Some people believe that greed and selfishness has become the basis of modern society, and we should return to the old traditions of family and community then we will have a better life. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the above opinion?
In this fast-paced world, many values are undergoing major changes. While people traditionally prioritize caring, sharing and generosity in life and work, modern people seem to be more self-absorbed and self-concerned.
Modern people act selfishly to survive the harsh competition of life. They say that it is a jungle out there. To survive, you have to fight with whatever means that come handy. Obviously greedy and selfishness go perfectly well with such ideas. In a company, employees do everything they can to get better pay and higher position, even at the cost of colleagues. We are in any way advocating any selfish conduct. It is just that people are pressured to act in a certain way due to outside influences.
In spite of common practice, it is hard to conclude that modern society is built on greed and selfishness, both of which are not newly invented vocabulary. In ancient times people also did greedy and selfish things though such behaviors were more condemned then. But we can not ignore the fact that people in the past lived a relatively more isolated life and faced less pressure compared with their modern counterparts.
Are we happier to share with others and be generous to them? There is no fixed answer either. Some people take great pleasure helping and giving to others while others feel happy doing the opposite. But I personally think that people should not be too selfish. Caring for others can actually encourage the development of a mutually beneficial relationship.
In conclusion, modern people appear to be more self-centered than those in the past due to strong outside pressure. However, we should encourage people to know the importance of being caring and generous and to build a mutually beneficial relationship with others.
Are Modern People Becoming More Selfish?
| Main comparisons |
Contexts |
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In the past people put caring, sharing and generosity in the first ___ |
| Nowadays, people seem to be more ____ |
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| ___ |
People in the past appeared to be modest and self-effacing(谦让的). |
| People may strive to achieve their own __ |
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| The author’s understanding |
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| ___ |
Fierce __ |
| The author’s ___ |
A relationship which can __ |
In 1605 some Englishmen planned to kill their king, JamesⅠ, because they thought that he was a bad man. They knew that on November 5th the King 1. go to the House of Lords to talk with his nobles.
The men rented a 2. (build) next to the House of Lords. They dug through a wall and put many barrels of gunpowder in an underground room of the House of Lords. They 3.（choose）a man 4. (call) Guy Fakes to set fire 5. the gunpowder, but something went wrong 6. their plan. 7. of the men had a relative 8. was coming to the House of Lords to meet the King. He warned his relative to stay at home. The relative told 9. nobles and soon the King heard about the danger. Soldiers searched 10. underground rooms and found the gunpowder on November 4th, so Guy Fakes was caught and killed.
巩固强化二十三篇
语法填空（每篇共10小题；每小题1.5分，满分15分）
仔细阅读下面的短文，短文中有10个空格。请根据上下文填入适当的词语，
或使用括号中的词语的适当形式完成语法填空，并将答案填写在相应的位置上。
In the United States, there were 222 people __1.______ (report) to be billionaires(亿万富翁) in 2003. The __2._______ (wealth) of these is Bill Gates, worth at least $ 41 billion, who made his money __3.______ starting the company Microsoft. Mr. Gates was only 21 years old __4._______ he first helped to set up the company in 1976. He was a billionaire __5.______ the time he was 31.
__6._________, there are still some other people who have made lots of money at even __7.__________ (young) ages. Other young people who have struck it rich include Jackie Coogan and Shirley Temple. __8._________ of these child actors made over a million dollars __9.____________ (act) in movies before they were 14. But __10.__________ youngest billionaire is Albert von Thurn und Taxis of Germany, who, in 2001, inherited (继承) a billion dollars when he turned 18 !
基础训练篇（25）
On keeping a Diary in English
Keeping a diary in English is one of the 1.___________ (effect) ways to improve our English writing ability.
2._____________ (compare) with other forms of writing, it is shorter and takes 3.____________ time. It can help us to develop the habit of thinking in English. 4.____________ we persist in this practice, gradually we’ll learn how to express ourselves in English. In keeping a diary in English, we certainly run up against many 5.__________. In the first place, 6.____________ often happens that we have trouble finding appropriate words and phrases to give expression to our mind. Secondly, there are many idiomatic ways of saying things in Chinese. And it is extremely hard for us to put them into English properly.
As far as I _7. ______________ (concern), my 8._____________(suggest) is that we should always have a notebook and a Chinese-English dictionary within easy reach. Whenever something beats us, we can first put it down in our notebook and then consult our dictionary. We can also turn to our English teacher for help, if necessary. In short, I believe that it is 9._____ ______ great use to keep a diary in English for 10.___ ________ development of our writing skills.
基础训练篇（24）
Ms. Mary was over eighty, but she still drove her old car like half her age. She loved driving very fast, and boasted of the fact 1. she had never, in her thirty-five years of driving, been punished 2. a driving mistake.
Then one day, she nearly lost her record. A police car followed her, and the policemen in it saw her pass a red light without 3. (stop).
When Ms. Mary came before the judge, he looked at her severely and said that she was too old to drive a car, and that the reason 4. she had not stopped at red light was most probably that her eyes had become weak 5 old age, so that she had simply not seen it.
When the judge had finished 6. he was saying, Ms. Mary opened the big handbag she was carrying and took out her sewing. Without saying a word, she 7. (choose) a needle with a very small eye, and threaded it at the first time.
When she had 8. (success) done this, she took the thread out of the needle again and handed both the needle and thread to the judge, saying, “Now it is your turn. I suppose you can drive a car well, and you have no doubts 9. your eyesight.”
The judge took the needle and tried to thread it. After half a dozen times, he had still not succeeded. The case against Ms. Mary 10. (dismiss), and her record remained unbroken.
基础训练篇（23）
There was once a teacher in a village. He was a man named Goldsmith. He was a kind-hearted man. He was always poor (1)___________. He taught himself (2)___________, so sometimes people called him Doctor Goldsmith. One day a poor woman asked Mr. Goldsmith to go and see her husband, because he was very ill and couldn’t get up. Mr. Goldsmith did (3)____________. He found that the family needed help very much. The man had been out of work for a long time, but he was not (4)__________. He was just hungry because there was no food in his house.
“Come to my room this (5)_________”said Mr. Goldsmith to the woman, “I will give you some medicine for your husband.”
In the evening the woman came. Mr. Goldsmith gave her a little paper box.
“(6)__________is the medicine,” he said.” Take it and it will (7)_________ your husband a great deal of good, but don’t open the box until you get home.”
“What are the directions for (8) _________ it?” asked the woman.
“You will find them inside the box.” he answered.
When the woman (9)_______________ home, she sat down by her husband’s side, and they opened the box. They found it was full of money. And on the top were the (10)______________(direction)：“TAKE IT WHEN YOU NEED IT.”
Goldsmith had given all the money he had.