8 . A vague image shows a nearly naked man in a vast field of rainforest, spear held up to the sky and pointed at the helicopter circling above him—a man defending his homeland and people from outside influence.
This very scene made front-page news some years ago in the UK. It instantly highlighted the loss of ancestral homelands some tribal communities face as a result of ever-expanding plantations. However, bad news has a way of hitting the headlines, so we’re of the opinion that all aboriginal communities are in decline-and that’s not true.
During my travels through India, Afghanistan and Pakistan in the early nineties, I spent some time living with the Kalash, a tribe that inhabits three valleys in the Hindu Kush mountain range. I became firm friends with Saifullah, the chief spokesperson, and we’re still in touch to this day.
Back then I remember talking to a very serious aid worker in the American Club in Peshawar who told me straightly that the Kalash, surrounded by conservative Islam, had no chance of survival and would be gone in 10 years. That was 25 years ago. When I caught up with Saifullah recently, asked what his response was to those who believe Kalash culture is dying.
“It’s not true,” he declared. “The Kalash culture and community is as strong today as it was when you first came. We still have our festivals. We still have a shaman and bow shakers. an Oazis who are holding the culture. the religion. Our younger people are becoming prouder of the culture they know they are different and they like it. Many are learning the old ways from the fathers,” he added.
Will Millard, a TV presenter who spent a year living with the Korawai of West Papua, agree “Perhaps tribal communities aren’t in decline, but just in transition (转型),” he told me.. “As human society, we are in a constant state of change. We accuse them of losing their culture because they’re wearing clothes, or using a gun instead of arrows, but a T-shirt doesn’t make them any of a Korawai man. Culture lives below the surface,” added Millard.
1. What is the purpose of paragraph 1?
| A．To introduce the topic of the text. | B．To call on people to protect forests. |
| C．To show conflicts between humans. | D．To describe tribal communities’ condition. |
2. What is the author’s attitude towards some media’s views about tribal communities?
| A．Skeptical. | B．Disapproving. | C．Uncaring. | D．Ambiguous. |
3. How has the culture of the Kalash changed in the last 25 years?
| A．The Kalash culture has been declining. |
| B．The younger generation have lost their traditions. |
| C．Original culture has made the Kalash richer |
| D．The younger generation have become more aware of their culture’s uniqueness. |
4. What is the main idea of the last paragraph?
| A．Tribal culture is worth preserving. |
| B．Tribal communities have been damaged. |
| C．Tribal communities are not in decline but in transition. |
| D．Traditional communities’ lives are changing. |
