Meryl Streep is an American actress who has worked in theatre, television and film. She is regarded as one of the most talented actresses of all time. The following is a list of movies that Meryl Streep has been involved with:
Kramer vs. Krammer (1979)
In the film, Meryl plays a mother caught up in a custody dispute (拘留纠纷). Her co-star, Dustin Hoffman, said, “She’s extraordinarily hardworking. I think she thinks about nothing else but what she’s doing.” Meryl won her first Oscar for her performance in this film.
Sophie’s Choice (1982)
Meryl plays Sophie, a Polish war survivor. To prepare for the role she learned to speak German and perfected a Polish accent. Film critic Roger Ebert said, “This is one of the most astonishing and yet one of the most natural performances I can imagine.” Meryl won her second Best Actress Oscar for her performance.
Out of Africa(1985)
Meryl is Karen Blixen, a Danish woman living in Kenya in the early 20th century. The story follows Karens attempts to run a coffee plantation and her love affair with big-game hunter Denys. The film is based on the memoirs(回忆录) of the real Karen Blixen.
A Cry in the Dark (1995)
This is based on the true-life case of the disappearance of baby Azaria. Meryl plays Linda Chamberlain, a mother who is wrongly accused of killing her own child. After spending four years in prison, it was found that wild dogs had taken away the baby. Meryl won Best Actress at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival.
The Bridge of Madison County (1995)
This movie is based on one of the biggest bestsellers of the 20th century (the book sold 50 million copies worldwide). Meryl plays Francesca Johnson, an Italian war bride living in 1960s Iowa. It’s about her brief affair with photographer Robert Kincaid.
Mamma Mial(2008)
This is a romantic comedy based on the stage musical Mamma Mial, featuring the music from 1970s Swedish pop group ABBA. Meryl plays Donna Sheridan, a hotel owner on the Greek island of Kalokairi. Mamma Mial made over U.S. $ 600 million worldwide. Apparently, Meryl had seen the musical in 2001 and was completely absorbed in it. She had no idea that seven years later she’d be in the movie version.For which of the following films did Meryl have to learn a new language?
| A．Kramar vs. Kramar |
| B．A Cry in the Dark |
| C．Sophies Choice |
| D．The Bridges of Madison County |
Which of the following films are based on true-life stories?
| A．Out of Africa & A Cry in the Dark. |
| B．Kramer vs. Kramer & Sophies Choice. |
| C．Sophies Choice & The Bridge of Madison County. |
| D．The Bridges of Madison County & Mamma Mia |
It can be learned from the text that the movie Mamma Mial .
| A．was first shot in 2001 |
| B．probably has audiences screaming with laughter |
| C．has won Meryl a lot of awards |
| D．is based on a popular book |
What do we know about Meryl?
| A．She enjoyed the musical Mamma Mial greatly. |
| B．Her first film was Kramer vs. Kramer. |
| C．She has won one Oscar to date. |
| D．Shes more interested in films than TV programs. |
What can be inferred from the text?
A. Mamma Mial is about the story of the pop group ABBA.
B. The Bridges of Madison County was set in Italy.
C. Roger Ebert thinks Meryls best film is Sophies Choice.
D. Dustin Hoffman speaks highly of Meryl.
“Mom, can I bake some bread?” We were 15, my best friend, Hanna, and I, determined to try our hands at creating some beautiful bread.
“It’s not worth the trouble,” my mother said. “It takes lots of time and makes a big mess. Our bakery bread is delicious without all that effort.”
Begging was useless. Mom’s “no” meant “No!”
But several weeks later, opportunity knocked: My parents were going out for the evening. I immediately invited Hanna to be my partner in bread-baking crime.
We studied the recipe. That was easy. “Mix oil into flour then beat in four of the eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt.”
We were not good at breaking eggs. I tried to learn from my mother.
“Gradually add eight cups of flour. When dough (面团) holds together, squeeze it.”
We took turns working like that. “Is the dough ‘holding together’?” we asked each other.
I remembered my neighbor’s instructions: “If it’s too sticky, add some flour; if too dry, add water.”
We added water. Then more flour. Then more water. By then, the mass of our dough had grown very much.
