pain. |
| C．Because he was jealous of the portrait which would never grow old. |
| D．Because he thought the portrait would take his youth and beauty away. |
3 . At first glance (扫视) , the most unusual thing about the book is that it was finished without the co-authors ever meeting. Unusual though that maybe, the story of the power of the human spirit to defeat everything, as told in Black Ice, makes the story of its writing unimportant.
The book comes out in December 2022 in Selly Oak Hospital. A soldier returns to consciousness (意识). All he can think about is that his shoes are killing him. He calls over a nurse and asks her to take them off. The nurse has no idea what to do because, not only does the soldier have no shoes to take off, but also he has no lower legs either.
Corie Mapp was born in the countryside of eastern Barbados in 1978. In 2005 he bought a one-way ticket to London to run after his dream: to serve in The Life Guards, the senior group of the British Army.
Mapp passed easily through basic training. In 2008, he was chosen as a vehicle driver, and, in January 2010, while on duty under enemy fire, his vehicle ran over an bomb. Two weeks later, as already related, he returned to consciousness in Selly Oak Hospital without his legs.
Despite his life-changing injuries, Mapp drew on the love of his family and his skill at sports to recover. Within two weeks of regaining consciousness, he was walking on prosthetic legs (假肢), within a month he was driving a car, and he went on over the coming months to compete successfully in athletics and sitting volleyball for the British Army in the 2013 Warrior Games.
As the book describes, his fireplace at home was soon full of trophies (奖杯). In this book, Black Ice tells Mapp’s unusual life story with humour — but also with some very firmly held beliefs about life. This is a human-interest story like no other.
1. What’s the most unusual thing about the book Black Ice?| A．The writing story of the book. |
| B．The positive spirit the story carries. |
| C．The independent writing process of the story. |
| D．The power of success the story carries. |
| A．Determined and easy-going. | B．Sensitive and potential. |
| C．Strong-willed and capable. | D．Friendly and talkative. |
| A．Mapp’s struggle against his injuries. |
| B．Mapp’s life-changing injuries |
| C．Mapp’s attitudes to his prosthetic legs. |
| D．Mapp’s dream of winning success. |
| A．A short story. | B．A diary entry. | C．A news report. | D．A book review. |
4 . With some 50 million copies in print, Johanna Spyri’s Heidi is probably the biggest Swiss bestseller of all time. So it's not a surprise there have been many film adaptations. The latest one, directed by Alain Gsponer, is a live-action, German-language feature that’s simply titled Heidi as well.
Heidi’s impressive box-office numbers prove that the world was ready for yet another version of this old-fashioned tale. The feature made over $15.5 million in Germany and Switzerland alone. Even more impressive are the numbers in Italy and France (not generally areas where German-language children’s films stand any chance).
Gsponer’s film follows the basic structure of the 1881 novel. 5-year-old Heidi is shipped off by her aunt, Dete, to her don’t-waste-any-words grandfather, who lives alone in a small wooden house high up in the Swiss Alps. He is not pleased to see his routine in the peaceful mountain air messed up by a curious little girl who needs looking after. The film doesn’t lay stress on the point, but even for those who haven’t read the book, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the lovely little girl will soon manage to melt Granddad’s icy heart.
At age 8, Heidi is taken away to Frankfurt, where her aunt has found her a rich family as a companion (伙伴) to a wheelchair-bound child, Klara. As in the novel, the film plays Heidi’s initial fish-out-of-the-water situation for comedy, since, as a country girl, she has no idea about things as basic as clean clothes or table manners. Actually, in the midsection, the girls’ strict governess (女家庭教师) gets some of the biggest laughs.
This is also a plot necessity. Heidi will need to start to feel homesick. She misses not only Grandpa but also her cute goat herder friend, Peter. She does get to see them again.
Throughout the movie, Gsponer keeps contrasting (对比) different elements, including the seasons, the city and the country and even characters, such as the dark-haired and earthy Heidi and the fair-skinned and fair-haired city girl Klara. These natural contrasts help give a sense of agreement to a plot.
1. What does the author want to show by mentioning the box-office numbers?| A．Gsponer’s Heidi is a big success. | B．A lot of people understand German. |
| C．It is a great idea to adapt a novel. | D．Heidi’s story is too old to be popular. |
| A．Heidi needs a house. | B．He is not wealthy. |
| C．Heidi behaves badly. | D．He prefers to live alone. |
| A．She fits in well. | B．She feels out of place. |
| C．She feels lonely. | D．She laughs at governess. |
| A．A short story. | B．An introduction to a book. |
| C．A film review. | D．A script of a documentary. |
5 . Standing on the shore of a lake. I can’t help but marvel at the tens or hundreds of thousands of small rocks that surround my boots. They were all created from hard surfaces, their edges softening over time.
And I wonder, can we learn from a pile of rocks?
