Hans was an honest fellow with a funny round good-humored face. Living alone, every day he worked in his garden. In all the countryside there was no garden so lovely as his. All sorts of flowers grew there, blooming in their proper order as the months went by, one flower taking another flower’s place, so that there were always beautiful things to see, and pleasant odors to smell.

    Hans had many friends, the most devoted being the Miller. So devoted was the rich Miller to Hans that he’d never go by his garden without plucking a large bunch of flowers or a handful of sweet herbs, or filling his pockets with fruits. The Miller used to talk about noble ideas, and Hans nodded and smiled, feeling proud of having such a friend.

    The neighbors thought it strange that the rich Miller never gave Hans anything in return, though he had hundreds of sacks of flour, many cows and sheep, but Hans never troubled his head about these, and nothing gave him greater pleasure than to listen to all the wonderful things about the unselfishness of true friendship.

    In spring, summer, and autumn Hans was very happy, but when winter came, and he had no fruit or flowers to sell, he suffered from cold and hunger. Though extremely lonely, the Miller never came to see him then.

    “There’s no good in going to see Hans while the snow lasts.” The Miller said to his wife, “When people are in trouble they shouldn’t be bothered. So I’ll wait till the spring comes when he’s happy to give me flowers.”

    “You’re certainly very thoughtful,” answered his wife, “It’s quite a treat to hear you talk about friendship.”

    “Couldn’t we ask Hans up here?” said their son. “I’ll give him half my meal, and show him my white rabbits.”

    “How silly you are!” cried the Miller. “I really don’t know what’s the use of sending you to school. If Hans came up here, and saw our warm fire, our good supper, and our red wine, he might get envious, and envy is a most terrible thing, and would spoil anybody’s nature. I am his best friend, and I’ll always watch over him, and see that he’s not led into any temptation. Besides, if Hans came here, he might ask me for some flour. Flour is one thing, and friendship is another, and they shouldn’t be confused. The words are spelt differently, and mean quite different things. Everybody can see that.” He looked seriously at his son, who felt so ashamed that he hung his head down, and grew quite scared, and began to cry into his tea.

    Spring coming, the Miller went down to see Hans. Again he talked about friendship. “Hans, friendship never forgets. I’m afraid you don’t understand the poetry of life. See, how lovely your roses are!”

    Hans said he wanted to sell them in the market to buy back his things which were sold during the hard time of the winter.

    “I’ll give you many good things. I think being generous is the base of friendship.” said the Miller. “And now, as I’ll give you many good things, I’m sure you’d like to give me some flowers in return. Here’s the basket, and fill it quite full.”

    Poor Hans was afraid to say anything. He ran and plucked all his pretty roses, and filled the Miller’s basket, imagining the many good things promised by the Miller.

    The next day he heard the Miller calling: “Hans, would you mind carrying this sack of flour for me to market?”

    “I’m sorry, but I am really very busy today.”

    “Well,” said the Miller, “considering that I’m going to give you my things, it’s rather unfriendly of you to refuse. Upon my word, you mustn’t mind my speaking quite plainly to you.”

    Poor Hans was driven by his friendship theory to work hard for his best friend, leaving his garden dry and wasted.

    One evening Hans was sitting by fire when the Miller came.

    “Hans,” cried the Miller, “My little boy has fallen off a ladder and hurt himself, and I’m going for the Doctor. But he lives so far away, and it’s such a bad windy night. It has just occurred to me that you can go instead of me. You know I’m going to give you my good things, so you should do something for me in return.”

    “Certainly,” cried Hans. He struggled into the stormy night, and got the doctor to ride a horse to the Miller’s house in time to save the boy. However, Hans got lost in the darkness, and wandered off into a deep pool, drowned.

    At Hans’ funeral, the Miller said, “I was his best friend. I should walk at the head of the procession.” Every now and then he wiped his eyes with a handkerchief.

1.From the passage, we can learn that Hans ___________.

   A. was extremely wise and noble

B. was highly valued by the Miller

   C. admired the Miller very much

D. had a strong desire for fortune

2. “Flour is one thing, and friendship is another” can be understood as ___________.

   A. “Different words may mean quite different things.”

   B. “Interest is permanent while friendship is flexible.”

   C. “I’m afraid you don’t understand the poetry of life.”

   D. “I think being generous is the base of friendship.”

3. From the Miller’s talk at home, we can see he was ___________.

   A. serious but kind

B. helpful and generous

C. caring but strict

D. selfish and cold-hearted

4.What’s the main cause of Hans’ tragedy?

   A. True friendship between them.

B. A lack of formal education.

   C. A sudden change of weather.

D. Blind devotion to a friend.

5.The author described the Miller’s behavior in order to ___________.

