The International Workers’ Day, sometimes
People
A recent report was issued by the China Tourism Academy,
World Olive (橄榄) Tree Day takes place
Protecting and growing the olive tree is
World Olive Tree Day is set up
There is much to learn, share and celebrate on World Olive Tree Day, and UNESCO encourages everyone to participate in
3 . Almost everyone who has studied English has been warned about the way Brits love their manners. It is part of our national identity, as much as fish and chips or complaining about the weather. Recently I have been wondering where this comes from and I read online that we say sorry up to eight times a day. Probably the same amount of times that any other person says “hello” or “how are you”. It is almost like greetings to us! It was only when I was explaining how there are five steps of saying thank you when you buy something from a shop to a Mexican friend of mine that I realised how mad it sounded.
After some research online I have not been able to find any specific reasons why we are the way we are. I suppose for centuries manners and how we eat at the table and talk to other people have been the barriers between the lower and upper classes and represent your social status. Britain has traditionally been a quite conservative country. There are many articles suggesting that this seemingly polite attitude of always saying please and thank you is quite false because it is impossible to always feel that you want to thank someone or say please.
Maybe it is for this reason that people are going one of two ways: they are incredibly polite and hold back on their feelings or not polite at all, and express their true feelings. Some Brits are fed up of pretending that they are always content and having to please people. Sometimes because we feel we have to be polite, we are prevented from saying what we truly think. Do you think it is better to not hurt people’s feelings and be polite or to let people know the truth? In your country what is the custom? I know in some countries if someone is considered to be doing their job, the clients think that they do not need to be thanked.
1. What does the author think of the British way of saying “Thank you”?A.Normal. | B.Surprising. | C.Exciting. | D.Pleasing. |
A.Why the British like to complain about the weather. |
B.Why the British love their way of showing manners. |
C.Why the British are fond of fish and chips so much. |
D.Why the British have five steps of saying thank you. |
A.Wealth and health. | B.Social status. | C.Politeness. | D.Attitudes. |
A.They want to express their true feelings. |
B.They want to let people know the truth. |
C.They are kept from saying what they think. |
D.They want to represent their social status. |
1. What is the speech mainly about?
A.Music and dancing in Guanajuato. |
B.Traditional Mexican dresses. |
C.The speaker’s career. |
A.Rock music. | B.Pop music. | C.Traditional Mexican music. |
A.Teamwork. | B.Hard work. | C.Love for the culture and music. |
A.By buying them at the store. |
B.By making them on their own. |
C.By borrowing them from their grandparents. |
1.简要说明传统节日的现状;
2.谈谈你对此现状的看法。
注意:1.词数100左右(标题已为你写好,不计入词数);
2.可以适当增加细节,使行文连贯。
Traditional Festivals in Modern Times
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faith significance lunar typical atmosphere commercial envelope away belief region take reflect feature occasion medium |
Customs play a
Festivals are becoming more and more
Festivals are an important part of society. They
BEAUTIFUL IRELAND AND ITS TRADITIONS
Ireland’s beautiful countryside has always had a great influence on its people and traditions. The country has a long history of producing great writers and poets. Its beautiful countryside excites and inspires all, offering something for each of the senses. The peaceful landscape of the “Emerald Isle” and its many green counties is a true feast for the eyes, with its rolling green hills dotted with sheep and cattle. And down by the sea, the roar of the ocean waves and cries of the seabirds make up the music of the coast. On a quiet morning in the mountains, feel the sun on your skin, and breathe in the sweet scent of fresh flowers while birds greet the new day with their morning song. With all this beauty, it is not surprising that Ireland has developed strong traditions that include music, dancing, and dining. To have a chance of experiencing this, stop by a village pub and relax with a glass of wine or a local beer. Better yet, enjoy a delicious traditional Irish Beef Stew. If you’re lucky, you might be able to enjoy some traditional music and dancing, too. And if you introduce yourself to a friendly face, you are more than likely to experience local culture and customs first-hand.
1. What makes the Irish countryside exciting and inspiring?2. What are the best ways to experience some Irish traditions and culture?
3. What is the meaning of “breathe in the sweet scent of fresh flowers while birds greet the new day with their morning song”?
4. What are the best ways to experience Chinese traditions and customs?
8 . What are pillows really stuffed with? Not physically, but symbolically? The question occurred to me with the photos in the news and social media from the 50 cities around the world that staged public celebrations for International Pillow Fight Day. Armed with nothing more than bring-our-own sacrificial cushions, strangers struck heavily each other in playful feather from Amsterdam to Atlanta, Warsaw to Washington DC. But why? Is there anything more to this delightful celebration?
