“To be or not to be.” Outside the Bible, these six words are the most famous in all the literature of the world. They were spoken by Hamlet when he was thinking aloud, and they are the most famous words in Shakespeare because Hamlet was speaking not only for himself but also for every thinking man and woman. To be or not to be, to live or not to live, to live richly and abundantly, or to live dully and meanly. A philosopher once wanted to know whether he was alive or not, which is a good question for everyone to put to himself occasionally. He answered it by saying: “I think, therefore I am.”
But the best definition of existence I ever saw was one written by another philosopher who said: “To be is to be in relations.” If this is true, then the more relations a living thing has, the more it is alive. To live abundantly means simply to increase the range and intensity(强烈) of our relations. Unfortunately we are so constituted that we get to love our routine. But other than our regular occupation, how much are we alive? If you are interested only in your regular occupation, you are alive only to that extent. So far as other things are concerned --- poetry and prose(散文), music, pictures, sports, unselfish friendships, politics, international affairs ---you are dead.
On the contrary, it is true that every time you acquire a new interest --- even more, a new accomplishment(成就) --- you increase your power of life. No one who is deeply interested in different kinds of subjects can remain unhappy. The real pessimist is the person who has lost interest.
Bacon said that a man dies as often as he loses a friend. But we gain new life by contacts with new friends, and new ideas and thoughts, too. Where your thoughts are, there will be your life too. If your thoughts are limited only to your business, only to your physical welfare, only to your narrow circle of the town in which you live, then you live a narrow restricted(有限的, 受约束的) life. But if you are interested in what is going on in China, then you are living in China. If you’re interested in the characters of a good novel, then you are living with those highly interesting people. If you listen intently to fine music, you are away from your immediate surroundings and living in a world of passion and imagination.
To be or not to be --- to live intensely and richly, or merely to exist, which depends on ourselves. Let us widen and intensify our relations. While we live, let us live!What does the author mainly want to do by this passage?
| A．Argue against an idea. |
| B．Explain some famous sayings. |
| C．Introduce some famous sayings. |
| D．Put forward an idea. |
What does the underlined word most probably mean?
| A．Somebody who always lives in a world of passion and imagination. |
| B．Somebody who is always interested in making new friends. |
| C．Somebody who always expects the worst to happen. |
| D．Somebody who likes to live a rich and abundant life. |
Which of the following behavior is probably NOT encouraged by the author?
| A．Thinking more than your own business. |
| B．Caring only about your physical welfare. |
| C．Reading good novels. |
| D．Listening to fine music. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．To be is to be in relations. |
| B．I think, therefore I am. |
| C．To be or not to be, that is a question. |
| D．A man dies as often as he loses a friend. |
I always experienced guilt when I passed by without giving a coin or two to a beggar.
My conscience was pricked again on a tour of Venice in 2010. I had taken refuge from the crowds in a quiet canal-side café. Outside the café was an old woman kneeling on the ancient cobbled stones, begging. Steady streams of tourists were walking past her. A lone young back-packer stood away from the crowds drinking something, but I noticed he was also observing the woman.
A tourist group glanced at the woman and walked on. Another group of tourists arrived and, again, walked past her. The backpacker watched. Then, as I prepared to leave, I stopped at the sight of the backpacker stepping forward and placing some money in the woman’s cup. He did this rather ostentatiously（炫耀地）, just before the arrival of another tourist group. I watched as the leader of the group stopped and put some money in the cup. Having been shown the way, other tourists followed suit and added more coins to the woman’s cup.
The young backpacker repeated this process in front of the next tour party going past. Once again, the subtle peer （同伴）pressure worked on the tourists, who all added coins to the cup. His work done, the young man walked over to the old beggar woman, patted her shoulder and said, “I hope that helps a bit.”
