2 . When we visit museums, we see cultural artifacts—from everyday household items to precious carvings and statues, which give us glimpses into the diverse cultures and communities from around the world. _______ , controversy surrounds these artifacts and whether or not countries should return these pieces of culture if they were stolen or forcefully taken during colonization.

On Wednesday, October 7, 2020, the Dutch advisory committee officially released a national report _______ to the return of cultural artifacts that were stolen from its previous colonies such as Indonesia, Suriname, and islands on the Caribbean. Through these actions, the Dutch government acknowledges the unfair treatment the colonies had previously experienced and _______ respect for the culture of these countries.

Let’s look at the issue and the two sides of the _______ .

Stolen Artifacts

By the 18th and 19th centuries, European countries had colonized many African and Asian countries. During their _______ , they either seized artifacts or took them as spoils of wars, and brought them to their own countries where they are now displayed in museums.

In 2017, the Government of Benin in West Africa negotiated with the British Museum in London to return their renowned Benin Bronzes, a collection of thousands of metal sculptures and plaques, which were _______ hung in the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin.

The debate regarding this issue _______ in 2018 when under President Emmanuel Macron, a report was released that directed that all heritage objects brought to French museums (without the permission of their original countries) be restored. With the official release of this report, museums all across Europe began to _______ their previous policies on colonial treasures.

In France, twenty-seven artifacts had been identified for restoration, but only one—a traditional sword belonging to Senegal, has been _______ . Then, on Tuesday, October 6, 2020, France’s National Assembly officially passed a bill __________ the return of these heritage artifacts, twenty-six of which alone belonged to Benin, but didn’t arrange a certain date.

The Debate

Those who propose returning these objects to their original homes __________ that with technology enabling virtual museum tours, returning these artifacts to their homeland does not take away the opportunity to learn about them. __________ , the country of origin will receive a significant part of their heritage back, and these artifacts will be given a chance to be truly appreciated under proper historical context.

Those against the restoration claim that culture is a __________ treasure and the artifacts are in fact “cultural ambassadors” that promote tolerance and understanding. They believe that while stealing them was __________ , history is full of “good” and “bad” actors. Moreover, they feel that keeping the cultural objects in the current museums have kept millions of artifacts __________ disfiguration and damage.

3 . Specialists(专家) say that it is not easy to get used to life in a new culture. “Culture shock(文化冲击)” is the _______ these specialists use when talking about the _______ that people have in a _______ environment. “There are three stages of culture shock”, say the specialists. In the first stage, the new comers like their new environment. Then, when the _______ experience dies, they begin to _______ the city, the country, the people, and everything else. In the last stage, the new comers begin to adapt to their surroundings and, as a result, enjoy their life _______ .

There are some obvious factors in culture shock. The weather may be unpleasant. The _______ may be different. The public service systems—the telephone, the post office, or the transportation—may be difficult to _______. The most simple things seem to be big problems. The language may be _______ .

Who feels culture shock? Everyone does in this way or that. ________ culture shock surprises most people. Very often the people having the worst culture shock are those who ________ had any difficulties in their home countries and were ________ in their community(集体). Coming to a new ________ these people find they do not have the same established positions. They find ________ without a role, almost without an identity(身份). They have to ________ a new self-image.

Culture shock gives rise to a feeling of disorientation(迷失方向). This feeling may be homesickness. When homesick, people feel like staying ________ all the time. They want to ________ themselves from the strange environment, and create an escape inside their room for a(n) ________ of safety. This escape does ________ the problem of culture shock in the short term, but it does nothing to make the person familiar with the culture. Getting to know the new environment and ________ experience—these are the long-term solutions to the problem of culture shock.

4 . Born and raised in Dunhuang, Northwest China’s Gansu Province, YaoYanbei _________ to Dunhuang as a promising _________ after graduating from a college in Xiamen.

In 2016, inspired by patterns in Dunhuang murals (壁画), Yao _________ a toy camel. “Through the toy camel, I intended to _________ the spirit of the locals who are usually tough-minded and hard-working,” Yao said.

In August 2017, Yao spent nearly a month inside grottoes (石窟) drawing the murals. “Staying in the grottoes from dawn to dusk, I felt _________ connected with the ancient artists who _________ the murals. It was an amazing _________,” she said. Inspired by the sculptures and murals, Yao later designed some innovative products, including T-shirts, bookmarks, pocket mirrors and key rings.

