The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel written by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald that follows a cast of characters living in the fictional town of West Egg on Long Island in the summer of 1922.
Nick Carraway rents a small house in West Egg on Long Island, next door to the expensive house of Jay Gatsby, a mysterious millionaire who often holds extravagant（奢侈的）parties. Nick’s cousin, Daisy, and her husband, Tom, a college classmate of Nick’s, live in East Egg across the bay.
Nick later learns that Gatsby knew and fell in love with Daisy in 1917 and is still deeply in love with her. He spends many nights staring at her house across the bay from his house, hoping to recover their lost relationship one day. Gatsby’s extravagant lifestyle and wild parties are an attempt to impress Daisy in the hope that she will one day appear again at Gatsby’s doorstep. With the help of Nick, Gatsby and Daisy get in touch again. But after a short time, Tom forces the group to drive into New York City, saying that he and Daisy have a history that Gatsby could never understand. In addition, he announces that Gatsby is a criminal whose fortune comes from illegal activities. Daisy realizes that her allegiance（忠心）is to Tom, and Tom sends her back to East Egg with Gatsby, attempting to prove that Gatsby cannot hurt him.
When Nick and Tom drive home, they discover that Gatsby’s car has struck and killed Myrtle. Nick later learns from Gatsby that Daisy, not Gatsby himself, was driving the car at the time of the accident but Gatsby intends to take the blame anyway. Myrtle’s husband, George, arrives at Gatsby’s house and fatally（致命地）shoots both Gatsby and then himself.
Nick stages a small funeral for Gatsby with few coming to mourn the passing of his romantic dream. After that, Nick moves back to the Midwest, disillusioned（幻灭）with the Eastern lifestyle.
At first glance, the novel appears to be a simple love story, but further examination shows Fitzgerald’s masterful observation of American society during the 1920s and the corruption（堕落）of the American dream.
Gatsby often holds extravagant parties in order to ____________.
| A．show off his wealth |
| B．enjoy life with his neighbors |
| C．attract Daisy’s attention |
| D．memorize his love with Daisy |
The friend circle of Gatsby before and after his death tells ____________.
| A．how powerful George is |
| B．what an honest cousin Nick is |
| C．what people care most in a world of money |
| D．how ugly the couple of George and Myrtle are |
What do we know about Gatsby from the passage?
| A．He loves Daisy so deeply that he chooses to sacrifice for her. |
| B．He falls in love with Daisy when she attends his wild parties. |
| C．He is a criminal who attempts to hurt Tom from time to time. |
| D．He is a mysterious millionaire who likes to stare at others’ houses. |
The last paragraph of the passage is to show ____________.
| A．the influence of The Great Gatsby on later novels |
| B．the wonderful writing skills of F. Scott Fitzgerald |
| C．the outstanding and unique theme of The Great Gatsby |
| D．the status of The Great Gatsby in American literature |
Pakistani youth activist Malala Yousafzai was awarded the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday, October 10. She is the youngest Nobel winner in history. Malala shares the prize with Kailash Satyarthi, a 60-year-old man from India who has helped lead a movement to end child slavery around the world.
Malala Yousafzai was born on July 12, 1997 in Mingora, the Swat District of northwest Pakistan to a Sunni Muslim family. When she was just 11 years old, she started blogging about the Taliban takeover of her hometown. Taliban members believe young girls should not go to school. Classrooms throughout the Swat district were closed for several months. Malala spoke publicly about her desire to go back to school. “All I want is an education,” she told one television broadcaster.
When the Pakistani government regained control, Malala was able to return to class. She continued to blog and speak out about girls’ right to education. But on October 9, 2012, the Taliban tried to silence her. A gunman boarded her school bus and shot her on the left side of her forehead. Malala survived, and showed great courage and optimism during her long recovery. Then she became a symbol of the struggle for girls’ rights all over the world.
