Why People Get Tattoos
Jack lay, quiet and unmoving, for thirty minutes while a stranger repeatedly stabbed (刺) him with sharp needles, causing blood to pour steadily out of his leg. Jack was getting a tattoo. His friend Tony had recently gotten a tattoo, and Jack was so impressed by it that he decidedto get one too. Peer pressure, media influence, and personal expression are some of the common reasons for wearing tattoos today.
The desire to be accepted by one’s friends or peers can have a great influence on what a person does. Sometimes, wearing a tattoo can be a sign that you belong to a certain group. Gangs often use special clothes and tattoos to identify their particular group. Some of these groups wear only brand–name clothes. Others wear tattoos. When a person’s friends are all doing something, that person is more likely to do the same thing.
The media is another big influence behind the popularity of tattoos in North America. A wide variety of media images (人物，图像) show tattoos－people appearing in commercials selling expensive cars, famous sports heroes with tattoos in magazines, fashion models wearing designer clothes that show their bodies tattooed with detailed and colorful patterns. These media images link tattoos to ideas of wealth, success, and status. As a result, many people decide to get a tattoo for its fashion and status value.
Many people decide to wear tattoos in order to express their artistic nature, their beliefs, or their feelings－in other words, to show their individuality (个性). A musician in a rock band may get a tattoo of a guitar on the arm. Some environmentalists may tattoo pictures of endangered animals on their shoulders. A tattoo can be a public sign to show what is important in a person's life.
As you can see, there are many reasons why young North Americans get tattoos. A tattoo can be part of a group's uniform, a sign of fashion or an expression of individuality. The decision to get a tattoo is most often a result of the influence of friends or media or the desire to express oneself. For Jack, it was a mixture of all three.
45. Jack has got tattoos in order to ______.
A. show his great bravery B. gain a special experience
C. make himself more healthy D. be different from others
46. According to the passage, media images are linked to ______.
A. traditional lifestyle B. social position C. cultural background D. public interest
47. We can infer from the passage that ______.
A. some people get tattoos out of pressure
B. tattoo is related to religious belief
C. getting tattoos costs a lot of money
D. most people with tattoos are artists
48. Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?
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CP: Central Point P: Point Sp: Sub – point (次要点) C: Conclusion
From the beginning of human history, wild animals provided food, clothing and sometimes medicine. We may not depend as much on wild animals now. But we hear about them every day. Americans use the names of animals in many ways. Automobile manufacturers(制造商) and gasoline companies especially like to use big cats to sell their products. They like lions, tigers and wildcats. When Americans say wildcat, they usually mean a lynx, an ocelot or a bobcat. All these cats attack quickly and fiercely. So wildcats represent something fast and fierce.
An early American use of the word wildcat was quite different. It was used to describe members of Congress(国会) who declared war on Britain in 1812. A magazine of that year said the wildcat congressmen went home. It said they were unable to face the responsibility of having involved their country in an unnecessary war.
Wildcat also has been used as a name for money in the 1800s. At that time, some states permitted banks to make their own money. One bank in the state of Michigan offered paper money with a picture of a wildcat on it. Some banks, however, did not have enough gold to support all the paper money they offered. So the money had little or no value. It was called a wildcat bill or a wildcat bank note. The banks who offered this money were called wildcat banks. A newspaper of the time said those were the days of wildcat money. It said a man might be rich in the morning and poor by night.
Wildcat then was also used for an oil well or gold mine that had almost no oil or gold in it. Dishonest developers would buy such property. Then they would sell it and leave town with the money. The buyers were left with worthless holes in the ground. Today, wildcat oil wells are in areas that are not known to have oil. What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Wildcats and their stories. |
| B．Wildcats and their characters |
| C．Varieties of animal species. |
| D．Relationship between animal and humans. |
From the passage we can know that______.
| A．wildcats represent the state of Michigan |
| B．the use of wildcat was not always the same |
| C．wildcats are the best friend of human beings |
| D．honest developers never buy wildcat oil wells |
The underlines words “a lynx, an ocelot or a bobcat” in Paragraph 1 may refer to “ ”.
