第三部分  阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）

For many people Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. One of the reasons people love it so much is that you get presents. But like presents, Christmas needs to be unwrapped so that you can understand the true meaning behind the day.

Many Chinese believe everyone in Western countries celebrate this holiday. That is not true. Christmas is an important religious holiday for Christians. December 25 represents the birthday of Jesus Christ, who Christians believe is the son of God.

Christianity (基督教) is a very popular religion in America and Europe. However, there are many other religions, too. People who celebrate those religions don’t celebrate Christmas. But during the winter season they usually have their own important holiday. That is why when talking to a foreigner it is safer to say, “ Happy holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas” because you never know his/her religious background.

The image of a fat, happy man in red---Santa Claus---has come to represent the idea of goodness and love instead of religious part or the “Christmas spirit”. Santa Claus is based on a man named Saint Nicholas who was a 4th century Greek Christian.

Saint Nicholas bought presents for children and gave them away anonymously(匿名地). This is where the idea of gift on Christmas began. But the Santa Claus didn’t exist until the 19th century when an American named Thomas Nast drew cartoons of him. So really, Santa has nothing to do with the religious holiday.

In fact, some people who celebrate Christmas don’t really care about Santa Claus.

Christmas is a special day for Christians but the ideas of being good and loving your neighbors are not limited to Christianity. So buy a gift for your friend, tell your mother you love her and have merry Christmas. I mean ,”Happy holidays!”

56. Christians believe December 25 represents the birthday of _________.

A. Santa Claus     B. God    C. Jesus Christ     D. Thomas Nast

57. In the passage, the author thinks __________.

A. Santa Claus was a real person in the past

B. everyone should believe in Christianity

C. all people in Western countries celebrate Christmas

D. Santa Claus has nothing to do with Christmas holiday

58. What is “the true meaning” in the first passage?

A. For many people Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year

B. The Westerners have different religious backgrounds

C. Some like to say “Merry Christmas”, and others like to say “Happy holidays”

D. Being good and loving our neighbors are the virtues of all humans

59. What is the CORRECT explanation of Santa Claus?

A. He was a Greek Christian in the 4th century

B. He was an American who was born in the 19th century

C. His image represents the “Christmas spirit”

D. He was a cartoon figure drawn by Thomas Nast

第三部分 阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
For many people Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. One of the reasons people love it so much is that you get presents. But like presents, Christmas needs to be unwrapped so that you can understand the true meaning behind the day.
Many Chinese believe everyone in Western countries celebrate this holiday. That is not true. Christmas is an important religious holiday for Christians. December 25 represents the birthday of Jesus Christ, who Christians believe is the son of God.
Christianity (基督教) is a very popular religion in America and Europe. However, there are many other religions, too. People who celebrate those religions don’t celebrate Christmas. But during the winter season they usually have their own important holiday. That is why when talking to a foreigner it is safer to say, “ Happy holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas” because you never know his/her religious background.
The image of a fat, happy man in red---Santa Claus---has come to represent the idea of goodness and love instead of religious part or the “Christmas spirit”. Santa Claus is based on a man named Saint Nicholas who was a 4th century Greek Christian.
Saint Nicholas bought presents for children and gave them away anonymously(匿名地). This is where the idea of gift on Christmas began. But the Santa Claus didn’t exist until the 19th century when an American named Thomas Nast drew cartoons of him. So really, Santa has nothing to do with the religious holiday.
In fact, some people who celebrate Christmas don’t really care about Santa Claus.
Christmas is a special day for Christians but the ideas of being good and loving your neighbors are not limited to Christianity. So buy a gift for your friend, tell your mother you love her and have merry Christmas. I mean ,”Happy holidays!”
56. Christians believe December 25 represents the birthday of _________.
A. Santa Claus     B. God    C. Jesus Christ     D. Thomas Nast
57. In the passage, the author thinks __________.
A. Santa Claus was a real person in the past
B. everyone should believe in Christianity
C. all people in Western countries celebrate Christmas
D. Santa Claus has nothing to do with Christmas holiday
58. What is “the true meaning” in the first passage?
A. For many people Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year
B. The Westerners have different religious backgrounds
C. Some like to say “Merry Christmas”, and others like to say “Happy holidays”
D. Being good and loving our neighbors are the virtues of all humans
59. What is the CORRECT explanation of Santa Claus?
A. He was a Greek Christian in the 4th century
B. He was an American who was born in the 19th century
C. His image represents the “Christmas spirit”
D. He was a cartoon figure drawn by Thomas Nast

It is men’s nature to live together in families and tribes(部落), and cities and nations, and therefore men have learned to prize those qualities in each other which make social life the happiest and best.
Of these qualities one of the most important is sympathy－fellow-feeling. If a man had no fellow-feeling, we should call him “inhuman”; he would be no true man. We think so much of this quality that we call a kind man “human”－that is, man-like in his conduct, first to other men, and afterwards to all living things.
If you are cruel to animals, you are not likely to be kind or thoughtfull to men; and if you are thoughtful towards men, you are not likely to be cruel and thoughtful towards animals. This is why the wise man of old wrote, “The merciful man is merciful to his beast.”
What a pleasure it is also to be loved by our pets or domestic animals; and to feel that we are caring for them and are deserving of their love; or to watch the ways of wild creatures, and gradually to make friends with them!
Treating animals kindly does not mean that we must never inflict any pain on them. We ourselves are trained by pains as well as by pleasures; so too, punishment is sometimes needed to train our dogs and horses to obey us. We endure pains at the hands of the surgeon, to cure some wound or to heal some disease; so too, animals must submit to being doctored.
We send out our bravest men to face wounds, sickness and death, for the good of the nation; so too, we let our horses share the risk of battle. For similar reasons, we cannot hesitate to destroy dangerous creatures like wolves and show senseless ferocity(残忍). It is no excuse to say that these animals deserve to be treated cruelly on account of their own cruelty. They are not really cruel, for they tear and kill not from love of unkindness, but because they must do so in order to live.
【小题1】One of the most important qualities of men is fellow-feeling because      .