Malala’s mission for peace is unstoppable. Nine months after she was shot, she gave a now-famous speech at the United Nations. “They thought that the bullets would silence us. But they failed,” she said. “And then, out of that silence came thousands of voice. Weakness, fear and hopelessness died. Strength, power and courage were born.”
How old was Malala when she won the Nobel Peace Prize?
| A．11 years old. | B．14 years old. |
| C．17 years old. | D．60 years old. |
After classrooms throughout the Swat district were closed, Malala ________.
| A．started blogging about the event |
| B．expressed her desire for education publicly |
| C．made a now-famous speech at the UN |
| D．turned to famous television broadcasters for help |
What does the underlined part silence her in the third paragraph probably mean?
| A．Kill her. |
| B．Make peace with her. |
| C．Offer suggestions to her. |
| D．Communicate with her in silent ways. |
What does the passage mainly tell us?
| A．Malala’s peace mission. |
| B．Malala’s courage and optimism. |
| C．Malala’s fight with the Taliban. |
| D．Malala’s winning the Nobel Peace Prize. |
My transportation was unexpectedly smooth and I arrived at the meeting half an hour earlier. I kept my eyes on the restaurant door. Several customers entered, but not my friend. At 6:00 pm, she sent me a text message: “Urgent work to finish. Will be 20 minutes late.”
I had left my book in the office, so I spent the time thinking of my experiences of being late in China. On my first visit in 1985, punctuality was deeply rooted in the Chinese hearts. There were no traffic jams then.
As a teacher in Canada, I always insisted on punctuality. I would open the classroom door to a late student for the first time and the second, but not the third. During the six years I worked for CCTV, I had a Chinese friend whom I often saw at lunch time, or after work. We used to meet at the subway station nearby. He was always late by 10-20 minutes. To my question, “You were busy?” he would surprisingly answer, “ No.” Once I asked him to check the clock in his office, he smiled.
In March 2015, I got permanent residence (居住权) in China. The ceremony was scheduled for 9:00 am at the Public Security Bureau on the Second Ring Road. I told my driver I had to get there by 8:40 am. “No problem,” he replied. But he thought he had time to drop someone off at the airport before picking me up. I desperately waited for him. Then, to rub salt into my wound, he had to stop at the exit of a gas station. Finally, I entered the room at 9:07 am ── the last guest to arrive!What can we learn from the passage?
| A．The author is always late for work or any activities. |
| B．The author dislikes making friends with unpunctual persons. |
| C．The author hates being late from the bottom of heart. |
| D．The author can do something to deal with unpunctuality. |
If the author’s student comes late for the third time, _______.
| A．he will let him/her remain outside |
| B．he will open the door for him/her again |
| C．he will shout at him/her loudly |
| D．he will tell him/her to take care next time |
How did the Chinese friend feel when the author asked him to check the clock?
| A．Excited. | B．Embarrassed. |
| C．Satisfied. | D．Shocked. |
Why didn’t the author arrive at the ceremony on time?
| A．Because the gas was running out. |
| B．Because his driver met a guest at the airport. |
| C．Because there was a big traffic jam on the road. |
| D．Because the driver estimated the time wrongly. |
Lego Bricks & More 10664 Creative Tower
List Price: $119.99
Price: $101.35 & FREE Shipping
Featuring 160 colorful Lego bricks to create anything your young kids can imagine, this item is designed to allow children complete flexibility. If you are looking for instruction sheets, many are found on the Lego site.
If you buy it together with the LEGO IDEAS BOOK, the price for both will be $115.44.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews:
★Spectacular value!
By Marissa McRoberts on November 29
The typical price per piece of Lego has been slightly more than $10 since 2005. At $101 for 160 pieces, this set is about $ 0.6 per piece. It is a great deal.
But there are some downsides: no wheels, bushes, trees, grass, technic elements and that sort of thing. This is otherwise a fantastic starter set.
★A great deal!
