My heart sank when the man at the immigration counter gestured to the back room. I was born and raised in America, and this was Miami, where I live, but they weren’t quite ready to let me in yet.
“Please wait in here, Ms. Abujaber,” the immigration officer said. My husband, with his very American last name, accompanied me. He was getting used to this. The same thing had happened recently in Canada when I’d flown to Montreal to speak at a book event. That time they held me for 45 minutes. Today we were returning from a literary festival in Jamaica, and I was shocked that I was being sent “in back” once again.
The officer behind the counter called me up and said, “Miss, your name looks like the name of someone who’s on our wanted list. We’re going to have to check you out with Washington.”
“How long will it take?”
“Hard to say…a few minutes,” he said, “We’ll call you when we’re ready for you.” After an hour, Washington still hadn’t decided anything about me.
“Isn’t this computerized?” I asked at the counter, “Can’t you just look me up?”
“Just a few more minutes,” they assured me.
After an hour and a half, I pulled my cell phone out to call the friends I was supposed to meet that evening. An officer rushed over. “No phones!” he said, “For all we know you could be calling a terrorist cell and giving them information.”
“I’m just a university professor,” I said. My voice came out in a squeak.
“Of course you are. And we take people like you out of here in leg irons every day.”
I put my phone away.
My husband and I were getting hungry and tired. Whole families had been brought into the waiting room, and the place was packed with excitable children, exhausted parents, and even a flight attendant.
I wanted to scream, to jump on a chair and shout: “I’m an American citizen; a novelist; I probably teach English literature to your children.”
After two hours in detention (扣押), I was approached by one of the officers. “You’re free to go,” he said. No explanation or apologies. For a moment, neither of us moved. We were still in shock. Then we leaped to our feet.
“Oh, one more thing,” he handed me a tattered photocopy with an address on it, “If you aren’t happy with your treatment, you can write to this agency.”
“Will they respond?” I asked.
“I don’t know—I don’t know of anyone who’s ever written to them before.” Then he added,” By the way, this will probably keep happening each time you travel internationally.”
“What can I do to keep it from happening again?”
He smiled the empty smile we’d seen all day, “Absolutely nothing.”
After telling several friends about our ordeal, probably the most frequent advice I’ve heard in response is to change my name. Twenty years ago, my own graduate school writing professor advised me to write under a pen name so that publishers wouldn’t stick me in what he called “the ethnic ghetto”—a separate, secondary shelf in the bookstore. But a name is an integral part of anyone’s personal and professional identity—just like the town you’re born in and the place where you’re raised.
Like my father, I’ll keep the name, but my airport experience has given me a whole new perspective on what diversity and tolerance are supposed to mean. I had no idea that being an American would ever be this hard.The author was held at the airport because ______.
A.she and her husband returned from Jamaica |
B.her name was similar to a terrorist’s |
C.she had been held in Montreal |
D.she had spoken at a book event |
She was not allowed to call her friends because ______.
A.her identity hadn’t been confirmed yet |
B.she had been held for only one hour and a half |
C.there were other families in the waiting room |
D.she couldn’t use her own cell phone |
We learn from the passage that the author would ______ to prevent similar experience from happening again.
A.write to the agency | B.change her name |
C.avoid traveling abroad | D.do nothing |
Her experiences indicate that there still exists ______ in the US.
A.hatred | B.discrimination |
C.tolerance | D.diversity |
The author sounds ______ in the last paragraph.
A.impatient | B.bitter | C.worried | D.ironic (具有讽刺意味的) |
B
Once a New Zealand teacher asked where I live. “In the white building,” I answered.
“At our university both girls and boys live in the same dormitory.” I added.
Beyond my expectation(出乎意料), however, my attempt(努力)to show I am speaking American English(AE) turned out to be something else. The New Zealander seemed very puzzled(迷惑)at my answer.
With a half smile, she asked, “Really?Do they live in the same room?”
“Oh, no. They live in different rooms but in the same building.” I reacted(反应)quickly.
Later I got to know the word “dormitory”. In AE it means one building, whereas(而,却)it means one room in British English(BE).
The New Zealander misunderstood me because she spoke New Zealander English(NE), which, as we know, is much related to BE.
Nowadays, not a few English learners, who try to catch up with the fashion(时髦), choose to speak AE.
Yet, the problem is that they cannot speak pure AE, but half AE and half BE instead.
I think it necessary to keep one style in order to avoid(避免)misunderstanding.
61、Which of the following is right?
A、AE and BE are two different languages.
B、There are some differences between AE and BE.
C、New Zealanders speak BE.
D、New Zealanders cannot understand Americans.
62、What I said to the New Zealander is .
A、really pure AE B、really pure BE
C、half AE and half BE D、not English at all
63、According to the passage , .
A、few people speak AE B、more people speak BE
C、BE is becoming fashionable D、AE is becoming fashionable
64、The writer wrote the passage in order to .
