More than a hundred reporters from around the world thronged and bustled in the Stock Exchange Building in Stockholm's Old Town for about an hour before the doors to the Swedish Academy swung open. Notably, there were many Japanese reporters present, hoping to break the news that Haruki Murakami had won the prize. Finally, the Swedish Academy's Permanent Secretary Peter Englund stepped out from the doors and said Canadian short story writer Alice Munro has won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature.
The following is a truncated Q&A with reporters and Englund. (The questions have been simplified and clarified.)
Why did Alice Munro win?
We gave her the Nobel Prize in Literature because she is a master of the contemporary short story.
Which book to begin with?
One of the amazing things about her is that she has no weak works in her writing. She has always worked to the best of her ability; she has always cultivated the short story to perfection. And she has never really written a weak or bad book. So you can take your pick. 'The Moons of Jupiter' was the first book I read by her and you can see both her different themes in that book and also her very special narrative mode, you can find it there. She tells her stories a bit like nobody else. She has a very economical language and sparse style. You can find that in 'The Moons of Jupiter.' You can take your pick. The latest one is obviously very interesting, 'Dear Life,' which contains a number of autobiographical sketches at the end that gives a key to the entire authorship of Alice Munro.
How was she informed?
Well, I left a message on her answering machine. I couldn't reach her and it was of course pretty early in the morning. But she will be notified by courier, by email to her both agents, by standard mail and so on.
What kind of message did you leave?
Basically, congratulations! You've won the Nobel Prize in literature.
What's the Importance of a woman winning?
Don't ask me. We picked her for excellence, nothing else. Of course it matters when you start doing the headcount. But she is no representative. She has received this prize just because of what she has done. Nothing else.
So the sexual balance doesn't count?
We don't have these kinds of quotas; thank god ... We don't have any quotas. We could, if we wanted to, award this prize four times in a row to a children's book writer working in the United States. If we wanted to. We can do as we please. We don't have to fill any quotes in any direction. We just give it to authors who show an extraordinary literary quality. One of these is Mrs. Alice Munro.Why were there so many Japanese reporters in the Stock Exchange Building in Stockholm's Old Town?
| A．They were waiting there to report who would win the 2013 Nobel Prize in 2013. |
| B．They had expected that Haruki Murakami would win the prize. |
| C．They just wanted to be the first to report the 2013 Noble Prize winner. |
| D．They were waiting in the stock market to give the world a big surprise. |
Alice Munro would most probably be informed of her winning by ________?
| A．picking up her answering machine | B．email from both of her agents |
| C．standard mail | D．The passage doesn’t clarify it. |
According to the passage, Alice Munro was awarded the 2013 Noble Prize in Literature mainly for ________.
| A．she has an obvious advantage over Haruki Murakami |
| B．it is rare for a woman to have written so many perfect stories |
| C．she is a master of the contemporary short story |
| D．she deserves a prize for her hard work for so many years |
Alice Munro is best known for her work ________.
| A．“Dear Life”, which contains a number of autobiographical sketches that gives a key to her entire authorship |
| B．“The Moons of Jupiter”, which represented both her different themes and also her very special narrative mode |
| C．“DanceoftheHappyShades”, which helped her win the first Governor General’s Award |
| D．no specific work, but the uniqueness and perfection reflected in all her works |
My dream ended when I was born. Although I never knew it then, I just held on to something that would never come to pass. Dreams really do exist. But in the morning when you wake up, they are remembered just as a dream. That is what happened to me.
I always had the dream to dance like a beautiful ballerina（芭蕾舞女演员）turning around and around and hearing people applaud for me. When I was young, I would turn around and around in the fields of wildflowers that grew in my backyard.
Reality woke me up when I heard someone saying, "I don't know why you bother trying to dance. Ballerinas are pretty and slender(苗条) girls. Besides, you don't have the talent to even be a ballerina." I remember how those words hurt every feeling in my body. I fell to the ground and wept for hours.
I enjoyed hanging out by the water. I would sit there for hours and stare at my reflection(倒影). There I was, looking nothing like a pretty ballerina dancer. Reflections don't lie. Once the waves would come, my reflection was washed away just like my dream to dance.