A. gasoline companies B. automobile manufacturers
C. names of wildcats D. brands of automobile
64. Which of the following would people like to have or trust according to the passage?
A. Wildcat congressmen. B. Wildcat oil wells.
C. Wildcat banks. D. Wildcat cars. It can be inferred that during the days of wildcat money_________.
| A．people couldn’t buy anything with the money |
| B．people didn’t know how to save money. |
| C．the rich invested too much on oil wells. |
| D．people complained and suffered a lot |
There is one word that is on the lips of Americans, day and night: “Sorry.”
One time as I was walking on the street, a young man ran by hurriedly, brushing against my handbag. Even as he continued on his way, he turned back and said “sorry” to me. Even in a rush, he didn’t forget to apologize. One day, after I bought a mango, the salesman was giving me the change, but I wasn’t ready for it and a coin dropped to the ground. “I’m sorry,” he said while bending down to pick it up. I was puzzled—why would he apologize when it is my fault?
Another time, I stepped on a man’s foot in an escalator, at the same time, we both said “sorry”. I thought it interesting, was it really necessary for him to apologize? Later on, an American friend explained to me that according to the American mentality, the escalators a public place, and everyone should be able to stand in it. After someone occupies a position in the elevator, making it difficult for someone else to find a place to stand, isn’t it necessary to express an apology?
If you go to the movies and the tickets happen to be sold out, the ticket seller will say: “Sorry, the tickets are sold out.” Whenever one of your hopes goes unfulfilled, an American will say “sorry” as a sign of sympathy.
During my stay in America, I often came across situations in which I was supposed to say “sorry”. Gradually, I realized that when friction（摩擦）appears in daily life, Americans don’t care much about who is wrong; If someone is troubled, a “sorry” is always necessary. When this happens, even if the other person is hurt, the “sorry” cools tempers and human kindness is shown. Perhaps this is why I never saw anyone quarreling on the buses, subways or streets of America. How many examples are given to show that Americans like to say “sorry”?
| A．One | B．Two | C．Three | D．Four |
When the author was walking on the street, a young man ran by hurriedly ______.
| A．and took away his bag | B．and touched his bag |
| C．to help him with his bag | D．to brush his bag |
Which of the following plays a different role in the passage?
| A．Paragraph 2 | B．Paragraph 3 | C．Paragraph 4 | D．Paragraph 5 |
At last, the author’s attitude towards the Americans’ “sorry” seems to be ______.
| A．angry | B．interested | C．approving(赞成) | D．disappointed |
The best title for the passage can be “_______”.
| A．My life in America | B．Americans’ “sorry” |
| C．My experience in an escalator | D．The meaning of “sorry” |
In a great many cities, hundreds of people ride bikes to work every day. In New York, some bike riders have even formed a group called Bike for a Better City . They declare that if more people rode bikes to work, there would be fewer automobiles in the downtown part of the city and so less dirty air from car engines.
For several years this group has been trying to get the city government to help bike riders. For example , they want the city to draw special lanes( 车道) for bikes on some of the main streets, because when bike riders must use the same lanes as cars there are accidents. Bike for a Better City feels that if there were special lanes, more people would use bikes.
But no bike lanes have been drawn. Not everyone thinks it is a good idea- they say it will slow traffic. Some store owners on the main streets don’t like the idea- they say that if there is less traffic, they will have less business.
The city government has not yet decided what to do. It wants to keep everyone happy. On weekends, Central Park, the largest place of open ground in New York, is closed to cars, and the roads may be used by bike only.