A、tell us a funny story
B、warn us not to make mistakes
C、tell us the differences between AE and BE
D、encourage us to speak one style of English
第三部分:阅读理解(共 20 小题;每小题 2 分,满分 40 分)
阅读下面短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项。
A
It was Monday. Mrs. Smith's dog was hungry, but there was not any meat in the house.
Considering that there was no better way. Mrs. Smith took a piece of paper, and wrote the following words on it:“Give my dog half a pound of meat.” Then she gave the paper to her dog and said gently:“Take this to the butcher(* person whose job is selling meat)and he's going to give you your lunch today.”
Holding the piece of paper in its mouth, the dog ran to the butcher's. It gave the paper to the butcher. The butcher read it carefully, recognized that it was really the lady's handwriting and soon did it as he was asked to. The dog was very happy, and ate the meat up at once.
At noon, the dog came to the shop again. It gave the butcher a piece of paper again. After reading it, he gave it half a pound of meat once more.
The next day, the dog came again exactly at noon. And as usual, it brought a piece of paper in the mouth. This time, the butcher did not take a look at paper, and gave the dog its meat, for he had regarded the dog as one of his customers(*people who buy sth. from a shop).
But, the dog came again at four o'clock. And the same thing happened once again. To the butcher's more surprise, it came for the third time at six o'clock, and brought with it a third piece of paper. The butcher felt a bit puzzled . He said to himself, “This is a small dog. Why does Mrs. Smith give it so much meat to eat today?”
Looking at the piece of paper, he found that there were not any words on it!
56、Mrs. Smith treated her little dog quite .
A、cruelly B、fairly C、kindly D、friendly
57、It seemed that the dog knew well that the paper Mrs. Smith gave it .
A、might do it much harm B、could do it much good
C、would help the butcher D、was worth many pounds
58、The butcher did not give any meat to the dog .
A、before he felt sure that the words were really written by Mrs. Smith
B、when he found that the words on the paper were not clear
C、because he had sold out all the meat in his shop
D、until he was paid enough by Mrs. Smith
59、From its experience, the dog found that .
A、only the paper with Mrs. Smith's words in it could bring it meat
B、the butcher would give the meat to it whenever he saw it
C、Mrs. Smith would pay for the meat it got from the butcher
D、a piece of paper could bring it half a pound of meat
60、At the end of the story, you'll find that .
A、the dog was clever enough to write on the paper
B、the dog dared not go to the butcher's any more
C、the butcher was told not to give any meat to the dog
D、the butcher found himself cheated by the clever animal
D
HOLIDAY HOMES IN MALLORCA
Holiday houses in Mallorca sailing and fishing port - quiet even in summer season.Beautifully situated houses with sights of sea and mountains, yet near to shops and restaurants.Cars and bicycles for hire.Sailing and sports clubs nearby.
ITALY IN COMFORT
Luxury coach trips of Italy, out of normal holiday season.21 days to visit five Italian cities starting from London 1st May, 1st September.The trips are guided by Professor Martin Davis, Head of Italian Studies, London University.See the arts and culture of historic Italy.
KIBBUTZ HOLIDAYS IN ISRAEL
Working holidays on a kibbutz (co-operative farm) in Israel.All nationalities welcome for one to three months, if prepared to work morning with kibbutz members.Accommodation, food and trips to historic sights all provided free - you pay only for the special low-cost return flight.
TWO WEEKS ON A CARIBBEAN ISLAND
Two-week holidays in the Hotel Splendid, on a lovely beach with golden sands and deep-blue sea.Tennis, golf, sailing and all water sports, trips around the island arranged.Near to town of Castries with lively evening entertainment - dancing.
1st November - 31st March =£720 per person
1st April - 30th October =£850 per person
Jack and his wife Mary, who have recently retired, want to see places of cultural and historic interest abroad, but Mary hates flying.
Peter and Maria, university students, want to travel as far as possible on little money, and would like to get to know a country by working there for three months with other young people.
Michael, a young computer programmer, has been working hard and needs a holiday to relax in winter.He would like to go somewhere warmer and sunny, where he can swim in the sea, and he enjoys sports and dancing.
Henry and Kate, both teachers, and their two sons, have to take their holiday during the school summer holidays.There must be plenty for the boys to do, although Harry and Kate just want to have beautiful scenery, good food and wine- and peace.
57.Michael would most probably go to _______ for his holiday.
A.Italy B.Israel C.Mallorca D.a Caribbean island
58.The best holiday for Jack and Mary would be _______.
A.the 21 - day coach trip of Italy
B.the 2 -week stay in the Hotel Splendid
C.the 14 -day trip around a Caribbean island
D.the working holidays for 1 -3 months on a kibbutz in Israel
59.Henry and Kate and their sons would like _______.
A.a holiday working on a kibbutz in Israel
B.a holiday visiting cities by coach in Italy
C.a holiday house in the fishing port in Mallorca
D.a holiday hotel on a lovely beach on a Carribean Island
60.You can find this passage most probably in _______.
