Unit 2 English around the world单元测试题
第二部分： 阅读理解 （共两节，满分40分）
第一节（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）
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。
A
The trouble started at 9:30 p.m. last New Year’s Eve, in Newmark. When the fire engines (消防车) arrived at the fire, a very old woman was sitting in a third floor window. The firefighters placed a ladder (梯子) against the wooden house, and 26-year-old Marcus Reddick climbed 35 feet to the third floor.
The woman, 60 years old and very fat, was sitting with both feet out of the window. When Marcus reached the top of the ladder, the woman, afraid and nervous, put her two legs around him. Suddenly Marcus fell backwards off the ladder, with the large woman sitting on him. Marcus landed first — hitting a wall beside the front stairs — and broke the woman’s fall. She fell no more, but he fell another ten feet down the stairs. When the fire officer reached him, Marcus was unconscious. Within an hour, a doctor told the men that Marcus was nearly brain dead, and would only get worse. Doctors talked of turning off the life-saving machine and asked if the family would like to give away his heart. The answer was “yes”.
On January 6, firefighters lifted Marcus’ coffin (棺材) — covered with an American flag — onto a yellow fire engine. Hundreds of firefighters from all over the state joined the procession (行列) through Newmark streets. Children watched silently from school windows. The day Marcus died, his heart was given away to a young girl. His family said that it was the second life Marcus had saved. 21. What happened last New Year’s Eve in Newmark? A. An old woman was killed. B. A fire engine was missing. C. A firefighter was murdered. D. A wooden house caught fire.
22. After reaching the top of the ladder, Marcus _____.
A. was very afraid and nervous B. couldn’t see anything clearly C. found it difficult to get down D. was knocked off and got hurt
23. The underlined word “unconscious” in Paragraph 2 means “_____”. A. homeless B. senseless C. breathless D. helpless
24. We can infer from the end of the text that Marcus’ family might feel _____. A. sad but proud B. shy but excited C. angry and doubtful D. worried and surprised
B
Two hundred years ago, American students went to American schools. Like you, they studied math, spelling and geography. Unlike you, they also studied Greek (希腊语) and Latin (拉丁语). In fact, students spent more than half their time studying Greek and Latin.
The same was true for most students in Europe. Until the seventh century, all educated Europeans knew Latin. It did not matter if they lived in England, Italy, France or Spain. If they were educated, they knew Latin.
During the seventh century, educated Europeans began to study Greek as well as Latin. Greek and Latin had been the leading languages of the ancient Greeks and Romans. All educated Europeans were expected to know these languages.
To educated Europeans, the languages of the Greeks and the Romans were important. The ideas of the Greeks and Romans were also important. People knew that many of their own ideas had come from the Greeks and the Romans. To understand their own culture, they must understand its origin (起源). They knew that those beginnings lay in the classical (古典文学的) world.
Today we have so many things to study that few people have time to learn Greek and Latin. Few of you will study either language in school. Yet the ideas of the Greeks and the Romans are still important to us. These ideas still help to shape Western culture today. To understand our own culture, we must understand the culture of the classical world.
25. Two hundred years ago, in American schools _____. A. there were many educated Greeks B. Greek and Latin were very popular C. students paid little attention to math D. students knew little about geography
26. According to the text, Europeans thought _____. A. the origin of their culture was unknown B. the ideas of the Greeks were unacceptable C. Greek was much more important than Latin D. the Romans had a great influence on their culture 27. Where does the author of the text probably come from? A. Japan. B. Greece. C. America. D. China.
28. In the last paragraph, the author suggests that _____. A. it’s of great value to learn Greek and Latin B. it’s quite difficult to learn Greek and Latin
C. the culture of the classical world is useless nowadays
D. Western culture is quite different from Greek and Roman cultures
C
In the autumn of 1924 Thomas Wolfe, fresh from his courses in playwriting at Harvard University, joined us who were teaching English composition at New York University. I had never seen a man so tall as he, and so ugly. I pitied him and went out of my way to help him with his work and make him feel at home.
His students soon let me know that he had no need of my protectiveness. They spoke of his ability to explain a poem in such a way as to have them in fits of laughter. Besides, his students made so much of his powers of observation (观察力) that I decided to make a little test and see for myself. My chance came one morning when the students were slowly gathering (集合) for nine o’clock classes.
Upon arriving at the university that day, I found Wolfe alone in the large room which served all the English composition teachers as an office. He did not say anything when I asked him to come with me out into the hall, and he only smiled when we reached a classroom door and I told him to enter alone and look around.
He stepped in, remained no more than thirty seconds and then came out. “Tell me what you see,” I said as I took his place in the room, leaving him in the hall with his back to the door. Without any mistakes, he gave the number of seats in the room, pointed out those which were taken by boys and those taken by girls, and pointed out the words written on the blackboard.
As I rejoined Wolfe, I was totally speechless. He, however, was very calm as he said, “The worst thing about it is that I’ll remember it all.” 29. Why did Wolfe come to join the author? A. To get some experience. B. To offer him some help. C. To learn to write plays. D. To make more friends.
30. Which of the following is TRUE of the test? A. It took place on an autumn evening in 1924. B. It was a test made for Wolfe on his honesty. C. Wolfe did not feel angry when he was tested. D. Wolfe’s students showed no interest in the test.
31. What can we learn about the author’s feelings in the text? A. Angry → sad → proud. B. Shy → lonely → happy. C. Worried → nervous → hopeful.
D. Sorry → doubtful → surprised. 32. What is mainly described in the text? A. Thomas Wolfe’s life at Harvard University. B. Thomas Wolfe’s ability to remember things. C. English composition at New York University. D. The playwriting courses at Harvard University.
D
Matt Froggatt used to be an insurance agent (保险代理人) in the City of London but now runs a sheep farm. “After 14 years in business, I found that the City had gone from a place which was exciting to work in to a grind — no one was having fun any more. My break came when I got to know the manager of a hotel with one of the top 20 hotel restaurants in the country. Through supplying them, my reputation (名声) spread and now I also supply meat through mail order.” Ron Ablewhite was a manager in advertising but now makes a living as a painter. “My painting began as a hobby but I realised I was getting far more excitement out of it than out of working. Most people in their mid-forties need to get back to work immediately — they need the money. But we had married young and our children didn’t need our support. We went to the north of England, and many of our friends come up and visit us now.” Katherine Goodison has set up her own business in her London flat making hats. “My first job as a lawyer (律师) was fun, but the hours were terrible. Then I left. A lot of people said I’d get bored, but that has never happened. I feel happier now. What I love about this job is that I know what I want and I can make decisions on my own.” Paul Drinkwater worked in finance (金融) for 16 years before working at the Life Centre in London. “I had been in financial markets from the age of 22, but I found the work boring.