On Nov.18,1995,Itzhak Perlman,the violinist,came on stage to give a concert.If you have ever been to a Perlman concert,you know that getting on stage is no small achievement for him.He was stricken with polio(小儿麻痹症) as a child,and so he walks with the aid of two crutches.
The audience sat quietly while he makes his way across the stage to his chair and begins his play.But this time,something went wrong.Just as he finished the first few bars,one of the strings on his violin broke.We thought that he would have to stop the concert.But he didn’t.Instead,he waited a moment,closed his eyes and then signaled the conductor to begin again.
Of course,anyone knows that it is impossible to play a pleasant work with just three strings.I know that,and you know that,but that night Itzhak Perlman refused to know that.
When he finished,there was a breathtaking silence in the room.And then people rose and cheered.There was an extraordinary outburst of applause from every corner of the auditorium.
He smiled,wiped the sweat from this brow and then he said-not proudly,but in a quiet,holy attitude-“You know,sometimes it is the artist’s task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left.”
This powerful line has stayed in my mind ever since I heard it.And who knows?Perhaps that is the meaning of life-not just for artists but for all of us.
So,perhaps our task in this fastchanging,puzzling world in which we live is to make music,at first with all that we have,and then,when that is no longer possible,to make music with what we have left.What made Itzhak Perlman’s performance at the concert special on Nov.18,1995?
A.There were too many audience. |
B.He was late for the stage. |
C.He had a quarrel with the audience. |
D.One string of the violin got broken. |
Why did Itzhak Perlman continue his playing after one string was broken?
A.Because he was a person of self pride. |
B.Because he thought the audience didn’t see that. |
C.Because he decided to succeed with the broken violin. |
D.Because he didn’t know that the string was broken. |
Why did the audience give heated claps to Itzhak Perlman?
A.Because they were moved by his disease. |
B.Because they were moved by his spirit. |
C.Because they were laughing at his action. |
D.Because they were encouraging him to cheer up. |
What is the best title for the passage?
A.When you lose the most important thing. |
B.How can you give it up easily. |
C.Playing a violin with three strings. |
D.Playing a violin by yourself. |
五.阅读理解(共20小题,每小题2分,满分40分)
People in the United States honor their parents with two special days: Mother’s Day, on the second Sunday in May, and Father’s Day, on the third Sunday in June. These days are set aside to show love and respect for parents. They raise their children and educate them to be responsible(有责任感的) citizens. They give love and care. These two days make us think about the changing roles of mothers and fathers. More mothers now work outside the home. More fathers must help with child care.
These two special days are celebrated in many different ways. On Mother’s Day people wear carnations. A red one symbolizes a living mother. A white one shows that the mother is dead. Many people attend religious services to honor parents. It is also a day when people whose parents are dead visit the cemetery(墓地). On these days families get together at home, as well as in restaurants. They often have outdoor barbecues for Father’s Day. These are days of fun and good feelings and memories.
Another tradition is to give cards and gifts. Children make them in school. Many people make their own presents. These are valued more than the ones bought in stores. It is not the value of the gift that is important, but it is “the thought that counts”. Greeting card stores, florists, candy makers, bakeries, telephone companies, and other stores do a lot of business during these holidays.
46. Which of the following is NOT a reason for children to show love and respect for parents?
A. Parents bring up children.
B. Parents give love and care to children.
C. Parents educate children to be good persons.
D. Parents pass away before children grow up.
47. What do you think “florists” do?
A. They sell flowers.
B. They make and sell bread.
C. They offer enough room for having family parties.
D. They sell special gifts for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
48. What do you know from the passage?
A. Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are both in May.
B. Fewer women worked outside the home in the past.
C. Not all the children respect their parents.
D. Fathers are not as important as mothers at home.
49. On Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, .
A. people usually have family parties B. everyone goes to visit the cemetery
C. children always go to parents’ home D. hand-made cards are the most valuable gifts
Street art can be found on buildings, sidewalks, street signs and even trash cans from Tokyo to Paris to New York City. This special kind of art can take the form of paintings, sculptures, cloth or even stickers (张贴物). Street art has become part of a global visual culture. Now, even art museums and galleries are collecting the works of street artists.
It is not easy to provide an exact history of the street art movement. This kind of art has developed in many kinds of ways in places all over the world. Also, because it is illegal to paint public and private property without permission, street artists usually work secretly. This secretive nature of street art and its countless forms make it hard to define exactly. And people have different opinions about the movement. Some think street art is a crime and destroys property. But others see this art as a rich form of non-traditional cultural expression.
Many experts say the movement began in New York City in the 1960s. Young adults would use paint in special cans to spray their “tag” on walls and train cars around the city. This tag was a name they created to identify themselves and their artwork. This colorful style of writing is also called graffiti (涂鸦). It is visually exciting and energetic. Some graffiti paintings were signs marking the territories of city gangs or illegal crime groups.
Graffiti also became a separate movement expressing the street culture of young people living in big cities. Graffiti art represented social and political rebellion (叛逆). This was art that rejected the accepted rules of culture and power. These artists could travel around areas of the city making creative paintings for everyone to see. Sometimes this street art created a conflict between artists and city officials. Graffiti artists created their images and city officials quickly painted over them.
During the 1980s, two New York painters — Keith Haring and Jean Michel began showing their work in art galleries and museums. This is when street art started to become part of the more general popular culture. What can we infer from the first paragraph?