But Bike for a Better City says that this is not enough and keeps fighting to get bike lanes down-town. In New York, a group of bike riders_________.
| A．are keeping practicing for health |
| B．have no cars of their own |
| C．are complaining (埋怨) there are not enough buses |
| D．are trying to settle the problem of air pollution |
The bike riders suggest that____________.
| A．bikes should be used instead of cars. |
| B．bike lanes should be drawn |
| C．fewer buses or cars should be used |
| D．the number of special lanes should be decreased |
The advantage of the special lanes is that________.
| A．they will make cars and buses run slowly |
| B．they will make it easier for bike riders to go to parks |
| C．they will make the city more beautiful |
| D．they will prevent accidents |
The government has not decided whether special lanes should be drawn_______.
| A．so that everyone is disappointed |
| B．because there are different opinions |
| C．because most people travel by train |
| D．because Bike for a Better City is not strong enough |
Cars are not permitted to enter Central Park on weekends_________.
| A．so that Bike for a Better City is pleased |
| B．so that everyone is happy |
| C．and bike lanes are drawn |
| D．but Bike for a Better City is still not satisfied |
O. Henry was a pen name used by an American writer of short stories. His real name was William Sydney Porter. He was born in North Carolina in 1862. As a young boy he lived an exciting life. He did not go to school for very long, but he managed to teach himself everything he needed to know. When he was about 20 years old, O. Henry went to Texas, where he tried different jobs. He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank. When some money went missing from the bank, O. Henry was believed to have stolen it. Because of that, he was sent to prison. During the three years in prison, he learned to write short stories. After he got out of prison, he went to New York and continued writing. He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there. People liked his stories, because simple as the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end, to the reader’s surprise.In which order did O. Henry do the following things?
a. Lived in New York. b. Worked in a bank.c. Travelled to Texas.
d. Was put in prison. e. Had a newspaper Job. f. Learned to write stories.
| A．e. c. f. b. d. a | B．c. e. b. d. f. a |
| C．e. b. d. c. a. f. | D．c. b. e. d. a f. |
People enjoyed reading O. Henry’s stories because__________.
| A．they had surprise endings | B．they were short |
| C．they showed his love for the poor | D．they were about New York City |
O. Henry went to prison because__________ .
| A．people thought he had stolen money from the newspaper |
| B．he broke the law by not using his own name |
| C．he wanted to write stories about prisoners |
| D．people thought he had taken money that was not his |
What do we know about O. Henry before he began writing?
| A．He was well-educated. | B．He was not serious about his work. |
| C．He was devoted to the poor. | D．He was very good at learning. |
Where did O. Henry get most material for his short stories?
| A．His life inside the prison. | B．The newspaper articles he wrote. |
| C．The city and people of New York. | D．His exciting early life as a boy. |
A neighbor of mine, while visiting his mother in Boston, took her to a shoe store to buy a new pair of shoes. While she was trying on different styles, my neighbor took the manager aside. “When she picks out a pair that she likes,” he said, “Just tell her that the price is 12 dollars. I’ll pay the regular(正常的)price. I don’t care how much it is.”
The following week, my neighbor was walking by the shoe store and the manager recognized him and called him in.
“What’s the problem?” asked my neighbor as he entered the store.
“Wasn’t my check any good?”
“That’s not it,” answered the manager, “The problem is that your mother is bringing all her friends in for those 12-dollar shoes!”My neighbor went to Boston ________.
| A．to buy shoes for his mother |
| B．to see his mother |
| C．to pay for the shoes he had bought for his mother |
| D．to see the manager of the shoe store |
The regular price my neighbor had paid must be _______.
| A．12 dollars | B．lower than 12 dollars |
| C．higher than 12 dollars | D．unknown to himself at all |
It seems very probable that my neighbor wanted to _______.
| A．please his mother | B．cheat his mother |
| C．cheat the manager | D．please his mother’s friends |
The manager called my neighbor in when he saw him because______.
| A．he didn’t have enough shoes for his customers(顾客) |
| B．my neighbor’s mother had taken a wrong pair of shoes |
| C．there was something wrong with his check |
| D．he found it hard to satisfy his customers |
What do we know about the character(个性) of my neighbor’s mother?
| A．She would like to buy expensive things. |
| B．She would like to buy cheap things. |
| C．She would like to help others when they’re in trouble. |
| D．She would like to have her son pay for her shopping. |