49. What’s the main idea of the passage? __________.

A. Many languages have words that express the idea that left is bad

B. Minorities often get bad treatment

C. Throughout the history, left-handed people have treated poorly

D. There are a lot of differences between left-handed people and right-handed people.

D

Mrs. Cook was born in a shopkeeper’s family. Her father had several shops in the city and most of his friends were important persons. The man liked his daughter very much and often took her to the parties. He tried his best to satisfy her with everything and she wasn’t afraid of anybody.

She married Mr. Cook, a famous actor, when she was twenty-two. Her father gave her all and she did no housework at home. She often did everything she wanted and made all the family listen to her. She had a few servants, but none of them could wait on her. Neither the servants nor her husband liked her.

Last week, she employed a new servant called Betty. The girl had studied in a middle school before her father died in an accident. The girl was kind and clever. She had read a lot by then and now she knows much. She had been told about the woman before she came here. She’s sure she could deal with the woman.

The woman liked the strong and tall girl as soon as she saw her. “Remember, Betty, ” said she. “You must be honest and obedient. Do you understand me? ”

“Yes, Mrs. Cook, ” said the girl. “But what should I do if you let me tell the visitor that you aren’t in? ”

48. “Fair-minded right-handed people are finally starting to give left-handed people a hand ” means that they are __________.

A. persuading them

B. teaching them how to use the right hand

C. starting to give them a chance and help them out

D. shaking hands with them

47. The passage leads us to believe that one writes __________.

A. he can use his right hand only

B. he can use his left hand only

C. he can use either his left hand or his right hand

　D. he shouldn’t use his left hand

46. Which of the following is not true according to the passage? __________.

　　 A. Beatlemania first appeared in the UK.

　B. The band came to an end when John Lennon was murdered.

C. The four members of the Beatles were from Liverpool, England.

D. The youth culture in the 1960s celebrated freedom from traditional family roles.

C

Right is right. Right? Of course. But is left wrong? Well, the Romans used to think so. They thought left-handed people were mistakes of nature. Latin, the language of Romans, hand many words that expressed this view. Some words we use today still have this meaning. The Latin word “dexter” means “right”. The English word “dexterous” comes from this word. It means “handy” (clever with hands). So, right is handy. But the Latin word for left is “sinistra”. The English word “sinister” comes from this word and means “evil” (very bad). Is it fair to call right-handed people handy and left-handed people evil? Well, fair or not, many languages have words that express such beliefs. In old English, the word for left means “weak”. That isn’t much of improvement over “evil”.

Not very long ago, children were often forced to write with their right hands. Doctors have since found that this can be very harmful. You should use the hand you were to use.

People who use their left hands are just starting to get better treatment. But why did they get all these bad names in the first place? One reason may be that there are not as many left-handed people as there are right-handed people. There is one left-handed person for every five right-handed ones. People who are different are often thought to be wrong. But attitudes do seem to be changing. Fair-minded right-handed people are finally starting to give left-handed people a hand.

45. How many people was the band made up of? __________.

　　 A. Four　　　 B. five　　 C. More than a dozen　　 D. More than eight

44. What did the word “Beatlemania” refer to? __________.

　 A. Little boys.　　　　　　　 B. Young women screaming at the band’s concerts.　　

　　 C. Americans.　　　　　　　 D. The Press.

43. Those who committed suicide chose the bridge over the Thames River near London rather than others because of its __________.

　 　 A. shape　　 B. structure　　 C. color　　 D. building

B.

　No other band has had the same influence in the world as the Beatles. Over eight years and more than a dozen albums, four young men from Liverpool, England-John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Star changed popular music and culture forever.

　People in the UK became crazy about the Beatles in the late 1963. The phenomenon was called “Beatlemania” by the British press. The term referred to the young women seen screaming at the band’s concerts. Beatlemania came to North America in early 1964, and the band’s popularity spread across much of the world. Within five years, the Beatles’ music changed greatly from their simple early hits like “She Loves You” and “I Want to Hold Your Hands”.

The band wrote their own songs, explored new ways to create music and strived for high quality in every album they released.

However, with their popularity came criticism. The press criticized the band as symbols of 1960s youth culture, which celebrated freedom from traditional family roles.

In 1970, Paul McCartney announced he was leaving the Beatles. And the group quietly came to an end.

In the 1970s, fans hoped for a reunion, but the group decided to follow their own careers with different degrees of success.

Fans lost hope with a tragedy; John Lennon was murdered in New York in 1980.

42. If you enjoy life, you are sure to prefer __________.

　 　 A. red to yellow　　　　　　　 B. blue to orange

C. red to gray　　　　　　　　 D. blue to yellow.

41. If you like blue, __________.

　 　 A. you don’t like to follow others.

B. you would be a member rather than a leader.

　 C. you would be afraid of following others.

D. you would like to be a leader rather than a follower.