1、【 精 品教育资源文库 】 Unit 3 A taste of English humour 单元加餐练 .阅读理解 A A cultures values can be mirrored by its humor. Humor has been evaluated by many great minds such as Thomas Hobbes, who disliked humor, “Laughter is nothing else but sudden glory arising from some sudden thought of feeling far better than
2、 others.” He thought humor to be a negative quality of human narrowmindedness. However, Mordechai Gordon, PhD of Education, insists, “Humor allows us to view the world from an angle that is amusing rather than serious.” I a gree with Gordon. Learning to look at the world through humor is important.
3、In the United States, every four years an election occurs. Without humor as a way to express their feelings, how else would Americans keep from clawing their eyes out and going the way of lemming? Television shows like “The Daily Show” have become important parts of American culture. They are mother
4、ing the masses by metaphorically (隐喻地 ) airplaneing politics into our mouths. They make politics fun. Of course, politics is only one type of humor. Social humor helps people through the twists and turns of the human condition. American pop culture promotes an unhealthy selfimage. On the topic of se
5、lfimage, Hari Kondabolu stands out. He has a joke about the popular musical group “The Pu ssycat Dolls” ， describing their hit song “Dont Cha” as a negative representation of women. He points out an obvious offence in American culture. A study from Loyola University of Maryland has shown that humor
6、is one determining factor for selecting a mating partner. Amongst other things, mates look for an outstanding funny bone in a potential partner. Of course, humor is not always used for good purposes. Humor can be linked to vulgarity (庸俗 ) and racism, but, like everything else, it has potential to un
7、ite human beings by allowing us to laugh at ourselves, our failures and our connection with one another. Though life may seem tough and depressing at times, all I have to do is look in the mirror at my increased wrinkles (皱纹 ) to know that there is a comedy out there that even Chaplin wasnt aware of
8、. With that in mind, remember to laugh with humanity and sometimes at humanity. 篇章导读：本文是一篇议论文。本文作者通过论证认为，一种文化的价值观可以通过其幽默反映出来，并决定用幽默的态度来面对生活。 1 Hobbes believed that humor _ . A was only a way to laugh at others to make oneself feel better B resulted in narrowmindedness of human beings 【 精 品教育资源文库 】
9、C had the power to mirror personal glory and national values D was for people to view the world from another angle 答案： A 细节理解题。根据文章第一段可知， Thomas Hobbes 不喜欢幽默，并从他的话“Laughter is noth ing else but . thought of feeling far better than others.” 可知，他认为幽默仅仅是嘲笑别人并让自己感觉更好的一种方法而已。应选 A。 2 What is the authors a
10、ttitude towards political humor? A Worried. B Disappointed. C Curious. D Appreciative. 答案： D 观点态度题。根据文章第三段中的 “Without humor as a way to express their feelings, how else would Americans keep from clawing their eyes out and going the way of lemming？ ” 及 “They make politics fun.” 可知，作者对于政治幽默持赞赏的态度。appr
11、eciative “ 欣赏的，赏识的 ” 。 3 The fourth paragraph is developed mainly _ . A by example B by process C by comparison D by classification 答案： A 细节理解题。根据第四段中的第四句及下文中的解释可知，作者是通过举例子来支撑自己的观点的。故选 A。 4 What can we learn from the last two paragraphs? A Chaplin wasnt aware of being laughed at. B The author feels
12、helpless and sad about getting older. C Never be the one who laughs at other people. D The author is determined to face life with a sense of humor. 答案： D 推理判断题。根据倒数第二段中的 “to know that there is a comedy out there” 和最后一段中的 “remember to laugh with humanity” 可知，作者积极肯定幽默的价值，决定以幽默的态度来面对生活。故选 D。 B Whether
13、youre eating at a fancy restaurant or dining in someones home, proper table manners are likely to help you make a good impression. According to a US expert, Emily Post, “All rules of table manners are made to avoid ugliness.” While Henry Hitchings of the Los Angeles Times admits that good manners ca
14、n reduce social conflicts, he points out that mostly their purpose is protective they turn our natural warriorlike selves into more elegant ones. So where did table manners come from? In medieval England, a writer named Petrus Alfonsi took the lead to urge people not to speak with their mouths full.
15、 And King David of Scotland also proposed that any of his people who learned to eat more neatly be given a tax deduction (扣除 ) Disappointingly, that idea never caught_on. It was during the Renaissance, when there were real technical developments, that opinions of correct behavior changed 【 精 品教育资源文
16、库 】 for good. “None of these was more significant than the introduction of the table fork， ” wrote Hitchings. “Gradually, as forks became popu lar, they brought the new way of eating, making it possible, for instance, to consume berries without making ones fingers dirty.” Forks were introduced to Br
17、itain in 1608 and 25 years later, the first table fork reached America. Yet while most of the essentials are the same on both sides of the Atlantic, there are a few clear differences between whats normal in the US and what holds true in the UK. For example, in the US, when food needs cutting with a
18、knife, people generally cut a bite, then lay aside the knife and switch the fork to their right hand. Then they pick up one bite at a time. By contrast, Britons keep the fork in the left hand and dont lay the knife down. Though globalization has developed a new and simple international standard of t
19、able manners, some people still stick with the American cutandswitch method. The Los Angeles Times noted, “They are hanging on to a form of behavior that favors manners above efficiency.” 篇章导读：本文是一篇说明文。全文介绍了餐桌礼仪在西方国家的发展与形成过程。 5 What does the passage mainly talk about? A The importance of proper tabl
20、e manners. B The development of table manners in Western countries. C Some unwritten rules of table manners in the US and UK. D Differences between American and British table manners. 答案： B 主旨大意题。从中世纪英国 (In medieval England)谈到文艺复兴时期 (during the Renaissance)，再到 1608 年以及 25 年后 (in 1608 and 25 years la
21、ter)，作者讲述了餐桌礼仪在西方国家的发展与形成过程。故选 B。 6 The underlined phrase “caught on” in the passage probably means “_ ” A worked in practice B became popular C drew attention D had a positive effect 答案： B 词义猜测题。上一段最后一句谈到了利用减税的政策来鼓励人们注意餐桌礼仪，再结合画线词所在句子中的 “Disappointingly” 一词可知，这一政策并没有产生理想的效果，也就是说这一政策并没有流行起来。故选 B。 7
22、Which of the following events influenced peoples table manners most according to the passage? A The introduction of the table fork. B The tax deduction policy. C The rise of the Renaissance. D Petrus Alfonsis efforts in promoting table manners. 答案： A 细节理解题。根据第五段中的 “None of these was more significant
23、 than the 【 精 品教育资源文库 】 introduction of the table fork . they brought the new way of eating, .” 可知，对 人们餐桌礼仪影响最大的就是餐叉的引进及使用。故选 A。 8 What can we conclude from the passage? A British and American table manners are completely different from each other. B American people pay more attention to their table manners than British people do. C With globalization, the American cutandswitch method has been abandoned in the US. D British peoples way of using a knife and fo
