If you never read the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby, now is your chance to catch up — by watching the latest film adaptation. Because if there’s one sentence to sum up the film, it would be, as Fox News says in its review, “It’s just like the book”
Director Baz Luhrmann’s main challenge was “either to find a visual equivalent(相等物) for Fitzgerald’s elegant essay--the open secret of the book’s staying power-- or to bend the material to his own exotic(异国的) strengths,a Time magazine review says. He tries it both ways, with varying degrees of success.
Considered to be Fitzgerald's representative work, The Great Gatsby explores themes of idealism, resistance to change, social change, and excess, creating a portrait of the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties that has been described as a cautionary tale regarding the American Dream.
Nick, the narrator, moves to New York for the summer to visit his cousin Daisy. His next-door neighbor is Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio), who rarely contacts with others and is rumored to be a hero of the Great War. Gatsby claims to have attended Oxford University, but the evidence is suspect. As Nick learns more about Gatsby, every detail about him seems questionable, except his love for the Daisy. Though Daisy is married, Gatsby still adores her as his ―golden girl.They first met when she was a young lady from a wealthy family and he was a working-class military officer. Daisy promised to wait for his return from the war. However, she married Tom, a classmate of Nick’s. Having obtained a great fortune, Gatsby sets out to win her back again.
”All of Fitzgerald’s original creation finds its way into this film, even going as far to include quite a bit of the original dialogue,US film critic Justin Taroli writes in his review. “The cast is beautiful as is the script, and the scenes are a visual feast.Taroli adds.
DiCaprio does a good and professional job as the socialite by re-creating Fitzgerald’s description of Gatsby’s charm. “He can look at someone for an instant and understand how, perfectly, he or she wants to be seen,David Denby, a film critic for The New Yorker, says in his review.
The use of music is almost reason enough to see the film. “Luhrmann is at his best mixing visual and musical styles together to create something wholly original, the Fox News review said.
For example, in one of the most outstanding scenes in the film, the first party scene, Nick walks quickly from one party guest to another party guest trying to explain all the gossip about Gatsby until he is finally introduced to the man himself, while the most stirring version of Rhapsody in Blue (composed by American musician George Gershwin in 1924) is played in the background.What did Baz Luhrmann do to make the film a success?
| A．He adapted the story in the novel as he wished. |
| B．He made the film more powerful than the book. |
| C．He mixed his style with the elegance of the essay. |
| D．He showed the elegance of the pictures in the film. |
What is Taroli’s attitude towards the film?
| A．Favorable. | B．Sceptical. |
| C．Amazed. | D．Unconcerned. |
What are the characteristics of Gatsby?
| A．Faithful and warm-hearted. |
| B．Charming and professional. |
| C．Selfish and stubborn. |
| D．Mysterious and devoted. |
Why does the author give the example of the first party scene in the last paragraph?
| A．Unfold the fact that Nick wants to know more about Gatsby. |
| B．Show the version of Rhapsody in Blue matches the film well. |
| C．Prove that the director is good at combining visual and music. |
| D．Convince us that the first scene is perfectly shot by the director. |
| Gallery Policies for Visitors to National Gallery of Art, Washington |
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| Visitors must present all carried items for inspection upon entry. After inspection, all bags, backpacks, umbrellas, parcels, and other things as determined by security officers must left at the checkrooms, free of charge, close to each entrance. All oversized bags, backpacks and luggage must be left at the checkrooms near the 4th Street entrance of either the East or West Building. These items will have to be x-rayed before being accepted items of value, such as laptop computers, cameras, and fur coats, may not be left in the checkrooms but may be carried into the galleries. We regret that we do not have enough space for visitor items larger than 17×26 inches into the Gallery or its checkrooms. Additional security procedures and checks may be taken according to the decision of the Gallery. |
For the safety of the artworks and other visitors, nothing may be carried on a visitor's back. Soft front baby carriers are allowed, but children may not be carried on shoulders or in a child carrier worn on the back. Pushchairs are available free of charge near each checkroom. Smoking is prohibited. Food and drink are not permitted outside the food service areas. Unopened bottled water may be carried only in a visitor's bag. Cell phones may not be used in the galleries. Animals, other than service animals, are not permitted in the Gallery. Skateboarding is prohibited. Picture-taking (including video for personal use is permitted except in special exhibitions and where specifically prohibited. Tripods (三角架) are not allowed. Please do not touch the works of art. |
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When people come to visit the Gallery, they should.
