Question

O. Henry was a pen name used by an American writer of short stories. His real name was William Sydney Porter. He was born in North Carolina in 1862. As a young boy he lived an exciting life. He did not go to school for very long, but he managed to teach himself everything he needed to know. When he was about 20 years old, O. Henry went to Texas, where he tried different jobs. He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank, when some money went missing from the bank O. Henry was believed to have stolen it. Because of that, he was sent to prison. During the three years in prison, he learned to write short stories. After he got out of prison, he went to New York and continued writing. He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there. People liked his stories, because simple as the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end, to the reader’s surprise.

1. In which order did O. Henry do the following things?

a. Lived in New York.

b. Worked in a bank.

c. Travelled to Texas.

d. Was put in prison.

e. Had a newspaper Job.

f. Learned to write stories.

A. e. c. f. b. d. a B. c. e. b. d. f. a

C. e. b. d. c. a. f. D. c. b. e. d. a f.

2. People enjoyed reading O. Henry’s stories because

A. they had surprise endings

B. they were easy to understand

C. they showed his love for the poor

D. they were about New York City

3. O. Henry went to prison because .

A. people thought he had stolen money from the newspaper

B. he broke the law by not using his own name

C. he wanted to write stories about prisoners

D. people thought he had taken money that was not his

4. What do we know about O. Henry before he began writing?

A. He was well-educated.

B. He was not serious about his work.

C. He was devoted to the poor.

D. He was very good at learning.

5. Where did O. Henry get most material for his short stories?

A. His life inside the prison.

B. The newspaper articles he wrote.

C. The city and people of New York.

D. His exciting early life as a boy.

Answer 1

1.B

2.A

3.D

4.D

5.C

【解析】

试题分析：本文是一篇人物传记。主要讲的是欧亨利即William Sydney Porter的生平的一些事迹。

1. 细节题。went to Texas—He first worked on a newspaper—then had a job in a bank—he was sent to prison—he learned to write short stories—he went to New York，这一系列的流程都可以在文章中找到，故选B。

2. 细节题。从文章的最后一句可以得知，“People liked his stories, because simple as the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end”人们喜欢他的故事结尾，因为故事很简单，但是总是有一个意想不到的结局。故选A。

3. 细节题。从文章中“when some money went missing from the bank O. Henry was believed to have stolen it. Because of that, he was sent to prison.”可以得知，当银行的钱不见了，人们认为是欧亨利偷了它们，因此他被送进了监狱。故选D。

4. 细节推断题。从文章中“he learned to write short stories. After he got out of prison, he went to New York and continued writing.”可以得知在监狱里，欧亨利开始学习写短篇小说。当他出狱后继续写作，并且很快他的作品就受到大家的欢迎，可以推断他很善于学习。故选D。

5. 细节题。从文章中“He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there”可以得知他写的主要是关于纽约城市生活和纽约的穷人们的生活。故选C。

考点：考查人物传记阅读