About a hundred foreign teachers were visiting a Chinese school for the deaf to see a performance put on by the youngsters. It was entertaining and the students were charming, After the show, the schoolmaster came on stage, thanked us for coming and showing support even though “the students had not done very well”.

There was a surprise from the foreign community. How could he possibly denigrate(中伤)the effort and ability of these young deaf students? Well, soon enough everyone realized that he was just showing modesty that he really didn’t think that his students had done a poor job.

I can’t be sure exactly what the cultural backgrounds are that lead to differences in speaking manners. American culture values over politeness to degree, whereas in China I have seen a number of occasions politeness valued over candor(直率).Saying exactly what you think and feel is less important than being polite at times in China.

Another example：Recently I was asked to host a movie for English learning and cultural purposes. After about fifteen minutes, something approached me and said, “I think this is a most wonderful movie, but I’ m sorry, I have something else to do and must leave.” Then she left the hall. In America, it’s highly unlikely someone would say “wonderful movie” after fifteen minutes. It’ s not enough time to decide, and such a point would be regarded as dishonest flattery(奉承), After A little further reflection I’m thinking she was just being police. That is a nice person, talking the time for praise before she had to leave. This whole process takes about two minutes. After all that thinking, I fall asleep from overworking my brain.

1．It can inferred from the passage that the author considers Chinese culture        .

       A．reasonable          B．understandable    C．puzzling           D．a pleasure

2．Why were the foreigners surprised at the schoolmaster’ s statement?

       A．What the schoolmaster said discouraged the foreigners greatly。

       B．The schoolmasters’ s words might not hurt the feelings of the students。

       C．They thought the schoolmaster evaluated the students’ s performances unfairly.

       D．The schoolmaster didn’t have the right to blame the students before foreigners.

3．What did the schoolmaster really mean by saying his words?

       A．He wanted to show his modesty to the foreigners.

       B．He wanted to get sympathy from the foreigners.

       C．He wanted to get along well with the foreigners.

       D．He wanted to make a deep impression on the foreigners.

4．What’s the character of American culture, compared with Chinese culture?

       A．American people regard politeness to be more important.

       B．American people tend to express their opinions directly

       C．American people think of honesty more important.

       D．American people are more practical.

Charlotte’s Web by E．B． White is a children’s book．
As the story opens,eight-year-old farm girl Fern Arable stops her father from killing a baby pig who is weaker than his brothers and sisters．The little pig,Wilbur,becomes one of the main characters in the story．Later he will be treated as a friend by Charlotte,a wise and loving spider living on the same farm．Wilbur slowly realizes that the farmer will kill him for his meat in a few months ,and Charlotte decides to help him out．She tries many things to keep Wilbur alive．She writes words in her web describing how wonderful Wilbur is and this makes the farm famous．
White creates a sort of modern animal fable（寓言）,in which animals can speak both with each other and with Fern．Also there are many great characters in this book．
The society of animals has many lessons to teach children and adults:friendship,sacrifice（牺牲），hope,determination,love,duty,fairness,respect,and many more．
Part of this novel’s success is the fact that the author makes a heroine（女主角）out of a spider,a creature that many people probably dislike．Unlike a lovely little pig or other creatures,a spider is a creature greatly different from humans．White’s Charlotte is a truly wonderful character．He tells the story of Charlotte and her friends in a special way．This is a book that no one could ever dislike．It has much to offer to children as well as to older teens and adult readers．

1. 1.

   According to the descripion of the book,Charlotte ______．

   1. A.
      is a nice and clever spider
   2. B.
      often teaches her friends good lessons
   3. C.
      always sacrifices herself for her friends
   4. D.
      is disliked by many animals around her
2. 2.

   According to the writer,which of the following is a factor in the success of the book?

   1. A.
      That there are many animals in the book．
   2. B.
      That the author of the book is very famous．
   3. C.
      That the author knows children very well．
   4. D.
      That the author makes a heroine out of a spider．
3. 3.

   We learn from the passage that Charlitte’s Web ______．

   1. A.
      is the most interesting book for children
   2. B.
      is E．B． White’s only book written for children
   3. C.
      is a good book not only for children but also for adults
   4. D.
      is mainly about how animals get along with each other
4. 4.

   What is the purpose of the writer in writing this passage?

   1. A.
      To introduce the book Charlitte’s Web
   2. B.
      To discuss what kinds of books are good to read
   3. C.
      To explain why Charlitte’s Web is a good book
   4. D.
      To tell us the importance of friendship in our life

Charlotte’s Web by E．B． White is a children’s book．

As the story opens,eight-year-old farm girl Fern Arable stops her father from killing a baby pig who is weaker than his brothers and sisters．The little pig,Wilbur,becomes one of the main characters in the story．Later he will be treated as a friend by Charlotte,a wise and loving spider living on the same farm．Wilbur slowly realizes that the farmer will kill him for his meat in a few months ,and Charlotte decides to help him out．She tries many things to keep Wilbur alive．She writes words in her web describing how wonderful Wilbur is and this makes the farm famous．

White creates a sort of modern animal fable（寓言）,in which animals can speak both with each other and with Fern．Also there are many great characters in this book．

The society of animals has many lessons to teach children and adults:friendship,sacrifice（牺牲），hope,determination,love,duty,fairness,respect,and many more．

Part of this novel’s success is the fact that the author makes a heroine（女主角）out of a spider,a creature that many people probably dislike．Unlike a lovely little pig or other creatures,a spider is a creature greatly different from humans．White’s Charlotte is a truly wonderful character．He tells the story of Charlotte and her friends in a special way．This is a book that no one could ever dislike．It has much to offer to children as well as to older teens and adult readers．

55．According to the descripion of the book,Charlotte ______．

A．is a nice and clever spider

B．often teaches her friends good lessons

C．always sacrifices herself for her friends

D．is disliked by many animals around her

56．According to the writer,which of the following is a factor in the success of the book?