A.a school library B.a tourist agency C.the post office D.the museum
C
In the 1920s demand for American farm products fell, as European countries began to recover from World War I and started austerity (紧缩) programs to reduce their imports.The result was a sharp drop in farm prices.This period was more disastrous for farmers than earlier times had been, because farmers were no longer self-sufficient.They were paying for machinery, seed, and fertilizer, and they were also buying consumer goods.The prices of the items farmers bought remained constant, while prices they received for their products fell.These developments were made worse by the Great Depression, which began in 1929 and extended throughout the 1939s.
In 1929, under President Herbert Hoover, the Federal Farm Board was organized.It established the principle of direct interference (干预) with supply and demand, and it represented the first national commitment to provide greater economic stability for farmers.
President Hoover's successor attached even more importance to this problem.One of the first measures proposed by President FranklinD.Roosevelt when he took office in 1933 was the Agricultural Adjustment Act, which was later passed by Congress.This law gave the Secretary of Agriculture the power to reduce production through voluntary agreements with farmers who were paid to take their land out of use.A deliberate shortage of farm products was planned in an effort to raise prices.This law was declared unconstitutional (违背宪法的) by the Supreme Court on the grounds that general taxes were being collected to pay one special group of people.However, new laws were passed immediately that achieved the same result of resting soil and providing flood-control measures, but which were based on the principle of soil conservation.The Roosevelt Administration believed that rebuilding the nation’s soil was in the national interest and was not simply a plan to help farmers at the expense of other citizens.Later the government guaranteed loans to farmers so that they could buy farm machinery, hybrid (杂交) grain, and fertilizers.
53.What caused the problem in the demand for American farm products?
A.The effect of the Great Depression.
B.The shrinking of overseas markets.
C.The destruction caused by the First World War.
D.The increased exports of European countries.
54.The word “successor” refers to ______.
A.President Hoover B.US Secretary of State
C.President Franklin D.US Secretary of Agriculture
55.The Agricultural Adjustment Act encouraged American farmers to ______.
A.reduce their scale of production B.make full use of their land
C.adjust the prices of their farm products D.be self-sufficient in agricultural production
56.The Supreme Court rejected the Agricultural Adjustment Act because it believed that the Act ______.
A.might cause greater shortage of farm products
B.didn't give the Secretary of Agriculture enough power
C.would benefit neither the government nor the farmers
D.benefited one group of citizens at the expense of others
B
The world is not coming to an end on December 21, 2012, the US space agency insisted Monday in a rare campaign to dispel widespread rumors fueled by the Internet and a new Hollywood movie.
The latest big screen offering from Sony Picture, 2012, arrives in theaters on Friday, with a 200-million-dollar production about the end of the world supposedly based on myths backed by the Mayan calendar.It is claimed that the end of time will come as a Planet X---or Nibiru---heads toward or collides with the Earth.
Some websites accuse NASA of hiding the truth on the planet’s existence, but the US space agency condemned such stories as an “Internet hoax”.“There is no factual basis for these claims,” NASA said in a question-and-anwser posting on this website.“If such a collision were real, astronomers would have been tracking it for at least the past decade, and it would be visible by now to the naked eye.Obviously, it does not exist.Credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012,” it insisted.“After all, our planet has been getting along just well for more than four billion years,” added NASA.
There is another planet, Eris, floating in space.But the small planet similar to Pluto will remain safely fixed in the outer solar system and it can come no closer than four billion miles to the Earth, according to NASA.
Earlier theories set the disaster for May 2003, but when nothing happened the date was moved forward to the winter in 2012 to coincide with the end of a cycle of the ancient Mayan calendar.
NASA insisted the Mayan calendar in fact does not end on December 21, 2012, as another period begins immediately afterward.
And even if the planets were to line up as some have forecast, the effect on our planet would be “negligible(unimportant)”, NASA said.
“And while comets and asteroids (小行星) have always hit the Earth, big hits are very rare,” NASA noted.The last major impact was believed to be 65 million years ago, resulting in the end of dinosaurs.
“We have already determined that there are no threatening asteroids as large as the one that killed the dinosaurs,” the space agency said.
49.______ played a key role in the spread of the rumors.
A.A new book B.The Internet and a new Hollywood movie
C.NASAD.An Indian calendar
50.We can infer that ______.
A.people didn’t take the rumor seriously
B.Planet X --- or Nibiru does exist
C.astronomers have been tracking Planet X for over ten years
D.the rumor caused a panic among some people
51.NASA thinks that Eris ______.
A.might have a threat to the Earth B.doesn’t have any threat to the Earth
C.is too far away to be visible D.is similar to our planet, where life might exist
52.Which of the following is the best title?
A.New Hollywood movie 2012
B.December 21, 2012, Not the end of the world
C.End of the ancient Mayan calendar
D.How rumors came into being