   A. entertain the readers with an incredible joking tale

   B. show the friendship between Hans and the Miller

   C. warn the readers about the danger of a false friend

   D. persuade people to be as intelligent as the Miller

 

A round of applause, please, for the Indian man who recently sang for 80 hours straight, setting a new Guinness world record. It’s an impressive feat, to be sure, but let’s just hope he still has a voice. According to Indian newspapers, Rajesh Burbure has been told to keep silent for several days so his vocal cords (声带) can heal.

It was reported that Burbure and his family are in a celebratory mood. “It’s a proud moment for all of us,” his wife told DNAIndia.com.

I, on the other hand, am unable to share their enthusiasm. Don’t get me wrong: I hope the 35-year-old Burbure lives forever, sells a million records and becomes an international celebrity. But his record–singing for 80 hours straight–is about as meaningful as most of the other curious but crazy feats listed in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Granted , I’m not qualified to speak on the subject. I’ve got no world records to my name– and I never expect to have any. Then again, maybe I am qualified to speak for those of us who have better things to do than train for years to sing an 80-hour medley (混合曲) of pop songs.

But let’s not just pick on poor Burbure. He’s not the only person chasing meaningless accolades. The Guinness Book of World Records is full of the names of people who at one time grew the longest hair, or built the biggest bicycle, or baked the largest cheesecake.

To all of these enterprising (有进取心的) souls I ask, simply, “What was it all for?”

Congratulations! For all of your painstaking effort, you became a footnote in a thick book that no one reads, except for you and the person who will eventually surpass you–with one more hour of singing, a few more centimeters of steel or a few more pounds of cheese.

After all, records are made to be broken.

1.From the text, we can learn that the author         .

        A．has no Guinness records, so he admires Burbures’ feat

         B．feels it is a pity he was not invited to share the happiness with the Burbures

         C．thinks singing for 80 hours straight is completely meaningless

         D．is quite worried about Burbure’s vocal cords

2.Before someone wins a Guinness record, he or she has to         .

         A．become an international celebrity

         B．know all about Guinness record

         C．practice a great deal

         D．bear great stress for fear of injury

3.We can infer from the article that        .

         A．after the 80 hours of singing, Burbure could no longer speak

         B．Burbure’ wife didn’t support his attempt to make a Guinness record

         C．many have criticized Burbure for his stupid behavior

         D．challenging a Guinness record may be harmful to the health

4.The author’s attitude to the Guinness world records mentioned in the passage is         .

         A．positive                                                              B．impressed

         C．negative                                                            D．touched

5.What is the best title for the passage?

         A．What Was the Point?

         B．Records Are Made to be Broken

         C．A New Indian Guinness Record

         D．The Guinness Book Is Boring

 

 

第二部分       阅读理解(共两节，满分50分)  

第一节    阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。(共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分)

Mickey’s Goal

Last night was the last game for my eight-year-old son’s soccer team. It was the final quarter. The score was two to one, my son’s team in the lead. Parents surrounded the playground, offering encouragement.

       With less than ten seconds remaining, the ball suddenly rolled in front of my son’s teammate, Mickey O’ Donnel. With shouts of “Kick it!” echoing（回响）across the playground, Mickey

turned around and gave it everything he had. All around me the crowd erupted （沸腾）. O’ Donnel

had scored!m

       Then there was silence. Mickey had scored all right, but in the wrong goal, ending the game in a tie. For a moment there was a total hush. You see, Mickey has Down syndrome（综合症）and for him there is no such thing as a wrong goal. All goals were celebrated by a joyous hug from Mickey. He had even been known to hug the opposing players when they scored.

       The silence was finally broken when Mickey, his face filled with joy, hugged my son tightly and shouted, “I scored! I scored. Everybody won! Everybody won!” For a moment I held my breath, not sure how my son would react. I need not have worried. I watched, through tears, as my son threw up his hand in the classic high-five salute and started chanting, “Way to go Mickey! Way to go Mickey!” Within moments both teams surrounded Mickey, joining in the chant and congratulating him on his goal

       Later that night, when my daughter asked who had won, I smiled as I replied, “It was a tie. Everybody won.

 1．What was the score of the soccer matchm

       A．Two to two, equal to both the teams.        

B．Three to one in Mickey’s team’s favor.

       C．Two to one in the opposite team’s favor. 

D．Everybody won because of Mickey’s goal.

2．What did the author worry about when Mickey scored and hugged his son?

       A．The result of the match would fail his son. 

B．His son would shout at Mickey for his goal.

       C．Mickey would again hug the opposing players.

       D．His son would understand Mickey’s wrong goal.

3．It can be inferred from the passage that________.

       A．both teams liked and respected Mickey. 

