1 . Inside Baiduren, which looks by outward appearances like a cafe, relatives of the dead can tell the staff stories that they may not be able to share with friends and family for any number of reasons.
“Our job initially was funeral planning and handling related affairs for customers,” said Shi Xiaolin, leader of what Badiruen calls the “life experiencing project”. “After a few years, we felt that we wanted to make a breakthrough in the industry because there are still so many prejudices about funeral homes,” he explained.
That was obvious from the start. Shi and his team had difficulty finding a landlord willing to rent to a funeral parlor (殡仪馆) . In the end, the site they found was in Hongkou District, a me re 10- minute walk from Baoxing Funeral Parlor, one of the largest undertakers in Shanghai.
The Baiduren salon is decorated in a modern style, with soft lighting that contrasts with traditional funeral homes.
“Apart from those who want to pour their hearts out, we also receive families who want to discuss funeral affairs in a more relaxed, comforting environment,” Shi told Shanghai Daily.
The Baiduren salon looks like a common cafe, but many people come here to pour out their hearts about their perceptions of life and death. The salon has been more popular than the team expected since its soft opening in late February. In the past month, the team has listened to a lot of stories — from survivors who can’t seem to accept the loss of a loved one, to survivors still in shock over a death that occurred by accident. In turn, staff often relate their own stories of sorrow.
The salon, from the standpoint of both staff and customers, points to a change in how people — especially the young — view death and funerals. And Baiduren is not the only example of young people determined to make a difference in the funeral business.
1. What difficulty did Shi Xiaolin meet at first?| A．He couldn’t find employees. | B．No one would rent sites to him. |
| C．The relatives of the dead doubted him. | D．He lacked money to decorate the parlor. |
| A．They accept the new trend. | B．They show no interest in it. |
| C．They hold a wait- and- see attitude. | D．They feel it shows no respect to the dead. |
| A．Honest and reliable. | B．Warm- hearted and humble. |
| C．Considerate and creative. | D．Diligent and responsible. |
| A．The future of the Baiduren salon. | B．Other people engaging in funeral business. |
| C．The diverse services the Baiduren salon offers. | D．Young people’s view on funeral business. |
1. How does the woman feel about her work?
| A．Satisfied. | B．Stressed. | C．Tired. |
| A．Work a little harder. |
| B．Use her phone less. |
| C．Go to bed earlier. |
3 . One day, a mime (哑巴) is visiting the zoo and tries to earn some money as a street performer. As soon as he starts to draw a crowd, a zookeeper pulls him into his office. The zookeeper explains that the zoo’s most popular attraction, a gorilla, has died suddenly and the keeper fears that attendance at the zoo will fall off. He offers the mime a job to dress up as the gorilla, so the mime accepts.
The next morning the mime puts on the gorilla suit and enters the cage before the crowd comes. He soon discovers he can sleep, play and make fun of people and he draws bigger crowds than he ever did as a mime — he feels the job funny.
However, with days going by, he begins to notice that the people are paying more attention to the lion in the cage next to his. Wanting to win back his audience, he climbs to the top of his cage, crawls across a partition (隔墙), and dangles (摇晃地悬挂着) from the top to the lion’s cage first. The lion gets angry at this. The scene is a fuel to the crowd.
At the end of the day he is given a raise for being such a good attraction — well, this continues for some time. The crowds grow larger, and the mime’s pay keeps going up.
Then one day when he is hanging over the lion he slides and falls. The mime is terrified. He starts screaming “Help me!”, but the lion is quick. The mime soon finds himself flat on his back looking up at the angry lion and the lion says, “Shut up you fool! Do you want to get us both fired?”
1. Why does the mime accepts the zookeeper’s offer?| A．Because he wants to make some money. | B．Because the zoo is popular with people. |
| C．Because he doesn’t like being a mime. | D．Because he likes performing at the zoo. |
| A．Hard and tiring. | B．Dangerous but exciting. |
| C．Boring but well-paid. | D．Easy and funny. |
| A．frightening | B．disappointing | C．familiar | D．exciting |
| A．The lion fell onto the ground. | B．The mime was bitten by the lion. |
| C．The lion was played by a person. | D．The mime was fired by the zoo. |
1. Where does the conversation take place?
| A．In a shop. | B．At home. | C．In the office. |
| A．Playing tennis. | B．Taking pictures. | C．Riding bikes. |
| A．A TV reporter. | B．A blank clerk. | C．A tennis player. |
1. Who is the newcomer?
| A．David Cook. | B．Liam Neeson. | C．Joey Sanders. |
| A．He is a film director. |
| B．He is a program manager. |
| C．He is a department head. |
1. When was Monica offered the position as a local news reporter?
| A．In 2016. | B．In 2017. | C．In 2019. |
| A．She moved to another city. |
| B．She tried to pursue her dream. |
| C．She wanted to take up a better position. |
| A．Impressive. | B．Enjoyable. | C．Promising. |
| A．Her professional skills. |
| B．Her work experience. |
| C．Her educational background. |
| A．Thrilling. | B．Encouraging. | C．Upsetting. |
| A．To call a meeting. |
| B．To send an invitation. |
| C．To check on the arrangements. |
1. Which department did Ms. Long work in?
| A．The marketing department. | B．The accounts department. | C．The overseas department. |
| A．Recommend a job to Elliot. | B．Ask for a job transfer. | C．Talk with Ms. Long. |
10 . Maria is my elder sister. She had
When she came back home to visit us two years ago, she was a shadow of her former self,
That was when she decided to take a try into the
I saw her last week and the great change left me
| A．actually | B．always | C．seldom | D．hardly |
| A．finished | B．intended | C．continued | D．attended |
| A．difficult | B．certain | C．important | D．easy |
| A．failed | B．mattered | C．changed | D．stopped |
| A．tired | B．absent | C．free | D．safe |
| A．beliefs | B．pressures | C．losses | D．needs |
| A．wide | B．unfamiliar | C．unfocused | D．wet |
| A．visit | B．flight | C．tour | D．research |
| A．unconcerned | B．unaware | C．unusual | D．unknown |
| A．teachers | B．doctors | C．workers | D．students |
| A．alarmed | B．focused | C．panicked | D．amazed |
| A．reflecting | B．smiling | C．complaining | D．proving |
| A．helped | B．invited | C．called | D．loved |
| A．proud | B．inspiring | C．responsible | D．brave |
| A．conclusion | B．goal | C．decision | D．sight |
