There are classes for the mothers of babies， but there's no helping with your mum and dad growing old．

   Old people's wards are hell for old people． Geriatric wards are bedlam and bonkers． A toothless woman screaming when left alone， a cry that reaches the high hospital ceiling． A woman effing and blinding ﹣ the polite curtain will not protect her from the indignity of a happy change． A woman who lives the same moment in repeat， dressed up for going home in a bright red， over the dressing grown， asking for the key to her house， saying over and over： "Am I going home today？"

   And though my mum， by the time she was released， knew that her life was charmed compared with the lives of the world's refugees． It seems to me as if the plight （困境） of old people， while not as horrible as the plight of refugees， shares some of the horror． Just as we live in a society that hasn't caught up with technology， the kind of moral choices it gives people， we also live in a world that hasn't kept up with its ageing population． We have the advances in medical science and technology that have kept people alive longer， but not the advances in how to treat our ageing population． Society is lagging behind the old， failing and falling．

   There are certain small but piercing similarities between the treatment of the old and the treatment of refugees． The old are often displaced from their homes， moved out against their will； decisions are often made for them that they have no say over． Often， they are treated as fools or halfwits， crowded together in one place， given clothes that don't belong to them， treated as a fallen tribe， incapable of any individuality． Nobody imagined my mother was a secretary of the Scottish peace movement， a primary teacher， a lifelong socialist， a witty woman． Out of hospital， my 85﹣year﹣old mum said： "going into hospital at my age puts years on you． God save from old people's wards． You never think of yourself as old． You look across the ward and think， am I like that？"

（1）The treatment of the old is compared of that of the refugees in order to 　 　．

A．	prove they have a lot in common
B．	show the terrible status of the old
C．	display their similarities and differences
D．	indicate that old people have to leave their home

（2）What can be inferred from the passage？ 　　

A．	Refugees lead a better life than old male patients．
B．	Old people are ill﹣treated due to their loss of individuality．
C．	The author's mom is capable of teaching and being a socialist in the meanwhile．
D．	The treatment of the ageing population doesn't develop as science advances．

（3）The author's mom felt that life in the hospital 　　．

A．	made her much older．
B．	created her a mature woman．
C．	enable her to look back at life．
D．	let her full of gratitude to children．

（4）The passage mainly discussed 　　．

A．	the life of refugees and old people．
B．	social responsibility to old women．
C．	improper treatment of old people．
D．	preparing for ageing parents．

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