英语六级阅读的专项王长喜六级考试标准阅读14

　　第53篇

　　Work is a very important part of life in the United States. When the early Protestant immigrants came to this country， they brought the idea that work was the way to God and heaven. This attitude， the Protestant work ethic， still influences America today. Work is not only important for economic benefits， the salary， but also for social and psychological needs， the feeling of doing something for the good of the society. Americans spend most of their lives working， being productive. For most Americans， their work defines them; they are what they do. What happens， then when a person can no longer work?

　　Most Americans stop working at age sixty-five or seventy and retire. Because work is such an important part of life in this culture， retirement can be very difficult. Retirees often feel that they are useless and unproductive. Of course， some people are happy to retire; but leaving ones job， whatever it is a difficult change， even for those who look forward to retiring. Many retirees do not know how to use their time or they feel lost without jobs.

　　Retirement can also bring financial problems. Many people rely on Social Security checks every month. During their working years， employees contribute a certain percentage of their salaries to the government. When people retire， they receive this money as income. These checks do not provide enough money to live on， however， because prices are increasing very rapidly. Senior citizens， those over sixty-five， have to have savings in the bank or other retirement plans to make ends meet. The rate of inflation is forcing prices higher each year; Social Security checks alone cannot cover Medicare (health care) and welfare (general assistance) but many senior citizens have to change their lifestyles after retirement. They have to spend carefully to be sure that they can afford to but food， fuel， and other necessities.

　　Of course， many senior citizens are happy with retirement. They have time to spend with their families or to enjoy their hobbies. Some continue to work part time; others do volunteer work. Some， like those in the Retired Business Executives Association， even help young people to get started in new business. Many retired citizens also belong to Golden Age groups. These organizations plan trips and social events. There are many opportunities for retirees.

　　Americans society is only beginning to be concerned about the special physical and emotional needs of its senior citizens. The government is taking steps to ease the problem of limited income. They are building new housing， offering discounts in stores and museums and on buses， and providing other services， such as free courses， food service， and help with housework. Retired citizens are a rapidly growing percentage of the population. This part of the population is very important and we must respond to their needs. After all， every citizen will be a senior citizen some day.

　　1.The early immigrants considered work ___.

　　A.too hard

　　B.important

　　C.pleasant

　　D.dull

　　2.Why do Americans like working? Because working ___.

　　A.doesnt only mean money but it is also psychological

　　B.can make life more comfortable

　　C.can prove people to be independent

　　D.gives people funny

　　3.We can safely put forward that retirees who ___.

　　A.have no financial problems still want to earn more money

　　B.have financial problems still feel lost

　　C.have no financial problems still feel lost

　　D.have no financial problems feels its hard to make ends meet

　　4.According to the passage the government ___.

　　A.hadnt paid attention to the retirees problems

　　B.has already solved a lot of retirees problems

　　C.has just begun to pay attention to the retirees problems

　　D.wont pay attention to the retirees problems

　　5.Which of the following is not steps taken for the benefit of senior citizens by the government?

　　A.New housing has been built.

　　B.The old are offered discounts in stores.

　　C.Senior citizens are provided free courses， food service.

　　D.None.

　　答案：BACCD

　　1

　　第54篇

　　If we look at education in our own society， we see two sharply different factors. First of all， there is the overwhelming majority of teachers， principals， curriculum planners， school superintendents， who are devoted to passing on the knowledge that children need in order to live in our industrialized society. Their chief concern is with efficiency， that is， with implanting the greatest number of facts into the greatest possible number of children， with a minimum of time， expense， and effort.

　　Classroom learning often has as its unspoken goal the reward of pleasing the teacher. Children in the usual classroom learn very quickly that creativity is punished， while repeating a memorized response is rewarded， and concentrate on what the teacher wants them to say， rather than understanding the problem.

　　The difference between the intrinsic and the extrinsic aspects of a college education is illustrated by the following story about Upton Sinclair. When Sinclair was a young man， he found that he was unable to raise the tuition money needed to attend college. Upon careful reading of the college catalogue， however， he found that if a student failed a course， he received no credit for the course， but was obliged to take another course in its place. The college did not charge the student for the second course， reasoning that he had already paid once for his credit. Sinclair took advantage of this policy and not a free education by deliberately failing all his courses.

　　In the ideal college， there would be no credits， no degrees， and no required courses. A person would learn what he wanted to learn. A friend and I attempted to put this ideal into action by starting a serials of seminars at Brandeis called Freshman Seminars Introduction to the Intellectual Life. In the ideal college， intrinsic education would be available to anyone who wanted itsince anyone can improve and learn. The student body might include creative， intelligent children as well as adults; morons as well as geniuses (for even morons can learn emotionally and spiritually)。 The college would be ubiquitousthat is， not restricted to particular buildings at particular times， and teachers would be any human beings who had something that they wanted to share with others. The college would be lifelong， for learning can take place all through life. Even dying can be a philosophically illuminating， highly educative experience.