I don’t know if the woman understood his English or realized what had just happened, but I did. I placed some money in the woman’s cup and continued my travels, light-hearted after witnessing such an act of caring.The backpacker placed some money in the woman’s cup rather ostentatiously because______.
| A．he wanted to stop the tourists by doing this |
| B．he wanted people to know that he was rich and kind |
| C．he wanted to help the woman by himself |
| D．he wanted the tourist group to follow him |
The author went to a quiet canal-side cafe to_______ .
| A．avoid meeting the beggar |
| B．get away from the crowds |
| C．take a rest |
| D．watch the woman beggar |
We can infer from the passage that ________ .
| A．tourists can be cheated by beggars |
| B．people usually have pity on an old beggar |
| C．tourists are willing to help beggars |
| D．people can do kind acts due to peer pressure |
Before the backpacker dropped some money in the woman’s cup, the tourists ______ .
| A．all showed pity for the woman |
| B．didn’t notice the woman |
| C．walked by without giving any money |
| D．gave a little money to the woman |
Elizabeth Freeman was born about 1742 to African American parents who were slaves. At the age of six months she was acquired, along with her sister, by John Ashley, a wealthy Massachusetts slaveholders. She became known as “Mumbet” or “Mum Bett.”
For nearly 30 years Mumbet served the Ashley family. One day, Ashley’s wife tried to hit Mumbet’s sister with a spade(铁锹). Mumbet protected her sister and took the blow instead. Angry, she left the house and refused to come back. When the Ashleys tried to make her return, Mumbet turned to a lawyer, Theodore Sedgewick. With his help, Mumbet sued(起诉) for her freedom.
While serving the Ashleys, Mumbet had listened to many discussions of the new Massachusetts laws. If the laws said that all people were free and equal, then she thought it should apply to her. Eventually, Mumbet won her freedom—the first slave in Massachusetts to do so under the new law.
Strangely enough, after the trial, the Ashleys asked Mumbet to come back and work for them as a paid employee. She refused and instead went to work for Segdewick. Mumbet died in 1829, but her spirit lived on in her many generations. One of her great-grandchildren was W.E.B. Du Bois, one of the founder of the NAACP, and an important writer and spokesperson for African American civil rights.
Mumbet’s tombstone still stands in the Massachusetts cemetery where she was buried. It reads, in part: “She was born a slave and remained a slave for nearly thirty years. She could neither read nor write, yet in her own area she had no superior or equal.”What do we know about Mumbet according to Paragraph 1?
| A．She was born into a rich family. |
| B．She was a slaveholder. |
| C．She was born a slave. |
| D．She had a famous sister. |
What did Mumbet do after the trial?
| A．She founded the NAACP. |
| B．She went to live with her grandchildren. |
| C．She continued to serve the Ashleys. |
| D．She chose to work for a lawyer. |
What did Mumbet learn from discussions about the new constitution?
| A．How to be a good servant. |
| B．How to apply for a job. |
| C．She should always obey her owners’ orders. |
| D．She should be as free and equal as whites. |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．A trial that shocked the whole world. |
| B．The life of a brave African American woman. |
| C．A story of a famous writer and spokesperson. |
| D．The friendship between a lawyer and a slave. |
Newborns begin to develop language skills long before they begin speaking. And, compared to adults, they develop these skills more quickly. People have a hard time learning new languages as they grow older, but babies have the ability to learn any language easily.
For a long time, scientists have tried to explain how such young children can learn the complicated grammatical rules and sounds of a language. Now, researchers are getting a better idea of what’s happening in the brains of the tiniest language learners. This new information might help kids with learning problems as well as adults who want to learn new languages. It might even help scientists who are trying to design computers that can communicate like people do.
Most babies go “ma ma” by 6 months of age, and most children speak in full sentences by age 3. For many years, scientists have wondered how the brains of young children figure out how to communicate using language. With help from new technologies, scientists are now finding that babies begin life with the ability to learn any language. They get into contact with other people, listen to what they say and watch their movements very closely. That is why they quickly master the languages they hear most often.
Studies show that, up to about 6 months of age, babies can recognize all the sounds that make up all the languages in the world. Starting at around 6 months old a baby’s brain focuses on the most common sounds it hears. Then, children begin responding only to the sounds of the language they hear the most.
