SAT阅读练习题:Reading Comprehension Test 2

　　10 minutes - 7 questions

　　The passage is taken from a description of the life of certain Pacific Islanders written by a pioneering sociologist.

　　By the time a child is six or seven she has all the essential　avoidances well enough by heart to be trusted with the care of a　younger child. And she also develops a number of simple　techniques. She learns to weave firm square balls from palm　5 leaves, to make pinwheels of palm leaves or frangipani blossoms,　to climb a coconut tree by walking up the trunk on flexible little　feet, to break open a coconut with one firm well-directed blow of　a knife as long as she is tall, to play a number of group games　and sing the songs which go with them, to tidy the house by　10 picking up the litter on the stony floor, to bring water from the　sea, to spread out the copra to dry and to help gather it in when　rain threatens, to go to a neighboring house and bring back a　lighted faggot for the chiefs pipe or the cook-house fire.

　　But in the case of the little girls all these tasks are merely　15 supplementary to the main business of baby-tending. Very small　boys also have some care of the younger children, but at eight or　nine years of age they are usually relieved of it. Whatever rough　edges have not been smoothed off by this responsibility for　younger children are worn off by their contact with older boys.　20 For little boys are admitted to interesting and important activities　only so long as their behavior is circumspect and helpful. Where　small girls are brusquely pushed aside, small boys will be　patiently tolerated and they become adept at making themselves　useful. The four or five little boys who all wish to assist at the　25 important, business of helping a grown youth lasso reef eels,　organize themselves into a highly efficient working team; one boy　holds the bait, another holds an extra lasso, others poke　eagerly about in holes in the reef looking for prey, while still　another tucks the captured eels into his lavalava. The small girls,　30 burdened with heavy babies or the care of little staggerers who are　too small to adventure on the reef, discouraged by the hostility　of the small boys and the scorn of the older ones, have　little opportunity for learning the more adventurous forms of work　and play. So while the little boys first undergo the　35 chastening effects of baby-tending and then have many　opportunities to learn effective cooperation under the supervision　of older boys, the girls education is less comprehensive. They　have a high standard of individual responsibility, but the　community provides them with no lessons in cooperation with one　40 another. This is particularly apparent in the activities of young　people: the boys organize quickly; the girls waste hours in　bickering, innocent of any technique for quick and efficient　cooperation.

　　1. The primary purpose of the passage with reference to the society under discussion is to

　　A. explain some differences in the upbringing of girls and boys

　　B. criticize the deficiencies in the education of girls

　　C. give a comprehensive account of a day in the life of an average young girl

　　D. delineate the role of young girls

　　E. show that young girls are trained to be useful to adults

　　2. The word brusquely most nearly means

　　A. quickly

　　B. gently

　　C. nonchalantly

　　D. abruptly

　　E. callously

　　3. The list of techniques in paragraph one could best be described as

　　A. household duties

　　B. rudimentary physical skills

　　C. important responsibilities

　　D. useful social skills

　　E. monotonous tasks

　　4. It can be inferred that the high standard of individual responsibility is

　　A. developed mainly through child-care duties

　　B. only present in girls

　　C. taught to the girl before she is entrusted with babies

　　D. actually counterproductive

　　E. weakened as the girl grows older.

　　5. The expression innocent of is best taken to mean

　　A. not guilty of

　　B. unskilled in

　　C. unsuited for

　　D. uninvolved in

　　E. uninterested in

　　6. It can be inferred that in the community under discussion all of the following are important except

　　A. domestic handicrafts

　　B. well-defined social structure

　　C. fishing skills

　　D. formal education

　　E. division of labor

　　7. Which of the following if true would weaken the authors contention about lessons in cooperation ?

　　I Group games played by younger girls involve cooperation

　　II Girls can learn from watching boys cooperating

　　III Individual girls cooperate with their mothers in looking after babies

　　A. I only

　　B. II only

　　C. III only

　　D. I and II only

　　E. I, II and III

　　8. Which of the following is the best description of the authors technique in handling her material?

　　A. Both description and interpretation of observations.

　　B. Presentation of facts without comment.

　　C. Description of evidence to support a theory.

　　D. Generalization from a particular viewpoint.

　　E. Close examination of preconceptions.