　　The ideal college would be a kind of education retreat in which you could try to find yourself; find out what you like and want; what you are and are not good at. The chief goals of the ideal college， in other words， would be the discovery of identity， and with it， the discovery of vocation.

　　1.In the authors opinion， the majority of education workers ___.

　　A.emphasize independent thought rather than well-memorized responses

　　B.tend to reward children with better understanding rather than with a goal for credits

　　C.implant children with a lot of facts at the expense of understanding the problem

　　D.are imaginative， creative and efficient in keeping up with our industrialized society

　　2.Children in the usual classroom learn very quickly when ___.

　　A.they are required to repeat what teacher has said

　　B.they read books that are not assigned by the teacher

　　C.they know how to behave themselves in face of the teacher

　　D.they can memorize the greatest number of facts in the shortest period of time

　　3.An extrinsically oriented education is one that ___.

　　A.focuses on oriented education

　　B.takes students need into account

　　C.lays emphases on earning a degree

　　D.emphasizes learning through discussion

　　4.To enter the authors ideal college， a student ___.

　　A.has to pass an enrollment exam

　　B.should be very intelligent

　　C.neednt worry about homework

　　D.can be best stimulated for creative work

　　5.The authors purpose of writing the article is ___.

　　A.to advocate his views

　　B.to criticize college students

　　C.to stress self-teaching attitude

　　D.to put technological education to a later stage

　　答案：CACCA

　　2

　　第55篇

　　Culture is the total sum of all the traditions， customs， beliefs， and ways of life of a given group og human beings. In this sense， every group has a culture， however savage， undeveloped， or uncivilized it may seem to us.

　　To the professional anthropologist， there is no intrinsic superiority of one culture over another， just as to the professional linguist there is no intrinsic hierarchy among languages.

　　People once thought of the languages of backward groups as savage， undeveloped forms of speech， consisting largely of grunts and groans. While it is possible that language in general began as a series of grunts and groans， it is a fact established by the study of backward languages that no spoken tongue answers that description today. Most languages of uncivilized groups are， by our most severe standards， extremely complex， delicate， and ingenious pieces of machinery for the transfer of ideas. They fall behind our Western languages not in their sound patterns or grammatical structures， which usually fully adequate for all language needs， but only in their vocabularies， which reflects the objects and activities known to their speakers. Even in this department， however， two things are to be noted： 1. All languages seem to possess the machinery for vocabulary expansion， either by putting together words already in existence or by borrowing them from other languages and adapting them to their own system. 2. The objects and activities requiring names and distinctions in backward languages， while different from ours， are often surprisingly numerous and complicated. An accidental language distinguishes merely between two degrees of remoteness (this and that some languages of the American Indians distinguish between what is close to the speaker， or to the person addressed， or removed from both， or out of sight， or in the past， or in the future.

　　This study of language， in turn， casts a new light upon the claim of the anthropologists that all culture are to be viewed independently， and without ideas of rank or hierarchy.

　　1.the language of uncivilized groups as compared to Western languages are limited in ___.

　　A.sound patterns

　　B.vocabularies

　　C.grammatical structures

　　D.both A and B

　　2.The author says that professional linguists recognize that ___.

　　A.Western languages are superior to Eastern languages

　　B.All languages came from grunts and groans

　　C.The hierarchy of languages is difficult to understand

　　D.There is no hierarchy of languages

　　3.The article states that grunt-and-groan forms of speech are found ___.

　　A.nowhere today

　　B.among the Australian aborigines

　　C.among Eastern cultures

　　D.among people speaking backward languages

　　4.According to the author， languages， whether civilized or not， have ___.

　　A.the potential for expanding vocabulary

　　B.their own sound patterns

　　C.an ability to transfer ideas

　　D.grammatical structures

　　5.Which of the following is implied but not articulated in the passage?

　　A.The study of languages has discredited anthropological studies.

　　B.The study of language has reinforced anthropologists in their view that there is no hierarchy among cultures.

　　C.The study of language is the same as the study of anthropologists.

　　D.The study of languages casts a new light upon the claim of anthropologists.

　　答案：BDAAB

　　3

　　第56篇

　　Most people would probably agree that many individual consumer adverts function on the level of the daydream. By picturing quite unusually happy and glamorous people whose success in either career of sexual terms， or both， is obvious， adverts construct an imaginary world in which the reader is able to make come true those desires which remain unsatisfied in his or her everyday life.

　　An advert for a science fiction magazine is unusually explicit about this. In addition to the primary use value of the magazine， the reader is promised access to a wonderful universe through the productaccess to other mysterious and tantalizing worlds and epochs， the realms of the imagination. When studying advertising， it is therefore unreasonable to expect readers to decipher adverts as factual statements about reality. Most adverts are just too meagre in informative content and too rich in emotional suggestive detail to be read literally. If people read then literally， they would soon be forced to realize their error when the glamorous promises held out by the adverts didnt materialize.