In a similar way older babies start recognizing the patterns that make up the rules of their native language. For example, English children who are about 18 months old start to figure out that words ending in “-ing” or “-ed” are usually verbs, and that verbs are action words.The new research in the second paragraph can be helpful in _____.
| A．finding successful language learners |
| B．teaching kids with learning problems |
| C．designing human-shaped computers |
| D．improving babies’ language ability |
The researchers found out that babies learn a language mainly by _____.
| A．repeating the words of other people |
| B．remembering the full sentences they hear |
| C．hearing and closely watching others speak |
| D．figuring out the meaning of different sounds |
The purpose of the text is to _____.
| A．discuss | B．educate |
| C．inform | D．Entertain |
(Q =" Question;" A = Answer)
Situation I
Q: If someone sits right next to me in an empty movie theater, is it rude to move?
A: Maybe, but nobody will fault you for it. Chances are that the close sitter doesn’t realize he disturbs you, so he may miss your annoyance. You undoubtedly aren’t the first person he’s met who needs enough room. Forgive his bad judgment, move quietly and enjoy the show.
Situation II
Q: If I use the bathroom at a store, do I need to buy something?
A: Consider frequency and urgency. Is this a one-time thing or an emergency? If so, you don’t have to buy anything, but it would be kind if you did. However, if you regularly use the bathroom at this place, then you are a customer, and you should act like one.
Situation III
Q: If someone is talking loudly on the bus, is there a nice way to ask him to keep it down?
A: No. Try other means: 1) Stare at him until he gets aware of it and quiets down. 2) Lift your finger in a silence motion(动作) and smile. 3) Put on earphones and ignore him.
Situation IV
Q: If I remember my friend’s birthday a day late, should I apologize or just wish her a happy birthday like nothing happened?
A: This is the reason why the word belated was invented. “Happy belated birthday!” is short for: “Well, I know I forgot, but then I remembered. Forgive me and happy birthday.”
Situation V
Q: Can I lie about seeing a text because I was loo busy or lazy to respond to it?
A: Don’t lie. Receiving a text does not mean you need to respond(回复) to it. Why waste a perfectly good lie when the truth will serve? “Yes,” you can say if ever asked, “I saw it.” No explanation is needed as to why you don’t respond.How will you quiet someone down in a public place?
| A．By talking to him directly. |
| B．By pointing angrily at him. |
| C．By looking purposefully at him. |
| D．By making fun of him continuously. |
The underlined word “belated” in Situation IV probably means ________.
| A．delayed | B．returned | C．predicted | D．regretted |
You will get annoyed in a theater when ________.
| A．a person is too rude to you |
| B．a person sits too close to you |
| C．a person is too active |
| D．a person talks too loudly |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Different ways to change others’ manners. |
| B．Good manners to talk to people. |
| C．Proper manners to offer help to others. |
| D．Modern ways to mind your manners. |
My roommate Lily was well organized, while I was not. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled (贴标签) everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Lily got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.
War broke out one evening. Lily came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming. “Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!” Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.
The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Lily answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled (爬) under her covers, sobbing. Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.
Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn’t notice Lily had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, “Thanks.”
Lily and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn’t always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.What made Lily so angry one evening?
| A．She heard the author shouting loud. |
| B．She saw the author’s shoes beneath her bed. |
| C．She got the news that her grandma was ill. |
| D．She couldn’t find her books. |
How is Paragraph 1 mainly developed?
| A．By analyzing causes. |
| B．By following time order. |
| C．By showing differences. |
| D．By describing a process. |
The author tidied up the room most probably because _______.
| A．she wanted to show her care |
| B．she hated herself for being so messy |
| C．she was asked by Lily to do so |
| D．she was scared by Lily’s anger |
What might be the best title for the story?
| A．Hard Work Pays Off | B．Learning to Be Roommates |
| C．My Friend Lily | D．How to Be Organized |