Question

【题目】 The view you hold for yourself greatly affects the way you lead your life. It can decide whether you become the person you want to be and whether you achieve the things you value. How does this happen? How can a simple belief have the power to change your psychology(心理) and, as a result, your life?

Believing that your qualities are carved(刻) in stone — the fixed mindset — creates a great need to prove yourself over and over. Some of us are trained in this mindset from an early age. Even as a child, I was focused on being smart, but the fixed mindset was really stamped in by Mrs. Wilson, my sixth-grade teacher. She believed that people’s IQ scores told the whole story of who they were. We were seated around the room in IQ order, and only the highest-IQ students could be trusted to collect homework, or take a note to the principal. She was creating a mindset in which everyone in the class had one important goal-look smart, don’t look stupid.

I’ve seen so many people with this one important goal of proving themselves — in the classroom, in their careers, and in their relationships. Every situation calls for a confirmation of their IQ, personality, or character. Every situation is evaluated(评价): Will I succeed or fail? Will I look smart or stupid? Will I feel like a winner or a loser?

But doesn’t our society value IQ, personality, and character? Isn’t it normal to want these qualities? Yes, but ...

There’s another mindset, the growth mindset, which is based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can develop through your efforts. Although people may differ in every which way — in their inborn talents, interests, or characters, everyone can change and grow through efforts and experience. Did you know that Darwin and Tolstoy were considered ordinary children? That the photographer Cindy Sherman, who has been on almost every list of the most important artists of the twentieth century, failed her first photography course? That Geraldine Page, one of our greatest actresses, was advised to give it up for lack of talent?

You can see how the belief that valuable qualities can be developed creates a passion(热情) for learning. Why waste time proving how great you are, when you could be getting better? Why hide weaknesses instead of overcoming them? And why seek out the tried and true, instead of experiences that will better you? The passion for improving yourself and sticking to it, even when it’s not going well, is the feature(特征) of the growth mindset. This is the mindset that allows people to achieve success during some of the most challenging times in their lives.

【1】According to Paragraph 5, the example of Darwin and Tolstoy shows that _________

A.success has nothing to do with natural gifts.

B.it’s difficult to predict one’s future success.

C.achievements can be made through hard work.

D.the valuable qualities can encourage people to learn.

【2】The author strongly believes that we should _________

A.carry out an honest evaluation of our qualities.

B.see success as the only way to prove IQ or talent.

C.focus on self-development rather than self-proving.

D.believe good things will happen during difficult times.

【3】The main purpose of the passage is to _________

A.lead people to take the right mindset.

B.advise people to evaluate their mindset.

C.get people to know the influence of mindset.

D.explain the differences between two mindsets.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】C

【2】C

【3】C

【解析】

本文是一篇说明文，讲的是两种心态对人生的影响，即证明自己和发展自己，作者更倾向于后者，认为人们应该注重自我发展而不是自我证明。

【1】题意：根据本文第5段内容，达尔文和托尔斯泰的例子表明__________。

细节理解题。根据第5段内容everyone can change and grow through efforts and experience. Did you know that Darwin and Tolstoy were considered ordinary children …可知，作者先是提出了“每个人都可以通过努力和经验来改变和成长”这一观点，然后举了达尔文和列夫托尔斯泰等名人的例子来证明自己观点的正确性。C选项achievements can be made through hard work“通过努力可以取得成就”符合题意，故选C。

【2】题意：作者坚信我们应该__________。

推理判断题。根据原文第6段You can see how the belief that valuable qualities can be developed creates a passion(热情) for learning. Why waste time proving how great you are, when you could be getting better?可知，作者认为，当我们相信有价值的品质是可以培养出来的时候，我们将对学习产生热情，当一个人可以变得更好的时候，为什么还要浪费时间去证明自己有多伟大？由此处可推断，作者认为人们应该注重自我发展而不是自我证明。C选项focus on self-development rather than self-proving“注重自我发展而不是自我证明”符合题意，故选C。

【3】题意：这篇文章的主要目的是__________。

主旨大意。通读本文第1段可知，本文主要内容讲的是两种心态对人生的影响，即证明自己和发展自己，而作者更倾向于后者，认为人们应该注重自我发展而不是自我证明。C选项get people to know the influence of mindset“让人们了解心态的影响”符合题意，故选C。