B
In a recent class I was asked “What is a short story?” My first answer was that it was something that could be read in one sitting and brought an illumination (启示) to the reader, sudden and golden like sunlight cracking through heavy cloud. I went on to say that in my opinion a “real” short story was closer to poetry than to the novel.
Here are some definitions of the short story. My favorite is Benet’s: “something that can be read in an hour and remembered for a lifetime”. One writer said: “the theme of a novel won’t fit into the framework of a short story; it’s like trying to squeeze (压缩) a large painting done on a wall into a miniature. And as in a miniature painting, the details need to be sharp.”
The short story is an example of one aspect of human nature. Short stories usually “say something”, often a character undergoes some event, often a small thing, but something similar to a life experience, even a life-moment for some readers. A short story is an account, rarely over 10,000 words or below 500 words— more commonly 1,500-5,000 words— a single-sitting read, but with enough time and weight to move the reader.
Writer Isabelle Allende once wrote: “Novels are, for me, adding up details, just work, work, work, then you’re done. Short stories are more difficult— they have to be perfect, complete in themselves.”
45. The underlined word “undergoes” in the third paragraph probably means ________.
A. discovers B. experiences C. discusses D. appreciates
46. Which statement of the following is true?
A. The ideal short story should be at most 10,000 words in length.
B. The ideal short story should be below 500 words in length
C. The ideal short story should be around 1,500 words in length
D. The ideal short story should be over 5,000words in length
47. What’s the difference between novels and short stories?
A. Novels are too long for us to read.
B. Short stories are too short for us to read.
C. Novels are more details than short stories.
D. Short stories are more perfect and difficult than novels.
48. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. How Do You Write a Short Story? B. Is a Short Story Similar to Poetry?
C. What Exactly Is a Short Story? D. Are Short Stories Perfect and Complete?
Here is the Eight O’clock News.
…
Chinese people spent about 120 billion yuan during the first three days of the May Golden Week last year. This year it has increased to 140 billion yuan.
The children of Beijing No.2 Middle School sang with students from Toronto in Canada to celebrate the 20th anniversary. They had been sister schools since 1986. They spent about two weeks together in Beijing. They visited the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. They took a lot of photos in Beihai Park.
Have you ever got tired of heavy shopping bags? A new shopping assistant robot which was invented by a Japanese company could be the answer. The helpful robot can follow you around and carry several bags. The robot was tested at a shopping center in February 2006.
About 500 people from different countries were in the 2006 “Rock Paper Scissors (剪刀)” World Match in Canada. This event was founded in 1842. It is said that playing this game is fun, and also a good way to solve problems among people.
…
And now it’s time for Morning Music.The students from Canada and Beijing No. 2 Middle School didn’t _________.
| A．take photos | B．visit places of interest |
| C．sing songs | D．have a football match |
Which of the following is NOT talked about in the news?
| A．The robot can help with shopping bags. |
| B．A Japanese company invented the robot. |
| C．The robot was tested at a shopping centre. |
| D．There are such robots in people’s homes now. |
The underlined word “anniversary” means_________.
| A．birthday |
| B．yearly return of the date of an event |
| C．university |
| D．the new beginning of something important |
Which of the following is a game?
| A．Shopping assistant robot. | B．May Golden Week. |
| C．Rock Paper Scissors. | D．A visit to the school. |
Paragraph 1
Scientists have learned a lot about the kinds of food people need. They say that there are several kinds of food that people should eat every day. They are: (1) green and yellow vegetables of all kinds. (2) citrus(柑桔) fruits and tomatoes; (3) potatoes and other fruits and vegetables; (4) meat of all kinds, fish and eggs; (5) milk and foods made from milk; (6) bread or cereal(谷类), rice is also in this kind of food; (7) butter, or something like butter.
Paragraph 2
People in different countries and different places of the world eat different kinds of things. Foods are cooked and eaten in many different kinds of ways. People in different countries eat at different times of the day. In some places people eat once or twice a day; in other countries people eat three or four times a day. Scientists say that none of the differences is really important. It doesn’t matter whether foods are eaten raw(生的) or cooked, canned or frozen. It doesn’t matter if a person eats dinner at 4 o’clock in the afternoon or at eleven o’clock at night. The important thing is what you eat every day.
Paragraph 3
There are two problems, then, in feeding the large number of people on earth. The first is to find some ways to feed the world’s population so that no one is hungry.
