《大学英语六级阅读题及详解.docx》由会员分享，可在线阅读，更多相关《大学英语六级阅读题及详解.docx（7页珍藏版）》请在三一文库上搜索。
1、Exercise 1Passage 1A ctually, though, America, the“ landofimmigrants”has, always had people of manydifferentnationalitiesand languages. The 1990 census ( 人口普查 ) indicates that almost14%ofAmericansspeak a non-Englishlanguage athome. Yetonly 3% reported that they spokeEnglish“ not well” or“ not at all
2、” . That means that slightly more than one out of 10 Americanscould be considered bilingual. Besides that, many high school and college students-and even someelementery school students-are required to take a foreign language as a part of their curriculum. Inadditionto oldstandbys(受人喜爱的语种 ) likeSpani
3、sh, German and Franch, more and morestudents are opting Eastern European and Asianlanguages. Of course, not all students keep uptheir foreign language abilities. As the old saying goes,“ If you don t use it .” But stilnumber of Americans are coming to appreciate the benefits of being multilingual.Et
4、hnic enclaves(少数民族聚居地 ),found particularlyin major metropolitancenters, havepreserved the language and cultureof American immigrants. Some local residents can functionquite well intheir native language, without havingto bother learning English. Rogionssuch assouthern Floridaand the Southwest have nu
5、merous Spanish-speaking neighborhoods. Infact,Spanish speakers-numbering over 17 million-compose the largest non-English linguistic group inAmerica. But Chinese, Vietnamese, Italian,Polishandmany other ethnic group addto thelinguisticflavorofAmerica.Foreignlanguagesareso commonlyused insomeethnicnei
6、ghborhoods that visitors might think they are in another country!Although some Americans welcome this linguistic and cultural diversity, other have begun tofear that the English language is being threatened. Since the 1980s, the“ English Only”has sought to promote legislation whichwouldestablish Eng
7、lish as the “ official language”andrestrictthe use ofnon-Englishlanguage. However,some groups,includingTESOL,theorganizationforTeachers ofEnglishto Speakers of Otherlanguage, object to such “ languagerestrictionismTheir”. view,knownas “ English Plus ”suggests, thatAmericansshouldhaverespect for peop
8、le s native help them fit into the mainstream of society. But so far, 19 states havepassed English Only legislation, and the topic is the focus of an ongoing debate.Whetheror notEngliashisthe officiallanguageofthe UnitedStates, itremains the“ language of wider communication ” . Nearly everyone recog
9、nizes the need to develop proficiency in English in order to do well in America. To help those who want to brush up on their Englishskills, English as a Second Language (ESL) classes around. Cities with large numbers of recent immigrants often set up bilingual education programs to teach students co
10、ntent subjects in their native language while they improve their English. Language educators often have strong and divergent views as to which approach helps learners achieve better results: a bilingual approach,an ESL approach-or even a pure immersion( “ sinkor swim ” )approach. However, all these
11、teachers share a common commitment: to help students function well in English.American recognize that English is the international language, and people with good Englishskills can get by in many international settings. On the other hand, in a world growing increasingly smaller, second language skill
12、s can be a great favor. They can build cross-cultural bridges and give people an edge in a variety of career field. Indeed, lack of foreign language proficiency can limit one s chances for advancement and keep one in a cultural dead-end street. As many people in America are discovering, being monoli
13、ngual is no laughing matter. (598 words)精选文库1. The word“ bilingual” (Line 7,para,1) means_.A. being able to speak two languagesB. being able to speak three languagesC. being able to speak four languagesD. being able to speak five languages2. Foreign languages are commonly used in some ethnic neighbo