Even the tallest mountains have worn down; none are as tall as they were 1.000 years ago. And much like a rock, I’ve found my attitude has softened and my desire to better understand others has expanded with each trip around the sun.
Once I too was a sharp rock covered in pointy edges. Today, after decades of the waters of life coursing over me, my edges are softer and more understanding. I’m less likely to judge and more interested in learning how we can exist together.
But I’m not a rock. I’m a human being filled with all the drama built into my DNA.
Two years ago, while traveling in the Pacific Northwest, I watched a restaurant owner ask several people to leave for not wearing masks. Not forceful and not rude. On the door read a sign: “Please wear a mask before entering our restaurant. We don’t like it either, but let’s all do what we can to get through this together.”
The group of young men wished to argue about the note.
I sat watching, understanding both sides. I’ve been those guys before, using my youthful edges to chip away at the world. What I lost, however, was the ability to grow from experiences by looking through the eyes of others. In learning to be more open, I’ve also found more happiness and success.
You can fit more rounded rocks in a jar than those with sharp edges. The former look for ways to adjust and make room for others; the latter never give an inch to accommodate others.
Time, like the waters rolling against once sharp stones, changes us by washing away our resistance to seeing the world from another’s point of view.
I placed a rounded stone into my jacket pocket. Mother Nature is holding class again.
1. What does the author compare the rocks to?| A．People’s abilities. | B．People’s personalities. |
| C．What nature offers us. | D．Challenges we come across. |
| A．They were dissatisfied with the owner’s attitude to them. |
| B．They were unwilling to do what the owner wished them to. |
| C．They intended to skip out on the bill due to the poor service. |
| D．They were not allowed to leave the restaurant for their rudeness. |
| A．We should adjust to new conditions. |
| B．Be brave when in the face of difficulties in life. |
| C．It’s necessary to consider the feelings of others. |
| D．Being open and understanding brings you more happiness. |
| A．Changing with Time | B．Learning from Nature |
| C．Growing from Experiences | D．Seeing from a Different Angle |
1. What’s the purpose of the experiment?
| A．To test the size of different people’s lungs. |
| B．To hold the air that you blow out at a time. |
| C．To know the amount of air your lungs can hold. |
| D．To measure how much water you can blow out once. |
| A．To hold the air you blow out. |
| B．To show the size of the bottle. |
| C．To measure the air you blow out. |
| D．To display the process of the experiment. |
| A．The experimenter blows out air harder. |
| B．The experimenter takes a deeper breath. |
| C．Less water is left in the bowl after the experiment. |
| D．Less water is left in the bottle after the experiment. |
7 . The short film Piper, released by Pixar in 2016, won the 89th Academy Award for Best Animated Short film. Piper was written and directed by Alan Barillaro, previously working in the animation department. It’s a wonder that he had the fortune to win Oscar for his first film.
The short film follows a baby bird named Piper, as she learns and overcomes her fears of finding food at the seafront. Piper is encouraged to peck（啄）at the sand beach but gets wet through with water from a wave. Discouraged by the terrible wave, she hopes to get food from her mother but fails. After gathering up the courage again, she meets a hermit crab（寄居蟹）who shows her not to be scared of the ocean but to embrace it. Finally, she discovers the secret of the ocean and feeds herself even her family. It’s a story about facing challenges and not being discouraged by failure. Like Piper, we can always find solutions and come out stronger than ever before.
Somehow Pixar manages to fit all of these into a five-minute-long short film, without using any spoken language and entirely by animation. Movements and personified facial expressions are what drive this story in this film. Much like the nature documentary, the continuous pulling of the shallow focus adds the sense of realism. The clean and clear animation allows for even the slightest micro-expressions to be picked up by the audience. And the music is consistent with Piper’s emotions, making the audience feel the same way.
This film and lots of others by Pixar make us laugh and cry all the time. By fitting a simple story with simple characters, we are led through challenges to a satisfying conclusion for our characters. It’s one of the best short films in a long time.
1. What is the storyline of the short film?| A．A mother instructs her child to find food. |
| B．A bird overcomes fears and grows independent。 |
| C．A bird family tries to adapt to life at the seafront. |
| D．A sand beach offers food to the birds living nearby. |
| A．Animation and music. | B．Sound and virtual scenes. |
| C．Movements and speeches. | D．Clear pictures and vivid lines. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Critical. | C．Favorable. | D．Negative. |
| A．A documentary. | B．A review. | C．A story. | D．An essay. |
8 . Bear Grylls’s Adventure Tales
Mr. Grylls has established himself as television's foremost survivalist. In episodes of Man vs. Wild, he has been dropped into some punishing environments (the sands of the Sahara, the frigid Siberian wilderness with little more than a knife, a water bottle, and the instructions to make it out alive. Below are excerpts from an interview with him.
Q: When did you first grow interested in the outdoors?
