After Alexander Pushkin was shot in a duel (决斗) in 1837, crowds of mourners formed in Saint Petersburg. When the wagon carrying the much loved poet’s body reached Pskov province, where he was to be buried, admirers tried to pull the vehicle themselves.
Today’s celebrity funerals tend to involve the public largely digitally rather than in person. But people are passionate all the same. In the past few months, grief has coursed around the Internet for Milan Kundera, and most recently, Michael Gambon. If you stop to think about it, such expressions of strong feelings for writers and actors are odd, even irrational.
Unlike other kinds of grief, this one is not rooted in personal intimacy (亲密关系). If you ever interacted with a cherished author, it was probably during a book tour when she signed your copy of her novel. Maybe you once locked eyes with a musician during a live concert and he smiled at you, but actually he did not even know you.
Objectively, sorrow makes sense when a star dies young or violently. Had she not died at 27, who knows what music Amy Winehouse would have added to her already impressive collections of work? The death of a long-lived and fulfilled artist, however, is far from the saddest item in an average day’s headlines. And while most ordinary people sink into oblivion, these celebrities live on in their output. Why, then, are these losses felt so widely and keenly?
One interpretation is that departed celebrities are merely the messengers. Part of your past —the years in which the musician was the soundtrack, the writer your ally (盟友) — can seem to fade away with them. The grief can be seen as a form of gratitude for the harmony and joy they supplied.
More importantly, the passing of an artist is an occasion for exchanges of ideas. In an atomized age, in which the default (默认) tone is critical, a beloved figure’s death is a chance to share positive feelings and memories with fellow admirers. These sad occasions are the parting gifts of these artists.
12. Why does the author mention Milan Kundera and Michael Gambon in paragraph 2?
A.To prove that celebrities’ funerals tend to attract wider public attention. |
B.To illustrate why people express their sadness at the loss of those celebrities. |
C.To demonstrate that people’s mourning for celebrities seems strange and unreasonable. |
D.To show that people’s grief over celebrities’ death is ridiculous and impractical. |
13. The underlined phrase “sink into oblivion” in paragraph 4 probably means ________.
A.are upset | B.are desperate | C.are helpless | D.are forgotten |
14. What can we learn from the passage?
A.People won’t mourn for celebrities unless they have intimate relationships with celebrities. |
B.It’s natural that people mourn for celebrities dying young but not for those long-lived ones. |
C.People feel sad for the passing of celebrities because of the mental nourishment received. |
D.People attend celebrities’ funerals, either in person or on the Internet, to express their loyalty. |
15. What’s the author’s attitude towards public mourning for the celebrities?
A.Supportive. | B.Disapproving. | C.Skeptical. | D.Concerned. |