“Place dough on floured surface and squeeze till smooth,” the recipe instructed.
We took turns burying our hands in the damp dough, pinching, squeezing, and feeling it leak between fingers.
“Clean and oil bowl, then return dough to bowl. Cover and let dough rise in warm place for 1 hour.”
This was good news --- we’d have a break. On dirtied kitchen chairs, we dreamed about our beautiful bread. “See?” we would tell my mom. “Isn’t it worth the work?”
Hanna and I couldn’t help glancing at the rising process every few minutes. But nothing was happening.
“Maybe something will happen in the hot oven,” I said.
Unfortunately, when we removed the loaves from the oven, they were like hard stones.
Mom was right; it takes time and effort. It sometimes makes a mess. But still it feels good, somehow, to be part of that long, ongoing chain of bread bakers. Since that night, both Hanna and I have learned to do it right.To the writer, what her mother said was __________.
| A．law | B．rubbish | C．advice | D．warning |
Which of the following can best describe the children’s feelings while making their first bread?
| A．Confident; hopeful; disappointed. | B．Curious; hopeful; disappointed. |
| C．Interested; excited; satisfied. | D．Worried; satisfied; proud. |
Which of the following did the writer do without instructions?
| A．Placed dough on floured surface. | B．Added eight cups of flour to eggs. |
| C．Returned dough to a cleaned bowl. | D．Placed the dough into the hot oven. |
The passage mainly tells us ______________.
| A．the process of making bread | B．the conflict between mother and daughter |
| C．the first experience of making bread | D．the way of doing housework |
How do you get a man to do his share of the housework? If you are like most women, you’ve faced this question the hard way.
A man will enjoy a clean, orderly house, but he usually won’t make the effort to clean or organise it. This doesn't mean that a woman has to do all the housework:; she may have to manage many of the household duties, and request her partner’s participation（参与）. A woman can often say that men and women should take equal responsibility（责任） for housework.
Very few men are raised to be fully responsible for housework, and many men look on housework as women’s work. On the other hand, most men will readily work around the yard, make repairs and complete projects on weekends or evenings, and it’s important that you give your man appreciation for those things, too. Most men will take on a little additional housework around the house if asked politely. They are even more likely to do housework if they can choose what they want to do, and do it without being monitored.
Here’s the key: men want to feel that they are doing housework either because they want to do a task, or because they simply want to please their women. Men are much less likely to take on household tasks they consider uninteresting and unimportant. In other words, men are likely to do a household task just for the good of the house. The passage is mainly about how to _____.
| A．get men to take on some housework |
| B．get men to serve their families |
| C．praise men’ housework |
| D．make men do all the housework |
According to the passage, a man_____.
| A．is willing to do housework |
| B．likes to be told to do housework |
| C．is taught to be responsible for housework from childhood |
| D．likes a clean house but doesn’t make efforts to clean it |
In order to get men to do some housework, women should often_____.
| A．order them to do their share |
| B．ask them to do some housework politely |
| C．blame men’s laziness |
| D．monitor men’s work |
According to the passage, the underlined sentence in the last paragraph means that men won’t _____.
| A．work without any payment |
| B．do unimportant household tasks |
| C．do housework without women’s praise |
| D．please their wives |
According to the passage, which of the following would a husband most probably like to do?
| A．Cleaning the table. | B．Doing some sewing. |
| C．Painting the fence. | D．Asking his wife to work on the yard. |
Ever since humans have lived on the earth, they have made use of various forms of communication．Generally, this expression of thoughts and feelings has been in the form of oral speech．When there is a language barrier(障碍), communication is completed through sign language in which motions stand for letters, words, and ideas．Tourists and the people unable to hear or speak have had to turn to this form of expression．Many of these symbols of whole words are very lively and exact and can be used internationally; spelling, however, cannot．
Body language sends ideas or thoughts by certain actions, either meaningfully or not．A wink(眨眼) can be a way of showing that the party is only joking．A nod means agreement, while shaking the head indicates disagreement．
Other forms of nonlinguistic(非语言的) language can be found in Braille (a system of raised dots read with the fingertips), signal flags, Morse code, and smoke signals．Road maps and picture signs also guide and warn people．While language is the most common form of communication, other systems and techniques also express human thoughts and feelings．Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．There are many forms of communication in use today． |
| B．Language is the most common form of communication． |
| C．Tourists are unable to use an oral form of communication． |
| D．Ideas and thoughts can be expressed by body language． |
Which form other than oral speech could be most commonly used among deaf people?