A: My late dad had been a climber. He started taking me out into the wild at a young age, doing everything from climbing sea cliffs hundreds of feet up to making boats and building treehouses. He taught me to take risks but to always listen to my inner voice and to work out clever solutions even when the situation has left you dramatically low on tools.
Q: Last time when you were in southern Africa, your parachute failed to open, resulting in an injury that nearly left you paralyzed. What effect did that have on you?
A: Those long months in military rehabilitation(康复) were a dark time for me. I couldn't move and was in constant pain, strapped up in braces. It was while I was lying there that I determined tore-find my childhood dream to climb Mount Qomolangma. I counted myself blessed to be able to leave that hospital fully recovered, determined to live life boldly and without regrets.
Q: Why do you find adventure travel so attractive?
A: Adventure brings out the best and worst in people. We don't always allow ourselves to get pushed to the edge, either physically or mentally. Adventure is different: The wild is unpredictable. However much we prepare, things sometimes go wrong, and it is then that the real adventure begins. My experience tells me that people are much stronger than they often give themselves credit for. It is why I say the wild can empower you.
Q: What was your most dangerous trip?
A: Probably a small expedition I led across the Arctic Ocean in an open inflatable boat. We hit very unusual subzero storms off the ice packs of Greenland and gale force winds. In a tiny open boat, you are truly at the mercy of the elements, and your survival is then taken out of your hands and put into those of Mother Nature. All five of us had to face the prospect of death during those nights.
1. What qualities did Bear Grylls develop under the influence of his father?| A．Being daring and efficient. |
| B．Being resourceful and patient. |
| C．Being courageous and persevering. |
| D．Being adventurous and true to himself. |
| A．Bear never felt regretful for having taken the adventure in southern Africa. |
| B．Bear fulfilled his childhood dream of climbing Mount Qomolangma. |
| C．Bear felt grateful for being able to recover from an injury that almost paralyzed him. |
| D．Making adequate preparations can help to bring adventures completely under control. |
| A．under the guidance of | B．under the control of |
| C．under the protection of | D．under the disguise of |
| A．Men Fashion | B．Pop Culture |
| C．Travel Weekly | D．Space & Cosmos (宇宙) |
9 . Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave(咆哮) at close of day
Rage(怒斥), rage against the dying of the light
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail(虚弱的) deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieve it on its way
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors(流星) and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
1. The speaker of the poem can be best described as __________.| A．person on his/her deathbed | B．a deeply religiously person |
| C．a passionate son or daughter | D．a star gazer |
| A．a natural disaster | B．death |
| C．anger | D．sleeping |
| A．peace and tranquility(平静) | B．resiliency(弹性) and toughness |
| C．frustration and anger | D．confusion and surprise |
| A．“Lightning”& “Blinding Sight” | B．“the sun in flight” and “the sad height” |
| C．“Good night”& “Dying of the Light” | D．“Curse” and “Blaze like meteors” |
10 . Three passions, simple but overwhelmingly strong, have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge, and unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind. These passions, like great winds, have blown me hither and thither, in a wayward course over a deep ocean of anguish, reaching to the very verge of despair.
I have sought love, first, because it brings ecstasy—ecstasy so great that I would often have sacrificed all the rest of my life for a few hours for this joy. I have sought it, next, because it relieves loneliness—that terrible loneliness in which one shivering consciousness looks over the rim of the world into the cold unfathomable lifeless abyss. I have sought it, finally, because in the union of love I have seen, in a mystic miniature, the prefiguring vision of the heaven that saints and poets have imagined. This is what I sought, and though it might seem too good for human life, this is what—at last—I have found.
With equal passion I have sought knowledge. I have wished to understand the hearts of men. I have wished to know why the stars shine. And I have tried to apprehend the Pythagorean (毕达哥拉斯) power by which number holds sway above the flux. A little of this, but not much, I have achieved.
Love and knowledge, so far as they were possible, led upward toward the heavens. But always pity brought me back to earth. Echoes of cries of pain reverberate in my heart. Children in famine, victims tortured by oppressors, helpless old people a hated burden to their sons, and the whole world of loneliness, poverty, and pain make a mockery (嘲弄) of what human life should be. I long to alleviate (减少) the evil, but I cannot, and I too suffer.
This has been my life. I have found it worth living, and would gladly live it again if the chance were offered me.
1. Which would be the best title of the essay?| A．The suffering of life. | B．The truth about love. |
| C．The forces driving me. | D．The power of knowledge. |
| A．The shining stars. | B．Great winds. |
| C．A bottomless abyss. | D．A boundless ocean. |
| A．It relieves loneliness. | B．It brings ecstasy. |
| C．It provides a glimpse of heaven. | D．It leads to a marriage. |
| A．He regrets that he could not free himself of pity. |
| B．Human love is ultimately disappointing. |
| C．Heaven is merely a poetic invention. |
| D．A loving person naturally wants to relieve the suffering of others. |