Freda Bright says, "Only in opera do people die of love." It's true. You really can't love somebody to death. I've known people to die from no love, but I've never known anyone to be loved to death. We just can't love one another enough.

A heart-warming story tells of a woman who finally decided to ask her boss for a raise in salary. All day she felt nervous and apprehensive. Late in the afternoon she summoned the courage to approach her employer. To her delight, the boss agreed to a raise.

The woman arrived home that evening to a beautiful table set with their best dishes. Candles were softly glowing. Her husband had come home early and prepared a festive meal. She wondered if someone from the office had tipped him off, or... did he just somehow know that she would not get turned down?

She found him in the kitchen and told him the good news. They embraced and kissed, and then sat down to the wonderful meal. Next to her plate the woman found a beautifully lettered note. It read, "Congratulations, darling! I knew you'd get the raise! These things will tell you how much I love you."

Following the supper, her husband went into the kitchen to clean up. She noticed that a second card had fallen from his pocket. Picking it off the floor, she read, "Don't worry about not getting the raise! You deserve it anyway! These things will tell you how much I love you."

Someone has said that the measure of love is when you love without measure. What this man feels for his wife is total acceptance and love, whether she succeeds or fails. His love celebrates her victories and cure her wounds. He stands with her, no matter what life throws in their direction.

Upon receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, Mother Teresa said, "What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family." And love your friends. Love them without measure.

1. By saying "Only in opera do people die of love.", the writer wants to tell us that ______.

A. giving love is better than receiving love

B. love in opera is better than that in real life

C. people are too greedy to have enough love

D. to die from love is no better than to die from no love

2. From the passage we can infer that ________.

A. the woman must have thought about asking for a salary raise for a long time

B. the boss of the woman must be a kind person

C. the woman was a courageous person

D. the husband must have got the news before his wife got home

3.The husband prepared a festive meal in order to _______.

A. show how good he was at cooking

B. celebrate her wife’s success in raising the salary

C. thank her wife’s boss for raising her salary

D. show how deeply he loved his wife

4.What Mother Teresa said means that _________.

A. loving your family is more important than promoting world peace

B. loving your friends is to promote the world peace

C. everybody can promote the world peace by loving his own family without measure

D. no matter what life throws in our direction, our family is always our first concern

Freda Bright says, "Only in opera do people die of love." It's true. You really can't love somebody to death. I've known people to die from no love, but I've never known anyone to be loved to death. We just can't love one another enough.

A heart-warming story tells of a woman who finally decided to ask her boss for a raise in salary. All day she felt nervous and apprehensive. Late in the afternoon she summoned the courage to approach her employer. To her delight, the boss agreed to a raise.

The woman arrived home that evening to a beautiful table set with their best dishes. Candles were softly glowing. Her husband had come home early and prepared a festive meal. She wondered if someone from the office had tipped him off, or... did he just somehow know that she would not get turned down?

She found him in the kitchen and told him the good news. They embraced and kissed, and then sat down to the wonderful meal. Next to her plate the woman found a beautifully lettered note. It read, "Congratulations, darling! I knew you'd get the raise! These things will tell you how much I love you."

Following the supper, her husband went into the kitchen to clean up. She noticed that a second card had fallen from his pocket. Picking it off the floor, she read, "Don't worry about not getting the raise! You deserve it anyway! These things will tell you how much I love you."

Someone has said that the measure of love is when you love without measure. What this man feels for his wife is total acceptance and love, whether she succeeds or fails. His love celebrates her victories and cure her wounds. He stands with her, no matter what life throws in their direction.

Upon receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, Mother Teresa said, "What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family." And love your friends. Love them without measure.

By saying "Only in opera do people die of love.", the writer wants to tell us that ______.

A. giving love is better than receiving love

B. love in opera is better than that in real life

C. people are too greedy to have enough love

D. to die from love is no better than to die from no love

From the passage we can infer that ________.

A. the woman must have thought about asking for a salary raise for a long time

B. the boss of the woman must be a kind person

C. the woman was a courageous person

D. the husband must have got the news before his wife got home

The husband prepared a festive meal in order to _______.

A. show how good he was at cooking

B. celebrate her wife’s success in raising the salary

C. thank her wife’s boss for raising her salary

D. show how deeply he loved his wife

What Mother Teresa said means that _________.

A. loving your family is more important than promoting world peace

B. loving your friends is to promote the world peace

C. everybody can promote the world peace by loving his own family without measure

D. no matter what life throws in our direction, our family is always our first concern