14、rhoods because_. A. ethnic groups have preserved their native languagesB. ethnic groups are not allowed to speak EnglishC. ethnic groups encourage their natives to learn foreign languages D. ethnic groups allow their natives to go to another country3. _compose the largest linguistic group in America
15、.A. Immigrants from ChinaB. Immigrants from SpainC. Immigrants from ItalyD.Immigrants from Vietnam4. Which of the following is TRUE about“ English Only” movement?A. Its purpose was to establish a legislation of restricting the use of English.B. TESOL was in favor of“ English Only” by objecting to“ E
16、nglish plus”.C. It was launched because English was being threatened.D. A large majority of states supported the movement.5. The general idea of this passage is_. A. the importance of being bilingualB. the need to speak the native languagesC. English-a language widely spoken around the worldD. the E
17、nglish Only movementPassage 2The Guidford Four, freed last week after spending 15 years in prison for crimes they did not commit, would almost certainly have been executed for the pub bombing they were convicted of. They had the death penalty been in force at the time of their trial. They may now be
18、 a decent interval before the pro-hanging lobby, which has the support of the Prime Minister, makes another attempt to reintroduce the noose.Reflections along these lines were about the only kind of consolation to be derived from thisgross miscarriage of justice which is now to be the subject of a j
19、udicia l( 司法的 ) inquiry. In the meantime, defense lawyers are demanding compensation and have in mind about half a million pounds for each of their clients.The first three to be released-Mr. Gerald Conlon, Mr. Paddy Armstrong and Ms. Carole Richardson-left prison with the 34 pounds which is given to
20、 all departing inmates. The fourth, Mr. Paul Hill, was not released immediately but taken to Belfast, where he lodged an appeal against his conviction for the murder of a former British soldier. Since this conviction, too, was based on the now discredited statements allegedly made to the Survey poli
21、ce, he was immediately let out on bail( 保释 ). But he left empty-handed.The immediate reaction to the scandal was renewed demand for the re-examination of the case against the Birmingham Six, who are serving life sentences for pub bombings in that city.-2精选文库Thus far the Home secretary, Mr. Douglas H
22、urd, is insisting that the two cases are not comparable;that what is now known about the Guilford investigation has no relevance to what happened inBirmingham.Mr.Hurdisrighttothe extentthattherewasasmall-thoughflimsyandhotly-contested-amount ofcrime evidence in the Birminghamcase. The disturbingsimi
23、larityisthat the BirminghamSix,like the GuilfordFour,claim thatpoliceofficers lied and fabricatedevidence to secure a conviction.Making scapegoats( 替罪羊 ) of a few rogue police officers will not be sufficient to eliminatethe Guilford miscarriage of justice. These are already demands that the law shou
24、ld be changed;first tomakeitimpossible toconvict on“ confessions alone;”and secondly torequirethatstatements fromaccused persons should only be taken in the presence ofan independent thirdpatty to ensure they are not made under punishment.It was alsobeing noted this week that the GuilfordFourowe the
25、irrelease more tobepersistence of investigative reporters than to the diligence of either the judiciary or the police. Yetinvestigativereports-particularlyon television-have recentlybeena particular target forthecondemnation of Mrs. Thatcher and some of her ministers who seem to think that TV should
26、 bemuzzled( 钳制言论的手段 ) in the public interestand leftto get on with soap operas and quizshows. (495words)1. The word“ noose ” (Line 7, Para. 1) has the closest meaning to _.A. death penaltyB. hangingC. trialD.punishment2. To compensate the miscarriage of justice, the defense lawyers may_. A. demand 5
27、00,000 pounds for the Guilford FourB. demand 500,000 pounds for each of the Guilford FourC. demand 1,000,000 pounds for each of the Guilford FourD. demand a re-examination of the Birmingham pub bombings3. Why was there a renewed demand for the re-examination of the case against the Birmingham Six?A.