B．both teams were thankful to Mickey for his goal.

       C．Mickey didn’t mind though his goal was wrong

       D．Mickey was a kind-hearted boy and hoped everybody won.

4．The purpose of the author in writing the passage is _______.

       A．to tell a joke to make readers laugh.  

B．to suggest we should not mind losing .

       C．to show enjoying a game is more than winning a game

       D．to present his son’s fine qualities of understanding others

 

Recently, a professor of philosophy in the United States has written a book called Money and the Meaning of Life．He has discovered that how we deal with money in our day-to-day life has more meaning than we usually think．One of the exercises he asked his students to do is to keep a record of every penny they spend for a week．From the way they spend their money, they can see what they really value in life．

    He says our relation with others often become clearly defined when money enters the picture．You might have wonderful friendship with somebody and you think that you are very good friends．But you’ll know him only when you ask to lend you some money．If he does, it brings something to the relationship that seems stranger than ever before．Or it can suddenly weaken the relationship if he doesn’t．This person may say that he has a certain feeling, but if it is not carried out in the money world, there is something less real about it．

    Since money is important to us, we consider those who possess a lot of it to be very important．The author interviewed some millionaires in researching his book．

    Answer: The most surprising thing is why people give me so much respect．I’m nothing．I don’t know much．All I am is rich．

    People just have an idea of making more and more money, but what is it for? How much do I need for any given purposes in my life? In this book, the professor uncovered an important need in modern society; to bring back the idea that money is an instrument rather than the end．Money plays an important role in the modern world, but expecting money to give happiness may be missing the meaning of life．

1.According to the first paragraph, people haven’t realized __________．

    A．how important money is in their day-to-day life

    B．how one spends money shows what is important to him

    C．that money is more important than their philosophy of life

    D．that their understanding of life is more important than money

2.What can we learn about the millionaire from his answer in the interview is that          .

    A．he does not feel that he is well -educated

    B．he does not consider himself to be very successful

    C．he does not think that he is a very important person

    D．he does not think being rich deserves so much attention

3.What does the American professor of philosophy want to explain in his book?

    A．Money is a means．                   B．Money is everything．

    C．Money is an end．                    D．Money is unimportant．

4.Which of the following might the author disagree?

    A．Money is important in modern society．

    B．Wealth will surely bring the owner happiness．

    C．The meaning of life doesn’t completely lie in money．

    D．Happiness is not necessarily the result of wealth．

 

The day my fiancé fell to his death, it started to snow, just like the bottom hadn’t fallen out of my world when he fell off the roof. His body, when I found it, was lightly covered with snow. It snowed almost every day for the next four months, while I sat on the couch and watched it pile up.

    One morning, I shuffled(拖着脚步走) downstairs and was surprised to see a snowplow(扫雪机) clearing my driveway and the bent back of a woman shoveling my walk. I dropped to my knees, crawled through the living room, and back upstairs so those good Samaritans would not see me. I was mortified. My first thought was, how would I ever repay them? I didn’t have the strength to brush my hair, let alone shovel someone’s walk.

    Before Jon’s death, I took pride in the fact that I rarely asked for help or favors. I defined myself by my competence and independence. How could I respect myself if all I did was sit on the couch everyday and watch the snow fall?

    Learning how to receive the love and support that came my way wasn’t easy. Friends cooked for me and I cried because I couldn’t even help them set the table. “I’m not usually this lazy,” I swept. Finally, my friend Kathy sat down with me and said, “Mary, cooking for you is not a burden. It makes me feel good to be able to do something for you.”

    Over and over, I heard similar words of comfort from the people who supported me during those dark days. One very wise man told me, “You are not doing nothing. Being fully open to your grief may be the hardest work you will ever do.”

In many ways I have changed for the better. I have been surprised to learn that there is incredible freedom that comes from facing one’s worst fear and walking away whole.

1.What made the author feel sad?

A. Her fiancé’s sudden death.            B. Constant heavy snow.

C. Her fiancé abandoning her.            D. Her job being refused again.

2.What’s the meaning of the underlined word “mortified” in Paragraph 1?

  A. Surprised.        B. Angry.         C. Ashamed.        D. Moved.

3.It is _______ that helped the author out of darkness.

  A. herself          B. her friends      C. her fiancé        D. a snowplow

4.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. The author was a capable and independent woman.

B. The author was so lazy that she wouldn’t shovel the walk.

C. Finally the author got through hardest work bravely.

D. When facing the worst fear, you will get strength.

5.What’s the author’s purpose in the passage?

A. To talk about her hardest work in her life.

B. To talk about her real love between her and her fiancé.

C. To tell us to walk out of hardest work confidently and bravely.

D. To tell us the importance of friendship.