As I grew older, I began to realize that the reason my dream was even born was because it was something that was inside of me. The dream I had was never nurtured(培育) and cared for, so it slowly died. It's not that I wanted it to die, but I allowed it to die the day I started listening to the words, "You can't do it." When I finally woke up from many years of dreaming, I realized that you can't only settle for dancing in the wildflowers, you have to move on to the platform. Which of the following can serve as the best title for the passage？
| A．Care for your dream |
| B．Dream and reality |
| C．Nothing is impossible |
| D．Efforts to be a ballerina will pay |
The author didn’t realize her dream of being a ballerina mainly because_______.
| A．she was bored of dancing and performing |
| B．she had lack of self-respect |
| C．her health conditions allowed her dream to die |
| D．she was deeply affected by others easily |
From the passage, it can be inferred that _________.
| A．the author was once a pretty and slender girl with wonderful dream. |
| B．we should dare to give up our dream facing much pressure and difficulty |
| C．if you stick to your dream and never say die, you will enjoy a bright life |
| D．You should necer give up. |
What is the main purpose of writing the passage?
| A．to complain | B．to praise | C．to warn | D．to criticize |
The underlined expression “settle for” in the last paragraph means_________.
| A．turn down | B．take up | C．give up | D．settle down |
The mobile phone has been a part of our lives since the 1980s. It enables us to stay in contact with our family and friends at all times and in most areas. However, because of the quick acceptance and extensive usage of mobiles in our lives, we have missed out on an important step, namely, the appropriate (恰当的)use.
Driving a car
Do not use your phone while you are driving ! You could concentrate on your conversation and forget to look where you are going, or you could take your eyes off the road to look at the phone’s display or to press in a number. Either way, you could cause a terrible accident.
In a restaurant
There is probably nothing more annoying than a diner receiving or making a call near you when you are in a restaurant. The icy glares you receive should be warning enough that it is not appreciated. Turn you phone off and enough that it is not appreciated. Turn you phone off and use your message service to return calls after you leave.
At the cinema
Do not give way to the desire to call a friend if the film is boring, or if you want to find out what happens. You could become the target of all the angry cinema customers.
At the theatre
There is no more icy glare than that of a theatre goer who has paid a lot of money to see a show and hears your phone playing a tone. It goes without saying that you will be seen as a socially unacceptable person in this situation.
In hospitals
This is probably the most important place to make sure your phone is switched off. Your phone can disturb life-saving electronic equipment in hospitals, so it is necessary that your phone is switched off before you enter.
On planes
Your phone might disturb navigational equipment and cause a horrible accident so you should switch it off before boarding a plane. According to the passage, the most annoying thing in a restaurant is that __________.
| A．you receive icy glares |
| B．a nearby diner is answering a phone call |
| C．you have to use the message service |
| D．you can not return calls until after you leave |
Which of the following statements is NOT true ?
| A．Theatre goers will not give you icy glares when they hear your phone. |
| B．When switched on in hospitals, mobile phones could endanger patients’ lives. |
| C．Passengers should switch off the phones before getting on a plane. |
| D．Pressing in phone numbers when driving could lead to traffic accidents. |
The passage mainly describes __________.
| A．different functions of mobile phones |
| B．the overuse of mobile phones on some occasions |
| C．some areas where message service is forbidden |
| D．the proper use of mobile phones in some public places |
What does the underlined word “concentrate on” mean in the article? It means ______.
| A．make something stronger | B．carry on |
| C．pay particular attention | D．think something clearly |
Specialists say that it is not easy to get used to life in a new culture. “Culture shock” is the term these specialists use when talking about the feelings that people have in a new environment. There are three stages of culture shock, say the specialists. In the first stage, the newcomers like their new environment. Then, when the fresh experience dies, they begin to hate the city, the country, the people, and everything else. In the last stage, the newcomers begin to adjust to their surroundings and, as a result, enjoy their life more.
There are some obvious factors in culture shock. The weather may be unpleasant. The customs may be different. The public service systems—the telephone, post office, or transportation—may be difficult to work out. The most simple things seem to be big problems. The language may be difficult.
Who feels culture shock? Everyone does in this way or that. But culture shock surprises most people. Very often the people having the worst culture shock are those who never had any difficulties in their home countries and were successful in their community. Coming to a new country, these people find they do not have the same established positions. They find themselves without a role, almost without an identity. They have to build a new self-image.