28、 The Birmingham Six were believed to have criminal connections with the Guilford Four. B. The two cases were similar in that both were about pub bombings.C. The bombings in Birmingham happened at the same time.D. The Birmingham Six also claimed that there were police malpractice s in their case.4. T
29、he existing law states that_.A. convictions can be made on confessions and statements taken by police officers from accused persons are valid legal evidenceB. convictions can t be made on confessions alone and there should be a third party whentaking statements from accused personsC. convictions can
30、 be made on confessions and a third party should be present when taking statements from accused personsD. convictions can t be made on confessions alone and the statements taken by police officers from accused persons are valid legal evidence5. According to the article, which of the following partie
31、s contributed most to the release of the Guilford Four?A. ReportersB. LawyersC. The policeD. The judiciary-3精选文库Passage 3Proxemics( 空间关系学 ) is the study of what governs how closely one person stands to another. People who feel close will be close, though the actual distances will vary between cultur
32、es. For Amreicans we can discern four main categories of distance: intimate, personal, social and public. Intimate ranges from direct contact to about 45 centimeters. This is for the closest relationships such as those between husband and wife. Beyond this comes personal distance. This stands at bet
33、ween 45 and 80 centimeters. It is the most usual distance maintained for conversations between friends and relatives. Social distance covers people who work together or are meeting at social gatherings. Distances here tend to be kept between 1.30 to 2 meters. Beyond this comes public distance, such
34、as that between a lecturer and his audience.All cultures draw lines between what is an appropriate and what is an inappropriate social distance for different types of relationship. They differ, however, in where they draw these lines. Look at an international reception withrepresentatives from the U
35、S and Arabic countries conversing and you will see the Americans pirouetting( 快速旋转 ) backwards around the hall pursued by their Arab partners. The Americans will be trying to keep the distance between themselves and their partners which they have grown used to regarding as “ normal ”They. probably w
36、ill not even notice themselves trying to adjust the distance between themselves and their partners, though they may have vague feeling that their Arab neighbors are being a bit“ pushy ” . The Arab, on the other hand, coming from a culture where much closer distance is the norm, may be feeling that t
37、he Americans are being “ stand-offish ”Finding. themselves happier standing close to and even touching those they are in conversation with they will persistently pursue the Americans round the room trying to close the distance between them.The appropriateness of physical contact varies between diffe
38、rent cultures too. One study ofthe number of times people conversing in coffee shops over a one hour period showed the following interesting variations: London, 0; Florida, 2; Paris, 10; and Puerto Rico 180. Not only dose it vary between societies, however, it also varies between different subcultur
39、es within onesociety. Young people in Britain, for example, are more likely to touch and hug friends than are the older generation. This may be partly a matter of growing older, but it also reflects the fact that the older generation grew up at a time when touching was less common for all age groups
40、. Forty years ago, for example, footballers would never hug and kiss one another on the field after a goal as they do today. (458 words)1.In proxemics, _governs the standing space between two persons.A. distanceB. cultureC. conversationD. relationship2.The word“ stand-offish” (Line 14, Para. 2) coul
41、d best be replaced by_.A. cold and distant in behaviourB. ungentlemanlike in behaviourC. inhuman in behaviourD. polite in behaviour3. In conversation with an American partner at an international reception, an Arab deems thatclose distant is _.A. appropriate B. inappropriateC. rash D. impetuous4. We
42、can infer from the third paragragh that the appropriateness of physical contact also-4精选文库varies with_.A. timeB. cityC. countryD. people5. The best title for the passage would be _. A. ProxemicsB. Appropriateness of Social DistanceC. Appropriateness Relationships Between Two Persons D. Appropriatene
43、ss Physical Contact Between Two PersonsPassage 4In the past century Irish painting has changes from a British-influenced lyrical tradition to anart that evokes the ruggedness and roots of an Irish Celtic past. At the turn of the twentieth centuryIrish painters, includingnotables WalterFrederick Osbo
44、rneandSirWilliamOrpen,lookedelsewhere for influence. Osborne s exposure to“ plein airimpacted”paintinghis stylisticdeeplydevelopment; and Orpen allied himself with a group of English artists, while at the same timeparticipated in the French avant-garde experiment, both as painter and teacher.However
45、, nationalist energies were beginning to coalesce (接合 )，reviving interest in Irishculture- including Irish visual arts. Beatrice Elvery s (1907), a landmark achievement, merged thedevotional simplicity offifteenth-centuryItalian paintingwiththeiconography(肖像画法 )ofIreland s Celtic past, linking the storyhi of Irish Catholicism with the still-nasce t (初生的 ) Irishrepublic. And, although also captivated by the French plein air school, Sir John Lavery invoked