Thanks to the efforts of designers like Yao, the _________ and creative industry began to take root in Dunhuang. Starting from 2018, every year the city has _________ an international design week to help __________ the industry. “By pooling the wisdom of designers from home and abroad, we want to make Dunhuang’s creative __________ more fashionable,” said Liu Mengxing, a vice general manager of a local company.

Looking ahead at her __________ in design, Yao plans to __________ Dunhuang’s ancient art further and apply the wisdom of ancient artists to products of modern life. “I want to design more creative products that __________ to more international customers,” said Yao. “I hope my design can bring people __________ to Dunhuang.”

5 . “There are two kinds of people in the world—people who love Peking Opera and people who don’t know they love Peking Opera yet,” said Wang Peiyu in the opening section of her latest 12-episode(集) online _________ “My job is to let the _________ know about Peking Opera and then fall in love with it.”

The weekly talk show sees Wang, who is one of the _________ Peking Opera artists in China, explain the traditional art form and _________ its appeal.

With a(n) _________ of various art forms, including singing, dancing, and martial arts(武术), Peking Opera has a long history _________ back to the 19th century. In 2010, UNESCO _________ it an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity(非物质文化遗产).

Like many traditional art forms, it is challenged by popular entertainment and is losing its audience, especially among the younger generation.

Wang is trying to change the _________. She has about 1.6 million followers on micro-blogging platform Sina Weibo and has built up a large fan base among young people with her _________ techniques and charm.

Each episode, about 30 minutes long, ____________Wang introduce her unique knowledge about Peking Opera with a particular ____________ such as the making of a Peking Opera star, the ____________ of preparing for a performance, and amusing stories about the age-old art. She uses____________, direct and humorous language to____________ the audience.

One fan commented: “All I knew about Peking Opera was the painted ____________, but thanks to Wang’s show, I now know more about the art form and I look forward to watching a live performance in the theatre.”

9 . In Europe, men do not usually wear skirts. But the Scottish national costume for men is a kind of skirt. It is called a kilt. The Scottish like to be ________. They are also proud of their country and its ________ and they feel that the kilt is part of that history. That’s why the men still wear kilts at old-style dances and on national holidays. They believe they are wearing the same clothes as Scottish men always used to wear.

That’s what they believe. ________ kilts are not really so old. Before 1730, Scottish men wore a long shirt and a ________ around their shoulders. These clothes got in the way when the men started to work in ________. So, in 1730 a factory owner changed the blanket into a skirt: the kilt. That’s how the first kilt was made.

Then, in the late 1700s Scottish soldiers in the ________ Army began to wear kilts to be different from the English soldiers. The Scottish soldiers ________ very hard and became famous. The kilt was part of that fame, and in the early 1800s men all round Scotland ________ to wear kilts.

These kilts had ________ stripes going up and down and across. In the 1700s and early 1800s, the colour of the stripes had no ________ meaning. But later the colours became important to the Scottish ________. Most families had special colours for their kilts. In fact, each family just chose the ________ they liked best.

This is not the ________ you will hear today if you are in Scotland. Most Scottish people still believe that kilts are as ________ as Scotland and that the colours are also as old as the Scottish families. Sometimes feelings are stronger than ________!

10 . As Christmas is coming, there are presents to be bought, cards to be sent, rooms to be cleaned. Parents are _______ with difficult jobs of hiding presents from curious young children. If the gifts are large, this is sometimes a real _______. On Christmas Eve, young children find the excitement almost unbearable.They are _______ between the wish to go to bed early so that Father Christmas will bring their presents quickly and the wish to _______ up late so that they will not miss the fun.The wish for gifts usually proves stronger.But though children go to bed early, they often lie_______ for a long time, hoping to get a short look at Father Christmas.

Last Christmas, my wife and I _______ managed to hide a few large presents in the storeroom. I feared the moment when my son, Jimmy, would _______ me where that new bike had come from, but _______ he did not see it.

On Christmas Eve, it took the children hours to go to sleep. It must have been nearly _______when my wife and I went quietly into their room and began filling stockings. Then I pushed in the________ I bought for Jimmy and left it beside the Christmas tree.We knew we would not get ________sleep that night, for the children were ________ to get up early.At about five o’clock the next morning, we were woken by loud sounds coming from the children’s room－they were shouting excitedly!________ I had time to get out of bed, young Jimmy came riding into the room on his new bike, and his sister, Mary, ________ close behind pushing her new baby carriage. Even the baby arrived, he moved ________ the hands and knees into the room dragging a large balloon behind him. Suddenly it burst. That woke us up completely. The day had really begun with a bang.