As a cultural sign, the pillow is deceptively soft. Since at least the 16th Century, the humble pillow has been given unexpected meanings. The Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu tells a famous story about a wise man who meets a depressed young scholar at an inn and offers him a magic pillow filled with the most vivid dreams of a seemingly more fulfilling life. When the young man awakens to discover that his happy 50-year dream has in fact come and gone in the short space of an afternoon’s nap, our impression of the pillow’s power shifts from wonder to terror.
Subsequent writers have likewise seized upon the pillow. When the 19th-Century English novelist Charlotte Bronte poetically observed “a ruffled (不平的) mind makes a restless pillow”, she didn’t just change the expected order of the adjectives and nouns, but instead she made unclear the boundaries between mind and matter — the thing resting and the thing rested upon.
It’s a trick perhaps Bronte learned from the Renaissance philosopher Montaigne, who once insisted that “ignorance is the softest pillow on which a man can rest his head”. On Montaigne’s thinking, intelligence and happiness confront each other forever in a pillow fight that only one can win.
With the words of Tang. Bronte, and Montaigne, we can perhaps more easily measure the attraction of the global pillow fight. Like a ritual of release, the annual international pillow fight amounts to a kind of cleansing, a brushing off of daily worries: an emptying of the world’s collective mind. Rather than a launch-pad for weightless rest, the pillow is a symbol of heavy thought: an anchor that drags the world’s soul down — one that must be lightened.
1. The example of Tang Xianzu is used to illustrate that ________.A.pillows give people satisfactory dreams |
B.dreams are always wonderful while the real world is cruel |
C.people’s impression of pillows changes from wonder to terror |
D.pillows symbolically convey the meaning in contrast to their soft appearance |
A.wrote poems about pillows |
B.regarded pillows as reflections of our minds |
C.shared the same viewpoint as Tang Xianzu on pillows |
D.was likely to have been influenced by the thoughts of the Renaissance |
A.pillows give us comfort |
B.pillows make people more intelligent |
C.people with too many thoughts have less inner peace |
D.people can easily fall asleep when they know nothing |
A.Because it is a ritual release. |
B.Because it makes life delightful. |
C.Because it comforts restless minds. |
D.Because it contains a profound meaning of life. |
9 . Kwanzaa may be a festival celebrated by millions of African Americans and pan-Africans, but it has only been around for a few decades (十年). Introduced to the United States in 1966 as a ceremony to welcome the first harvest to the home, the festival, which takes place from December 26 to January 1, is a celebration of life, unity, family, and culture.
Featuring feasts, music and dance, and a devotion and recommitment to different principles (信条), the festival was created in the middle of the Black Freedom Movement, at a time when it was felt that cultural grounding was needed.
Dr. Maulana Karenga, professor and chairman of Black Studies at California State University in Long Beach, is responsible for bringing the festival to life. After the Watts violence in L.A., Dr. Karenga searched for ways to strengthen the African-American community. He paired the practices with traditions of several different harvest celebrations on the African continent, and although it is celebrated around the Christmas period, it perhaps has more similarities to Thanksgiving or the Yam Festival in Ghana and Nigeria.
There are five common sets of values that are central to the week-long activities: ingathering, reverence, commemoration, recommitment, and celebration. There are seven principles of Kwanzaa, meaning first fruits in Kiswahili, a language spoken in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. The first fruit celebrations appear in ancient and modern times in classical African civilizations.
These seven principles are known as Umoja, meaning unity; kujichagulia, self-determination; ujima, collective work, and responsibility; ujamaa, cooperative economics; nia, purpose; kuumba, creativity; and Imani, faith. There are seven candles used during the festival, and like, the Jewish Hanukkah, these candles are used to represent the principles.
On December 31, participants celebrate with a plentiful meal, often featuring good meals from various African countries.
The number of Americans who celebrate Kwanzaa has changed greatly over the years, and with as many as six million getting involved in the 1980s, Kwanzaa became a mainstream holiday. Now, however, numbers have paled, but it still remains an important cultural touchstone (试金石) for many African American communities.
1. What activity can be included during the celebration of Kwanzaa?A.Creating a piece of music. | B.Having a plentiful meal. |
C.Giving and receiving gifts. | D.Enjoying an art exhibition. |
A.He started the Watts violence in Los Angeles. |
B.He created five common sets of values. |
C.He found ways to practice African traditions. |
D.He strengthened the unity of neighbors. |
A.Kwanzaa is a festival across the world. |
B.Africans are considered important in the U.S.. |
C.Kwanzaa is an important cultural symbol. |
D.Kwanzaa is less popular among young Africans. |
A.A festival: The Culture Cross the World |
B.African Americans: An Important Part of Americans |
C.Principles: The Focus of a Festival |
D.Kwanzaa: The African Celebration of Unity and Culture |
Studying abroad is a unique and highly rewarding experience which benefits your career,
By choosing to study abroad you will get to experience a country you may have never been
Another major advantage of studying abroad is the opportunity to learn a new language or two. There’s no