A．That there are many animals in the book．

B．That the author of the book is very famous．

C．That the author knows children very well．

D．That the author makes a heroine out of a spider．

57．We learn from the passage that Charlitte’s Web ______．

A．is the most interesting book for children

B．is E．B． White’s only book written for children

C．is a good book not only for children but also for adults

D．is mainly about how animals get along with each other

58．What is the purpose of the writer in writing this passage?

A．To introduce the book Charlitte’s Web

B．To discuss what kinds of books are good to read

C．To explain why Charlitte’s Web is a good book

D．To tell us the importance of friendship in our life

　　Like most July days, it was hot. I stepped into a tiny icecream shop to 1 with a chocolate ice-cream. It was an oldtime store with little round tables and chairs.

　　As I entered, I found a very old woman 2 a table near the door. Her back was so badly twisted （扭弯） by some sadness that her face nearly 3 the tabletop. I sat down facing her two 4 away.

　　“Poor woman ,” I thought , “what does she 5 life? Why does God let people live so 6 past their top?”

　　As I thought another 7 lady entered the shop and sat down with her. Soon the two of them were talking about childhood days. They talked of how 8 the shop had changed in 70 years…. In minutes the two women were 9 with laughter.

　　I looked again at the first woman, then in the mirror on a nearby wall, watching the 10 of myself. I was wearing a dirty shirt.

　　She was 11 dressed in white, 12 gold ear-rings.

　　I was in 13 spirits. She was laughing.

　　I was putting the 14 of my life together. She had millions of wonderful memories to recall.

　　I sat 15 . She was sharing the day with a good friend.

　　I was 16 worried about getting old. She was old, and it wasn't 17 her.

　　As I left the shop, I thought of my 18 question about God letting people live past their top. Why that woman was more alive, more sensitive （敏感的） to life than I was?

　　Age had not 19 her spirit. But I'm always filling my mind with something 20 .

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William Shakespeare is the most famous playwright (剧作家). Although he died in 1616, people still go to see his plays. Among the most popular are Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Hamlet — the story of a prince who struggles to respond to the crimes around him.
Shakespeare, who was born in 1564, was an actor as well as a writer. Most of his ideas for plays were taken from history, people’s conversation, ancient stories, and also from other writers. He wrote not only about kings and queens and princes, but also about friends and ordinary people. He wrote about the cruelty of war and the bravery of heroes, as well as about jealousy, joy, hate, ambition and love. His stories live on. The tragedy Romeo and Juliet was reborn as the musical West Side Story and more recently as the movie Romeo and Juliet with the wonderful performance of Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.
He invented a number of great characters: powerful magicians, thrilling witches, smart women and both wise and wicked men. He also invented some great phrases. If you’ve ever said, “Oh, for goodness sake!” you can thank Shakespeare for that. “To be, or not to be: that is the question,” Hamlet says. “Good night, good night. Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it is morrow,” says Juliet to her Romeo.
Don’t be surprised if you don’t understand everything when reading Shakespeare or watching one of his plays because the meanings of many words have changed over the years. And Shakespeare’s characters speak in poetry, so their speeches can be complicated.
It does help to find out a little bit about the story before reading a Shakespeare play. It’s worth the effort. As Shakespeare wrote, “All the world is a stage.” And in his plays you’ll find that an entire world is waiting for you.

1. 1.

   Shakespeare created the following characters EXCEPT ________.

   1. A.
      Juliet
   2. B.
      Hamlet
   3. C.
      Claire Danes
   4. D.
      Romeo
2. 2.

   From Paragraph 3 we can learn that ________.

   1. A.
      most of the characters created by Shakespeare were negative ones
   2. B.
      most of the phrases used today were invented by Shakespeare
   3. C.
      “Oh, for goodness sake!” is what Juliet says to Romeo
   4. D.
      Shakespeare contributed greatly to the development of English
3. 3.

   Which of the following is a reason why it’s difficult to understand some of Shakespeare’s plays?

   1. A.
      There are many new words in his plays.
   2. B.
      He wrote his plays using uncommon words.
   3. C.
      The characters in his plays speak in poetry.
   4. D.
      Most of the words in his plays are outdated.
4. 4.

   We can infer from the passage that ______.

   1. A.
      most of Shakespeare’s plays have been made into films
   2. B.
      language changes with the development of society
   3. C.
      Shakespeare made lots of money from his works
   4. D.
      it is more useful to read Shakespeare’s works than to watch them