By Shawn Bosworth on December 6
I got this set as a Black Friday deal for an amazing $30! I wanted 2 sets but they were gone before I could even get my hands on one. A very nice man gave me a spare that he grabbed. It’s huge, strong and well-made. The box is about 2 feet tall and is strong enough for a storage option. I will absolutely be looking to get another set one day! According to Marissa McRoberts, this set of Lego Bricks ______.
| A．is a perfect starter set |
| B．costs too much money |
| C．should contain more pieces of bricks |
| D．is much cheaper compared with similar products |
The Lego Bricks & More 10664 Creative Tower includes ______.
| A．a few wheels | B．a strong container |
| C．technic elements | D．The LEGO IDEAS BOOK |
How did Shawn Bosworth get a set of Lego Bricks for $30?
| A．He got the chance from a man who had an additional set. |
| B．He ordered two sets and was then offered a discount. |
| C．He grabbed the bargain when it was first served. |
| D．He made a deal with the seller for a lower price. |
Cars!!! Holidays! Thousands of prizes! Hurry! Free with every packet of splash! Your personal lucky number! Will be among the 500,000 winners! Use splash for the softest…quickest… whitest wash! Don’t delay… buy a packet today!Those who bought a packet of splash________.
| A．are sure to win a prize. |
| B．are sure to be among the 500,000 winners. |
| C．could get $500,000. |
| D．could get the personal lucky number. |
Splash is________.
| A．a certain kind of material used for washing in high quality. |
| B．something like a machine used to wash clothes. |
| C．the softest, quickest, and whitest car to drive. |
| D．one of thousands of prizes for players to win. |
Which of the following diagrams(图解) shows the correct relation?
●：prize：personal lucky number ★：splash ■：cars
| A．■→→★→● | B．★→→●→■ |
| C．●→★→■→ | D．■→★→→● |
If you want to get prize,________.
| A．don’t delay joining us in playing. |
| B．you should buy 500,000 packets of splash. |
| C．please buy a packet of splash. |
| D．please drive a car as quickly as possible. |
What does it mean to say that we live in a world of persuasion? It means that we live among competing interests. Your roommate’s need to study for an exam may take priority（优先）over pizza. Your instructor may have good reasons not to change your grade. And the object of your romantic interest may have other choices.
In such a world, persuasion is the art of getting others to give fair and favorable consideration to our point of view. When we persuade, we want to influence how others believe and behave. We may not always prevail — other points of view may be more persuasive, depending on the listener, the situation, and the merits of the case. But when we practice the art of persuasion, we try to ensure that our position receives the attention it deserves.
Some people, however, object to the very idea of persuasion. They may regard it as an unwelcome interruption into their lives. Just the opposite, we believe that persuasion is unavoidable — to live is to persuade. Persuasion may be ethical（合乎道义的）or unethical, selfless or selfish, inspiring or degrading. Persuaders may enlighten our minds or catch our vulnerability(弱点). Ethical persuasion, however, calls on sound reasoning and is sensitive to the feelings and needs of listeners. Such persuasion can help us apply the wisdom of the past to the decisions we now must make. Therefore, the most basic part of education is learning to resist the one kind of persuasion and to encourage and practice the other.
Beyond its personal importance to us, persuasion is necessary to society. The right to persuade and be persuaded is the bedrock of the American political system, guaranteed by the First Amendment to the Constitution（美国宪法）.According to the passage, persuasion means ________.
| A．changing others’ point of view |
| B．exercising power over other people |
| C．getting other people to consider your point of view |
| D．getting people to agree with you and do what you want |
The underlined word in the second paragraph “prevail” means“________”.
| A．fail | B．win | C．speak | D．listen |
The passage states that some people object to persuasion because they think it is ________.
| A．unwelcome behavior | B．difficult to do well |
| C．a danger to society | D．never successful |
The passage mainly discusses ________.
| A．people’s different opinions towards persuasion |
| B．the reasons why people persuade |
| C．that persuasion is both good and bad |
| D．that persuasion is important and it is all around us |