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What does the Gallery feel sorry for?.
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Parents with small children visiting the Gallery.
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Visiting photographers should make sure that.
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We experience different forms of the Sun’s energy every day. We can see its light and feel its warmth. The Sun is the major source of evaporation (蒸发) of water from the oceans and lakes. Sunlight also provides the energy used by green plants to make their own food. These green plants then provide food for all organisms (生物) on the Earth.
Much of the energy that comes from the Sun never reaches the Earth’s surface. It is either reflected or absorbed by the gases in the upper atmosphere. Of the energy that reaches the lower atmosphere, 30% is reflected by clouds or the Earth’s surface. The remaining 70% warms the surface of the planet, causes water to evaporate, and provides energy for the water cycle and weather. Only a tiny part, approximately 0.023%, is actually used by green plants to produce food.
Many gases found in the atmosphere actually reflect heat energy escaping from the Earth’s surface back to the Earth. These gases act like the glass of a greenhouse in that they allow energy from the Sun to enter but prevent energy from leaving. They are therefore called greenhouse gases.
When sunlight strikes an object, some of the energy is absorbed and some is reflected. The amount reflected depends on the surface. For example, you’ve probably noticed how bright snow is when sunlight falls on it. Snow reflects most of the energy from the Sun, so it contributes to the low temperatures of winter. Dark-coloured surfaces, such as dark soil or forest, absorb more energy and help warm the surrounding air.According to the passage, the root cause for weather changes on the Earth is ______.
| A．the atmosphere surrounding the Earth | B．water from oceans and lakes |
| C．energy from the Sun | D．greenhouse gases in the sky |
Only a small part of the Sun’s energy reaches the Earth’s surface because most of it _______________.
| A．absorbed by the clouds in the lower atmosphere |
| B．reflected by the gases in the upper atmosphere |
| C．lost in the upper and lower atmosphere |
| D．used to evaporate water from the oceans and lakes |
We learn from the passage that _______________.
| A．all living things on the Earth depend on the Sun for their food |
| B．a forest looks dark in winter because it absorbs solar energy |
| C．only 0.023% of the energy from the Sun is made use of on the Earth |
| D．greenhouse gases allow heat energy to escape from the Earth’s surface |
What time is it? Most people are pretty accurate in their answer. And if you don't know for sure, it's a very likely that you can find out.
There may be a watch on your wrist, there may be a clock on the wall, desk, or computer screen; or maybe you're riding in a car that has a clock in the dashboard (仪表板).
Even if you don't have a timepiece of some sort nearby, your body keeps its own beat. Humans have an internal clock that regulates (调节) the beating of our heart, the pace of our breathing, the discharge (排出) of chemicals within our bloodstream, and many other bodily functions.
Time is something from which we can't escape. Even if we ignore it, it's still going by, ticking away, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour. So the main issue in using your time well is, "Who's in charge?" We can allow time to slip by and let it be our enemy. Or we can take control of it and make it our ally.
By taking control of how you spend your time, you'll increase your chances of becoming a more successful student. Perhaps more importantly, the better you are at managing the time you devote to your studies, the more time you'll have to spend on your outside interests.
The aim of time management is not to schedule every moment so we become slaves of a timetable that governs every waking moment of the day. Instead, the aim is to make informed choices as to how we use our time. Rather than letting the day go by, largely without our awareness, what we are going to discuss next can make us better able to control time for our own purposes.
