5．In ancient Egypt，the pharaoh（法老） treated the poor message runner like a prince when he arrived at the palace，if he brought good news．However，if the exhausted runner had the misfortune to bring the pharaoh unhappy news，his head was cut off．
Shades of that spirit spread over today's conversations．Once a friend and I packed up some peanut butter and sandwiches for an outing．As we walked light-heartedly out of the door，picnic basket in hand，a smiling neighbor looked up at the sky and said，"Oh boy，bad day for a picnic．The weatherman says it's going to rain．"I wanted to strike him on the face with the peanut butter and sandwiches．Not for his stupid weather report，for his smile．
Several months ago I was racing to catch a bus．As I breathlessly put my handful of cash across the Greyhound counter，the sales agent said with a broad smile．"Oh that bus left five minutes ago．"Dreams of head-cutting!
It's not the news that makes someone angry．It's the unsympathetic attitude with which it's delivered．Everyone must give bad news from time to time，and winning professionals do it with the proper attitude．A doctor advising a patient that she needs an operation does it in a caring way．A boss informing an employee he didn't get the job takes on a sympathetic tone．Big winners know，when delivering any bad news，they should share the feeling of the receiver．
Unfortunately，many people are not aware of this．When you're tired from a long flight，has a hotel clerk cheerfully said that your room isn't ready yet？When you had your heart set on the toast beef，has your waiter merrily told you that he just served the last piece？It makes you as traveler or diner want to land your fist right on their unsympathetic faces．
Had my neighbor told me of the upcoming rainstorm with sympathy，I would have appreciated his warning．Had the Greyhound salesclerk sympathetically informed me that my bus had already left，I probably would have said，"Oh，that's all right，I'll catch the next one．"Big winners，when they hear bad news，deliver bombs with the emotion the bombarded（被轰炸的） person is sure to have．
21．In Paragraph 1，the writer tells the story of the pharaoh toB．
A．make a comparison
B．introduce a topic
C．describe a scene
D．offer an argument
22．In the writer's opinion，his neighbor wasC．
A．friendly
B．warm-hearted
C．not considerate
D．not helpful
23．From"Dreams of head-cutting!"（Paragraph 3），we learn that the writerA．
A．was mad at the sales agent
B．was reminded of the cruel pharaoh
C．wished that the sales agent would have bad dreams
D．dreamed of cutting the sales agent's head that night．
分析 本文属于议论文阅读，作者通过这篇文章主要向我们描述了好消息使人高兴，坏消息令人气愤的主题，但是对于坏消息的传达是需要技巧的，表现出真诚的同情遗憾能让听到消息的人不那么恼怒，幸灾乐祸则会刺激他们．
解答 21．B．推理判断题．作者态度、目的题．把握整体文意，本文主要围绕"好消息使人高兴，坏消息令人气愤"来论述，所以第一段应该是本文作者用于引入主题的段子，因此文章举法老的例子是为了引出主题；故选B．
22．C．推理判断题． 根据文章第二段"I wanted to strike him on the face with the peanut butter and sandwiches not for his stupid weather report for his smile"我想打他用花生酱三明治的脸．不是因为他愚蠢的天气报告而是因为他的微笑，可知作者认为他的邻居是不体贴的；故选C．
23．A．细节理解题．根据文章第三段"As I breathlessly put my handful of cash across the Greyhound counter，the sales agent said with a broad smile．"Oh that bus left five minutes ago"叙述了"作者赶车时的不幸经历"，"当售票员告诉他不幸消息，所以他会很恼怒，几乎要发疯了"，故选A．
点评 考察学生的细节理解和推理判断能力，做细节理解题时一定要找到文章中的原句，和题干进行比较，再做出正确的选择．在做推理判断题不要以个人的主观想象代替文章的事实，要根据文章事实进行合乎逻辑的推理判断．