The second is to make sure that people everywhere have the right kinds of food to make them grow to be strong and healthy.According to the scientists, which of the following groups of food is the healthiest for your lunch?
| A．chicken, apples, cereal, cabbages | B．potatoes, carrots, rice, bread |
| C．oranges, bananas, fish, tomatoes | D．beef, pork, fish, milk |
It is important for people to eat _______.
| A．three times a day |
| B．dinner at the right time |
| C．cooked food all the day |
| D．something from each of the seven kinds of food every day |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．People in some places don’t have enough to eat. |
| B．There are too many people in the world. |
| C．One of the problems is that no one is hungry. |
| D．The scientists are trying to make people grow to be strong and healthy. |
If there is Paragraph 4, what do you think is going to be talked about?
| A．When people should eat. |
| B．What to do with the two problems. |
| C．How to cook food in different ways. |
| D．Why people eat different kinds of food. |
You may go to karaoke or disco clubs with your friends during the summer holidays. But be careful. In these41 places you may see people selling small, colourful pills. Make sure you do not try them.
The seller42 say they are safe and can help you enjoy yourself or43 from sadness. They may even offer you a free44 , and tell you that everybody is using45 .But you must be alert to the46 that these drugs could destroy your life.
When you put them into your body, often47 swallowing, breathing in or injecting, drugs find their way into your brain.
Drugs may either speed up48 slow down your senses. Their effects are different depending on body size, shape, and chemistry.49 it can make you feel good at first, a drug can do a lot of50 to your body and brain.
One of the most popular drugs in nightclubs is the so-called head-shaking or ecstasy pill. The drug hits users with a fast high,51 them feel powerful and full of52 . Heart rate, breathing and blood pressure53 - risking damage to your nervous system. Marijuana (大麻) is a54 used illegal drug. It is called the gateway drug, because using it sometimes55 harder drugs. It is mostly smoked in a cigarette.
There is56 risk related to taking drugs that must be57 . Sharing a needle to inject a drug puts a user at a very58 risk of being affected with HIV.
Drugs may appear in many different59 , some with cool names, but taking them could60 your health forever.
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Believe it or not, the ability to choose is the power to change. If you can choose to live your life differently, will you be the same person?
Well, choosing to do the following few “simple” things will help to change your life.
Review your life. Take time to go through your life and ask yourself, “If I do the same thing I do every day, will there be a change? If I want to change, where will my first step be?”
Make careful choices. Choose exactly what you wish to get to live your life; describe and think what you really want.
Keep up with chances. Find out about the possibilities and ways that can make you move toward your goals, write them down and see which one suits you most.
Get down to business. Start working on your goals. People may bring you down; you may have difficulties; you will fail and want to give up. But the most important thing is never to give up.
If you try these “simple” things, you will find that success is something for everyone, and you will finally become what you want to be. Remember, success is more than what you hold in your hands; it is something from the heart.How many pieces of advice does the writer give on changing one’s life?
| A．Three | B．Four | C．Five | D．Six |
Once you get down to business, the most important thing is to _____.
| A．set goals | B．see possibilities |
| C．keep on trying | D．ask for help |
The underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refers to ____.
| A．change | B．choice | C．life | D．success |
This passage mainly discussed the relationship between ______.
| A．power and life | B．choice and change |
| C．power and success | D．choice and difficulty |
Every year, British newspapers report on the stranger questions asked in Oxbridge (Oxford & Cambridge) interviews. Often, though, these questions are not as strange as they first seem. And they are all designed to give applicants (申请者) a chance to think.
Arriving for her first Oxford interview, my sister Jen saw that there was only one chair in the waiting room. On the chair was a large fork. Jen had heard about the strange things in Oxbridge interviews, and believed that this was a test. “What if they’re watching me?” she thought. “If I move the fork, it will show initiative (主动性); if I don’t move it, it will show that I can easily fit into new situations.” In the end, she sat uncomfortably on the edge of the chair!
Applicants must be prepared for the unexpected. Now it was Jen’s turn. She was handed a monkey skull (颅骨) and asked to talk about it. At first, this seemed unfair --- what could she say? But she soon calmed down, started thinking, and found that there was plenty to talk about.
Oxbridge interviews are designed to find out how you think, not just what you think. And there are no wrong answers. Jen learnt that, and she passed the interview. What advice does she give? “ Don’t be nervous, and be prepared for the unexpected!”According to British newspapers, questions for Oxbridge applicants are very _____.
| A．unfair | B．normal | C．easy | D．strange |
On her first interview, Jen ____ after she entered the waiting room.
| A．moved the fork | B．sat down on the fork |
| C．sat down on the chair | D．moved the chair |
Jen learned that it was very important to _____ in order to pass the Oxbridge interviews.
| A．make up new situation | B．show how one thinks |
| C．describe what one hears | D．talk about various monkeys |
The writer uses a(n) ____ to introduce how Oxbridge applicants are interviewed.
| A．example | B．guess | C．experiment | D．survey |