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The underlined word "ally" in Para. 3 more likely means somebody or something that is.
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The author intends to tell us that time.
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| 3． |
In the next part, the author would most probably discuss with you.
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If your boss asks you to work in Moscow this year, he'd better offer you more money to do so - or even double that depending on where you live now. That's because Moscow has just been found to be the world's most expensive city for the second year in a row by Mercer Human Resources Consulting.
Using the cost of living in New York as a base, Mercer determined Moscow is 34.4 percent more expensive including the cost of housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment(娱乐).
A two-bedroom flat in Moscow now costs $4,000 a month; a CD $24.83, and an international newspaper $6.30, according to Mercer. By comparison, a fast food meal with a hamburger(汉堡包) is a steal at $4.80.
London takes the No.2 place, up from No.5 a year ago, thanks to higher cost of housing and a stronger British pound relative to the dollar. Mercer estimates(估算) London is 26 percent more expensive than New York these days. Following London closely are Seoul and Tokyo, both of which are 22 percent more expensive than New York, while No.5 Hong Kong is 19 percent more costly.
Among North American cities, New York and Los Angeles are the most expensive and are the only two listed in the top 50 of the world's most expensive cities. But both have fallen since last year's study - New York came in 15th, down from 10th place, while Los Angeles fell to 42nd from 29th place a year ago. San Francisco came in a distant third at No. 54, down 20 places from a year earlier.
Toronto, meanwhile, is Canada's most expensive city but fell 35 places to take 82nd place worldwide. In Australia, Sydney is the priciest place to live in and No. 21 worldwide.
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What do the underlined words "a steal" in Paragraph 3 mean?
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| 2． |
London has become the second most expensive city because of.
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| 3． |
Which city is the third most expensive on the list?
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| 4． |
Which city has dropped most on the list in North America?
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Far from the land of Antarctica(南极洲), a huge shelf of ice meets the ocean. At the underside of the shelf there lives a small fish, the Antarctic cod.
For forty years scientists have been curious about that fish. How does it live where most fish would freeze to death? It must have some secret. The Antarctic is not a comfortable place to work and research has been slow. Now it seems we have an answer.
Research was begun by cutting holes in the ice and catching the fish. Scientists studied the fish’s blood and measured its freezing point.
The fish were taken from seawater that had a temperature of -1.88℃ and many tiny pieces of ice floating in it. The blood of the fish did not begin to freeze until its temperature was lowered to -2.05℃. That small difference is enough for the fish to live at the freezing temperature of the ice-salt mixture.
The scientists’ next research job was clear: Find out what in the fish’s blood kept it from freezing. Their search led to some really strange thing made up of a protein(蛋白质) never before seen in the blood of a fish. When it was removed, the blood froze at seawater temperature. When it was put back, the blood again had its antifreeze quality and a lowered freezing point.
Study showed that it is an unusual kind of protein. It has many small sugar molecules(分子) held in special positions within each big protein molecule. Because of its sugar content. It is called a glycoprotein. So it has come to be called the antifreeze fish glycoprotein. Or AFGP.What is the text mainly about?
| A．The terrible conditions in the Antarctic. |
| B．A special fish living in freezing waters. |
| C．The ice shelf around Antarctica. |
| D．Protection of the Antarctic cod. |
Why can the Antarctic cod live at the freezing temperature?
| A．The seawater has a temperature of -1.88℃. |
| B．It loves to live in the ice-salt mixture. |
| C．A special protein keeps it from freezing. |
| D．Its blood has a temperature lower than -2.05℃. |
What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
| A．A type of ice-salt mixture. | B．A newly found protein. |
| C．Fish blood. | D．Sugar molecule. |
What does “glycol-” in the underlined word “glycoprotein” in the last paragraph mean?
| A．sugar | B．ice | C．blood | D．molecule |