| A．Picture signs． | B．Body language | C．Braille | D．Signal flags． |
Sign language is said to be very lively and exact and can be used meaningfully except for ____．
| A．spelling | B．idea | C．whole words | D．expressions |
How many different forms of communication are mentioned here?
| A．Five | B．Eight | C．Nine | D．Three |
While reading a book in English, every few lines of text, you run across a word or two that you don’t know. You look up every new word in the dictionary. Bad move. All that does slow you down. Even electric or CD –ROM dictionaries can get in the way of your reading progress. A dictionary is like a road map. It can help you if you get lost and point you in the right direction. But if you stop to look at the “map” each time you take a step, you’ll get nowhere fast.
On your English learning “journey”, a dictionary can be a helpful “travel companion ”--if it is not overused. To help you start thinking in English, use an English-to-English dictionary. Otherwise, you will always depend on your native language and end up translating in your head.
A good dictionary can help you do more than just find the meaning of a word. It can help you verify (test and check) spelling, check word forms and grammar usage, find example sentence and learn pronunciation. Some dictionaries even provide exercises to teach you how to use their resources (资源) .
Take time to get to know your dictionary. Learn the pronunciation symbols (符号). Understand what the abbreviations (缩写字) mean. Try to master the important grammar rules. Look for charts, diagrams and lists that might be useful in the future. You will discover how helpful it can be to make friends with your dictionary. And as they say, “A friend in need is a friend indeed.”Why do we need a good English-to-English dictionary?
| A．Because it is a good friend. |
| B．Because it can help us to find the right direction if we get lost. |
| C．Without it we’ll always depend on our native language and end up translating in our head. |
| D．Because it can help us to start thinking in English and in Chinese. |
The underlined word “that ” in the last paragraph refers to __________.
| A．pronunciation symbols and grammar rules |
| B．abbreviations and usage for grammar rules |
| C．the meaning of a word, spelling and grammar usage |
| D．charts, diagrams and lists |
According to the passage , which statement can lead you to believe?
| A．The more you use a dictionary, the better you can understand the article. |
| B．The more you use a dictionary, the faster you may read. |
| C．The more you use the resources in a dictionary, the more you can benefit (受益) from it. |
| D．The better a dictionary is, the more expensive it is. |
SPECIAL EVENTS THIS WEEKEND
Captain Goodfellow
Do your children enjoy interesting stories, funny games, and exciting dances? Captain Goodfellow will be ready to teach all these things to children of all ages at the City Theatre on Saturday morning at 10:00, free.
Walking Tour of the Town
Forget your worries on Saturday morning. Take a beautiful walk and learn about its history. Meet at the front entrance of City Hall at 9:30. Wear comfortable shoes!
Films at the Museum
Two European films will be shown Saturday afternoon at the Museum Theatre. See Broken Window at 1:30. The workers will be at 3:45. For further information, call 4987898.
International Picnic
Are you tired of eating the same food every day? Come to Central Park on Saturday and enjoy food from all over the world. Delicious and not expensive. Noon to 5:00 pm.
Do You Want to Hear “The Zoo”
“The Zoo”, a popular rock group from Australia, will give their first US concert tomorrow night at 8:00 at Rose Hall, City College.You can probably eat Chinese, Italian, and Arab food __________..
| A．at the front entrance of City Hall | B．at the game |
| C．at 5:00 pm | D．at Central Park on Saturday |
You can see movies at __________.
| A．the City College | B．the Museum Theatre | C．the City Theatre | D．the Central Park |
Walking Tour of the Town will be taken __________.
| A．in the City Hall | B．outside | C．at the gate | D．at the zoo |
“The Zoo” is __________.
| A．a park with lots of animals there | B．a US concert |
| C．a music group | D．an interesting event |