Why not indeed? By Gulf standards, Kuwait is a democratic superstar. Its citizens enjoy free speech (as long as they don't insult their emir, naturally) and boast a Parliament that can actually pass laws. Unlike their Saudi sisters, Kuwaiti women drive, work and travel freely. They run multibillion-dollar businesses and serve as ambassadors. Their academic success is such that colleges have actually lowered the grades required for make students to get into medical and engineering courses. Even then, 70 percent of university students are females.
In Kuwait, the Western obsession with the higab finds its equivalent. At a fancy party for NEWSWEEK's Arabic edition, some Kuwaiti women wore them. Others opted for tight, spangled, sheer little numbers in peacock blue or parrot orange. For the party's entertainment, Nancy Ajram, the Arab world's answer to Britney Spears, sang passionate songs of love in a white mini-dress. She couldn't dance for us, alas, since shaking one's body onstage is illegal in Kuwait. That didn't stop whole tables of men from raising their camera-enabled mobile phones and clicking her picture.
You'd think not being able to vote or dance in public would anger Kuwait's younger generation of women. To find out, I headed to the malls--Kuwait's archipelago of civic freedom. Eager to duck strict parents and the social taboos of dating in public, young Kuwaitis have taken to cafes, beaming flirtatious infrared e-mails to one another on their cell photos. At Starbucks in the glittering Al Sharq Mall, I found only tables of men, puffing cigarettes and grumbling about the service. At Pizza Hut, I thought I'd got an answer after encountering a young woman who looked every inch the modern suffragette--drainpipe jeans, strappy sliver high-heeled sandals and a higab studded with
University, doesn't think women need the vote." Men are better at politics than women,"she explained, adding that women in Kuwait already have everything they need. Welcome to democracy, Kuwait style.
26.
According to the passage, which of the following groups of people might be viewed as being dangerous by the guards?
[A] Foreign tourists. [B] Women protestors. [C] Foreign journalists. [D] Members of the National Assembly.
[参考答案] B
[详细解答]
细节题。第二段首句使用了虚拟语气，表明对警卫来说，危险人物是那些挥舞着选票的科威特妇女，从后面内容可知赋予女性选举权这一法案没有通过，那么手里举着选票的女性应该是那些抗议者．故[B]为答案。
27.
The bill giving women the vote did not manage to pass because ________.
[A] Different interest groups held different concerns. [B] Liberals did not reach consensus among themselves. [C] Parliament was controlled by traditionalists. [D] Parliament members were all conservatives.
[参考答案] A
[详细解答]
推断题。第三段分析了付与女性选举权这一法案没有通过的原因：传统主义者和部落首领反对，自由主义者也烦心，他们担心伊斯兰主义者会让他们几个妻子都参加选举，这样会扩大保守主义者的阵营。可见该法案没有通过的原因是各方利益不同，无法达成共识，故[A]为答案。其余三项为过度推断，其中[D]为绝对项，可直接排除
28.
What is the role of the 4th and 5th paragraphs in the development of the topic?
[A] To show how Kuwaiti women enjoy themselves. [B] To describe how women work and study in Kuwait. [C] To provide a contrast to the preceding paragraphs. [D] To provide a contrast to the preceding paragraphs.
[参考答案] C
[详细解答]
篇章结构题。第二段和第三段提到科威特议会否决了提议给与女性选举权的议案，并简要分析原因。这给读者留下了科威特女性地位低下，没有民主权利的印象。第四段和第五段则说明科威特的民主环境很好，人们有言论自由，女性成就很高，她们也勇于追求时尚，穿紧身衣，迷你裙。这与前面内容构成了鲜明的对比，故[D]为答案。
29.
Which of the following is NOT true about young Kuwaiti women?
[A] They seem to be quite contented. [B] They go in for Western fashions. [C] They desire more than modern necessities. [D] They favour the use of hi-tech products.
[参考答案] C
[详细解答]
推断题。末段介绍了科威特年轻女性的生活状况和心态。第三句提到年轻人通过手机发送电子邮件调情，可见她们热衷使用高科技产品，[D]符合文意。倒数第二段首句提到科威特人热衷西方时尚，末段第五句描述了一个外表看起来十分现代的女大学生：松松垮垮的牛仔裤等，
[B]符合文意。最后三句引用Mariam Al-Enizi的观点：男性比女性精于政治，科威特妇女有了需要的一切，[A]符合文意，[c]与此矛盾，故为答案。
题 30 - 35
Text C
Richard, King of England from 1189 to 1199, with all his characteristic virtues and faults cast in a heroic mould, is one of the most fascinating medieval figures. He has been described as the creature and embodiment of the age of chivalry, In those days the lion was much admired in heraldry, and more than one king sought to link himself with its repute. When Richard's contemporaries called him" Coeur de Lion"(The Lion heart), they paid a lasting compliment to the king of beasts. Little did the English people owe him for his services, and heavily did they pay for his adventures. He was in England only twice for a few short months in his ten years' reign; yet his memory has always English hearts, and seems to present throughout the centuries the pattern of the fighting man. In all deeds of prowess as well as in large schemes of war Richard shone. He was tall and delicately shaped strong in nerve and sinew, and most dexterous in arms. He rejoiced in personal combat, and regarded his opponents without malice as necessary agents in his fame He loved war, not so much for the sake of glory or political ends, but as other men love science or poetry, for the excitement of the struggle and the glow of victory. By this his whole temperament was toned; and united with the highest qualities of the military commander, love of war called forth all the powers of his mind and body.