A.Street art has become popular and is accepted as a kind of culture. |
B.Street art is very special compared with other forms of popular art. |
C.Many people are beginning to learn street art. |
D.Street art is better developed in big cities than in rural areas. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A.“TAG” was a word created by people to distinguish street artists and the other artists. |
B.There are three reasons explaining why it is hard to define the history of street art. |
C.The movement of street art began in the 1980s in New York City. |
D.All the people don’t think that the street art is a rich form of cultural expression. |
The city officials used to get rid of graffiti probably because _____________.
A.they caused arguments between people | B.they were ugly in someone’s eyes |
C.they were not painted under proper guidance | D.they didn’t express traditional culture |
Weather Report
(8:00 a.m. December 17—8:00 a.m. December 18)
Influenced by a cold front northern Xinjiang, the eastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and the northern and eastern parts of Heilongjiang are expected to experience light snow today. Drizzle (小雨) is forecast for most areas of Sichuan and western coastal areas of South China. Northerly winds of force 4-6 are expected to affect western and southwestern Inner Mongolia, and most parts of Northeast China while northerly winds of force 5-7 will sweep across the Bohai Sea, the northern parts of the Yellow Sea, East China Sea, the Taiwan Straits, and the central and northern parts of the South China Sea.
Weather forecast for major Chinese cities
City |
Max(℃)℃C) |
Min(℃) |
Weather |
Beijing |
10 |
-2 |
clear |
Changchun |
0 |
-6 |
clear |
Changsha |
19 |
5 |
clear |
Chengdu |
9 |
4 |
drizzle |
Chongqing |
10 |
5 |
overcast |
Dalian |
12 |
3 |
clear |
Fuzhou |
18 |
-12 |
cloudy |
Guangzhou |
23 |
15 |
cloudy |
Guilin |
19 |
4 |
clear |
Haikou |
19 |
14 |
overcast |
Hangzhou |
18 |
5 |
clear |
Harbin |
-3 |
-8 |
clear |
Hong Kong |
21 |
16 |
cloudy |
Jinan |
14 |
3 -„: ;;.;;:;,.:-,-,;., |
clear ^A-^ ^.-,.-.1 |
According to the weather report, we know it doesn’t rain in many areas except ______.
A.Xinjiang | B.Qinghai-Tibet | C.Heilongjiang | D.Chengdu |
From December 17 to December 18, if you go to ______, you may be caught in the snow.
A.Northern Xinjiang and Tibet | B.Sichuan and South China |
C.Inner Mongolia and Heilongjiang | D.Qinghai and Sichuan |
On December 17, the East China Sea will be swept by ______.
A.a cold front | B.light snow |
C.northerly winds of force 4-6 | D.northerly winds of force 5-7 |
The temperature in Harbin Min(℃) is ___ lower than that in Guangzhou Min(℃).
A.23 | B.31 | C.26 | D.7 |
MONTREAL--He may be the world’s richest man, but that didn’t prevent Bill Gates from falling for an April Fool’s day joke by two Quebec radio comics (喜剧演员) pretending to be Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien.
Montreal French-language station CKMF--FM said last Wednesday that staffers (工作人员) Marcantoine Audet and Sebastien Trudel had a 10-minute telephone chat with Microsoft Corp boss Gates on April 1.
The broadcast was aired on their nightly show last Tuesday and repeated last Wednesday.
“We were happy. We had been calling Microsoft persistently (坚持不懈地) for four weeks,” Trudel said.
Trudel said he and his colleague had already fooled Canadian pop singer Celine Dion and Formula One (一级方程赛车) driver Jacques Villeneuve on their show.
“This time, we wanted to give ourselves a challenge with somebody more difficult to reach,” Ttudel said.
He said he was surprised that Gates’s assistants did not check to see if it was really the prime minister’s office on the line.
Trudel said they imitated (模仿) Chretien’s heavily accented English, talking about the economy, asking about Microsoft’s Windows operating system and inviting the multibillionaire to visit a well-known Montreal strip joint (运动服合资企业).
The radio host said that Gates was not amused by the fake interview.
“He did not seem angry but he did not find it so funny,” the comic said. Bill Gates was fooled mainly because ______.
A.his assistants were not careful enough |
B.the Canadian Prime Minister helped the two comics |
C.the two comics imitated the Canadian Prime Minister so well |
D.it was April Fool’s Day |
We can conclude from the passage that the two comics ______.
A.liked to fool famous people on their show |
B.thought that Gates was not a great challenge to them |
C.had a good knowledge of Bill Gates and his Windows operating system |
D.were not quite satisfied with their tricks |
Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?
A.Gates ‘April Fooled’ | B.Two Comics and Their Tricks |
C.Two comics and Their Show | D.A Fake Interview |
单词拼写(共 10 小题;每小题 l 分, 满分 10 分)You must ask for p_________ before taking any photo inside the museum.
John’s brother e_________ his living by writing stories for the local newspaper two years ago.
If you want to go on a diet, you’d better c________ a doctor.
Youth should show r______ for the old.
If you m____ red and yellow, you get orange.
As a famous singer, he is always s________ by his fans.
She is u_________ her mother; she is slim and her mother is fat.
Time is l______. We need to be in a hurry.
---- May I have your o____, sir?
---- Yes, please. A cup of coffee.He doesn’t like to be v______. Instead, he prefers to solve the problem peacefully.