Culture shock gives rise to a feeling of disorientation (迷惘). This feeling may be homesickness. When homesick, people feel like staying inside all the time. They want to protect themselves for the strange environment, and create an escape inside their room for a sense of security. This escape does solve the problem of culture shock for the short term, but it does nothing to make the person familiar with the culture. Getting to know the new environment and gaining experience—these are the long-term solutions to the problem of culture shock.When people move to a new country, they _______.
will get used to their new surrounding with difficulty
have well prepared for the new surroundings
will get used to the culture of the country quickly
will never be familiar with culture of the country According to the passage, factors that give rise to culture shock include all of the following except _____.
| A．language communication | B．weather conditions and customs |
| C．public service systems | D．homesickness |
According to the passage, the more successful you are at home, __________.
the fewer difficulties you may have abroad
the more difficulties you may have abroad
the more money you will earn abroad
the less homesick you will feel abroadWhat is the main idea of the last passage?
| A．Escape unfamiliar environment |
| B．The feeling of homesickness. |
| C．Homesickness can solve the problem of culture shock. |
| D．The best way to overcome culture shock: get familiar with the new culture. |
It is quite reasonable to blame traffic jams, the cost of gas and the great speed of modern life, but manners on the road are becoming horrible. Everybody knows that the nicest men would become fierce tigers behind the wheel. It is all right to have a tiger in a cage, but to have one in the driver’s seat is another matter altogether.
Road politeness is not only good manners, but good sense too. It takes the most cool-headed drivers great patience to give up the desire to beat back when forced to face rude driving. On the other hand, a little politeness goes a long way towards reducing the possibility of quarrelling and fighting. A friendly nod or a wave of thanks in answer to an act of politeness helps to create an atmosphere of good will and calm so necessary in modern traffic conditions. But such behaviors of politeness are by no means enough. Many drivers nowadays don’t even seem able to recognize politeness when they see it.
However, misplaced politeness can also be dangerous. Typical examples are the driver who waves a child crossing the street at a wrong place into the path of oncoming cars that may be not able to stop in time. The same goes for encouraging old ladies to cross the road wherever and whenever they want to. It always amazes me that the highways are not covered with the dead bodies of these grannies.
An experienced driver, whose manners are faultless, told me it would help if drivers learnt to correctly join in traffic stream without causing total blockages that give rise to unpleasant feelings. Unfortunately, modern drivers can’t even learn to drive, let alone master the roadmanship. Years ago, experts warned us that the fast increase of the car ownership would demand more give-and-take from all road users. It is high time for all of us to take this message to heart. According to the passage, troubles on the road are often caused by _______.
| A．road conditions | B．the speed of modern life |
| C．the behavior of the drivers | D．the large number of cars |
In the writer’s opinion, ________.
| A．drivers should avoid traffic jams |
| B．strict traffic rules are badly needed |
| C．unskillful drivers should be punished |
| D．drivers should show road politeness properly |
The underlined word “give-and-take” in the last paragraph means “______”.
| A．politeness and impoliteness |
| B．good manners and bad manners |
| C．offering help to others as much as possible |
| D．willingness of each person to give in to each other’s wishes |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Road politeness | B．Traffic problems |
| C．Bad manners on the road | D．Good divers and bad drivers |
In the U.S., people prefer waiting for a table to sitting with people they don’t know. This means a hostess may not seat a small group until a small table is available, even if a large one is. If you are sitting at a table with people you don’t know, it is impolite to light up a cigarette without first asking if it will disturb them.
At American restaurants and coffee shops you are usually served tap water before you order. You may find the bread and butter is free, and if you order coffee, you may get a free refill.
Most cities and towns have no rules about opening and closing time for stores or restaurants, though they usually do make rules for bars. Especially in large cities, stores may be open 24 hours a day.
Serving in restaurants is often large; too large for many people. If you can’t finish your meal but would like to enjoy the food later, ask your waitress or waiter for a “doggie bag”. It may have a picture of a dog on it, but everybody knows you’re taking the food for yourself.
Supper and dinner are both words for the evening meal. Some people have “Sunday dinner”. This is an especially big noon meal.
Tips are not usually added to the check. They are not included in the price of the meal, either. A tip of about 15% is expected and you should leave it on the table when you leave. In some restaurants, a check is brought on a plate and you put your money there. Then the waiter or waitress brings you your change.Which statement is true?
| A．American people like sitting with people they don’t know. |
| B．Tips shouldn’t be given to the waiter or waitress. |
| C．Orange juice is served before you order |
| D．American people would not light a cigarette if the people who sit at the same table mind their smoking. |
What does the underlined word “doggie bag” mean in the article? It means ______.
| A．a bag with a picture of a dog on it |
| B．a bag used to carry dogs |
| C．a small bag for taking the food left over home to enjoy it later |
| D．a small bag for taking the food left over home for dogs |
Sunday dinner is _______.
| A．a dinner in the evening | B．a big noon meal |
| C．a big lunch Sunday | D．a supper on Sunday |
If a person pays 200 yuan in a restaurant, how many tips are given to the waiter?
| A．30 yuan. | B．60 yuan. | C．80 yuan. | D．90 yuan. |