　　The average consumer is not surprised that his purchase of the commodity does not redeem the promise of the advertisement， for this is what he is used to in life： the individuals pursuit of happiness and success is usually in vain. But the fantasy is his to keep; in his dream world he enjoys a future endlessly deferred。

　　The Estivalia advert is quite explicit about the fact that advertising shows us not reality， but a fantasy; it does so by openly admitting the daydream but in a way that insists on the existence of a bridge linking daydream to realityEstivalia， which is for daydream believers， those who refuse to give up trying to make the hazy ideal of natural beauty and harmony come true.

　　If adverts function on the daydream level， it clearly becomes in adequate to merely condemn advertising for channeling readers attention and desires towards an unrealistic， paradisiacal nowhere land. Advertising certainly does that， but in order for people to find it relevant， the utopia visualized in adverts must be linked to our surrounding reality by a casual connection.

　　1.The people in adverts are in most coves ___.

　　A.happy and glamorous

　　B.successful

　　C.obvious

　　D.both A and B

　　2.When the glamorous promises held out by the adverts didnt materialize the average consumer is not surprised， because ___.

　　A.The consumer is used to the fact that the individuals pursuit of happiness and success is usually in vain.

　　B.Adverts are factual statements about reality.

　　C.The consumer can come into the realms of imagination pictured by adverts.

　　D.Adverts can make the consumers dreams come true.

　　3.Whats the bridge linking daydream to reality in adverts?

　　A.The product.

　　B.Estivalia.

　　C.Pictures.

　　D.Happy and glamorous people.

　　4.Why does the consumer accept the daydream in adverts?

　　A.Because the consumer enjoys a future endlessly deferred.

　　B.Because the consumer gives up trying to make his dream come true.

　　C.Because the utopia is visualized in adverts.

　　D.Because his purchased of the commodity does not redeem the promise of the advertisement.

　　5.What is this passage mainly concerned with?

　　A.Many adverts can be read literally.

　　B.Everyone has a daydream.

　　C.Many adverts function on the level of the daydream.

　　D.Many adverts are deceitful because they can not make good their promises.

　　答案：DABAC

　　4

　　第57篇

　　The establishment of the Third Reich influence events in American history by starting a chain of event， which culminated in war between Germany and the United states. The complete destruction of democracy， the persecution of Jew， the war on religion， the cruelty and barbarism of the Nazis， and especially， the plans of Germany and her allies， Italy and Japan， for world conquest caused great indignation in this country and brought on fear of another world war. While speaking out against Hitlers atrocities， the American people generally favored isolationist policies and neutrality. The Neutrality Acts of 1935 and 1936 prohibited trade with any belligerents or loans to them. In 1937 the President was empowered to declare an arms embargo(禁运)in wars between nations at his discretion.

　　American opinion began to change somewhat after president Roosevelts quarantine the aggressor speech at Chicago (1937) in which he severely criticized Hitlers policies. Germanys seizure of Austria and the Munich Pact for the partition of Czechoslovakia (1938) also aroused the American people. The conquest of Czechoslovakia in March 1939 was another rude awakening to the menace of the Third Reich. In August 1939 came the shock of Nazi-Soviet Pact and in September the attack on Poland， the outbreak of European war. The United States attempted to maintain neutrality in spite of sympathy for the democracies arrayed against the Third Reich. The Neutrality Act of 1939 repealed the arms embargo and permitted cash and carry exports of arms to belligerent nations. A strong national defense program was begun. A draft act was passed (1940) to strengthen the military service. A Lend Lease Act (1941) authorized the President to sell， exchange， or lend materials to any country deemed necessary by him for the defense of the United States. Help was given to Britain by exchanging certain overage destroyers for the right to establish American bases in British territory in the Western Hemisphere. In August 1941， President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill met and issued the Atlantic Charter that proclaimed the kind of a world which should be established after the war. In December 1941， Japan launched the unprovoked attack on the United States at Pearl Harbor. Immediately thereafter， Germany declared war on the United States.

　　1.One item occurring before 1937 that the author does not mention in his list of actions that alienated the American public was ___.

　　A.Nazi barbarism

　　B.The pacts with Italy

　　C.German plans for conquest

　　D.The burning of the Reichstag

　　2.The Neutrality Act of 1939 ___.

　　A.restated Americas isolationist policies

　　B.proclaimed American neutrality

　　C.permitted the selling of arms to belligerent nations

　　D.was a cause of our entrance into World War Ⅱ

　　3.An event that did not occur in 1939 was the ___.

　　A.invasion of Poland

　　B.invasion of Czechoslovakia

　　C.passing of the Neutrality Act

　　D.establishment of the University of Leipzig in Germany

　　4.The Lend Lease Act was blueprinted to ___.

　　A.strengthen our national defense

　　B.provide battleships to the Allies

　　C.help the British

　　D.promote the Atlantic Charter

　　5.The Neutrality Act of 1939 favored Great Britain because ___.

　　A.the British had command of the sea

　　B.the law permitted us to trade only with the Allies

　　C.it antagonized Japan

　　D.it led to the Lend Lease Act

　　答案：DCDAA

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