The only way to travel is on foot

The past ages of man have all been carefully labeled（標(biāo)記）by anthropologists（人類學(xué)家）. Descriptions like ‘Palaeolithic(舊石器時(shí)代) Man’, ‘Neolithic Man’, etc., neatly（干凈地；整潔地） sum up whole periods. When the time comes for anthropologists to turn their attention to the twentieth century, they will surely choose the label ‘Legless Man’. Histories of the time will go something like this: ‘in the twentieth century, people forgot how to use their legs. Men and women moved about in cars, buses and trains from a very early age. There were lifts and escalators（自動(dòng)電梯，自動(dòng)扶梯）in all large buildings to prevent people from walking. This situation was forced upon earth dwellers（居民） of that time because of miles each day. But the surprising thing is that they didn’t use their legs even when they went on holiday. They built cable railways, ski-lifts and roads to the top of every huge mountain. All the beauty spots on earth were marred （糟蹋）by the presence of large car parks. ’

The future history books might also record that we were deprived（剝奪） of the use of our eyes. In our hurry to get from one place to another, we failed to see anything on the way. Air travel gives you a bird’s-eye view of the world – or even less if the wing of the aircraft happens to get in your way. When you travel by car or train a blurred image of the countryside constantly smears the windows. Car drivers, in particular, are forever obsessed with the urge to go on and on: they never want to stop.

Is it the lure of the great motorways, or what? And as for sea travel, it hardly deserves mention. It is perfectly summed up in the words of the old song: ‘I joined the navy to see the world, and what did I see? I saw the sea.’ The typical twentieth-century traveler is the man who always says ‘I’ve been there. ’ You mention the remotest, most evocative place-names in the world like El Dorado, Kabul, Irkutsk and someone is bound to say ‘I’ve been there’ – meaning, ‘I drove through it at 100 miles an hour on the way to somewhere else. ’

When you travel at high speeds, the present means nothing: you live mainly in the future because you spend most of your time looking forward to arriving at some other place. But actual arrival, when it is achieved, is meaningless. You want to move on again. By traveling like this, you suspend all experience; the present ceases to be a reality: you might just as well be dead. The traveler on foot, on the other hand, lives constantly in the present. For him traveling and arriving are one and the same thing: he arrives somewhere with every step he makes. He experiences the present moment with his eyes, his ears and the whole of his body. At the end of his journey he feels a delicious physical weariness. He knows that sound. Satisfying sleep will be his: the just reward of all true travellers.

1. Anthropologists label nowadays’ men ‘Legless’ because

       A . people forget how to use his legs.            B  people prefer cars, buses and trains.

       C  lifts and escalators prevent people from walking. D  there are a lot of transportation devices.

2. Travelling at high speed means

       A people’s focus on the future.   B a pleasure.

C satisfying drivers’ great thrill.  D a necessity y of life.

3. Why does the author say ‘we are deprived of the use of our eyes’ ?

       A  People won’t use their eyes.     B In traveling at high speed, eyes become useless.

       C  People can’t see anything on his way of travel.   D  People want to sleep during travelling.

4. What is the purpose of the author in writing this passage?

       A Legs become weaker.   B Modern means of transportation make the world a small place.

       C There is no need to use eyes.    D The best way to travel is on foot.

5. What does ‘a(chǎn) bird’s-eye view’ mean?

       A  See view with bird’s eyes.    B  A bird looks at a beautiful view.

C It is a general view from a high position looking down.   D  A scenic place.

I am an advocate for my son. I made it my responsibility to inform all of his high school teachers and principals that our family goal was for him to attend college. When you, the parent, inform a teacher that the family had high expectations for your child, then that teacher takes on a whole different attitude to him or her.

       When Chris started high school, I started my habit of keeping track of his absences and tardiness(上學(xué)遲到) on my calendar at home. In a way, it pleased him that I cared so much.

       One semester in his junior year, he came home with a report card that showed three times as many days absent from school as I had on y calendar. When I asked him about it, he looked at the report card and his eyes got very wide.

       “That must be a mistake, Mom,”he said. “Maybe there was an error in the computer.”He assured me that he had not been skipping school.

       While I was prepared to believe him, I also needed to check with the school to make sure. The next morning, I went with Chris before school to the vice principal’s office and showed him the report card with the excessive(過度的) number of absences. He spoke up immediately.

       “Oh, Ms. Chandler, I’m so sorry. We are planning to inform all the parents that there was a glitch in the reporting of the days absent for all the kids. I don’t think any of them went out correct.”Chris was here when he says he was here.

       I was relieved that everything was all right, and as I left his office the vice principal said to me, “Hundreds of report cards went out with the wrong number of absences, but you’re the only parent who has called or stopped in to check up on it.”

1．When Chris saw the report card, he felt         .

       A．a(chǎn)shamed              B．surprised             C．frightened            D．a(chǎn)ngry

2．Why did the author go to her son’s school with the report card?

       A．To prove Chris innocent.                      B．To correct the mistake.

       C．To find out the truth                             D．To expose Chris as a liar.

3．The underlined word “glitch” in Paragraph 6 can be best replaced by “     ”.

       A．problem              B．correction            C．statement            D．change

4．It can be inferred from the passage that the author          .

       A．changed all teachers’ attitudes to her son

       B．had high expectations for her son’s school

       C．was dissatisfied with her son’s school

       D．kept in touch with her son’s school

5．By saying “Chris was here when he says he was here”, what did the vice principal mean?

       A．Chris was seldom absent from school.   B．Chris was telling the truth.

       C．Chris never broke his promise.              D．Chris was well-disciplined.

Mom was a teacher most of her life. When she wasn’t in the classroom, she was educating her children or grandchildren: correcting our grammar; starting us on collections of butterflies, flowers or rocks; or inspiring a discussion on her most recent “Book of the Month Club” topic. Mom made learning fun.

   It was sad for my three brothers and me to see her ailing in her later years. At eighty-five, she suffered a stroke and she went steadily downhill after that.

   Two days before she died, my brothers and I met at her nursing home and took her for a short ride in a wheelchair. While we waited for the staff to lift her limp body back into bed, Mom fell asleep. Not wanting to wake her, we moved to the far end of the room and spoke softly.

   After several minutes our conversation was interrupted by a muffled sound coming from across the room. We stopped talking and looked at Mom. Her eyes were closed, but she was clearly trying to communicate with us. We went to her side.

   “Whirr,” she said weakly.

   “Where?” I asked. “Mom, is there something you want?” “Whirr,” she repeated a bit stronger. My brothers and I looked at each other and shook our heads sadly.

   Mom opened her eyes, sighed, and with all the energy she could muster said, “Not was, say were!”

   It suddenly occurred to us that Mom was correcting brother Jim’s last sentence. “If it was up to me…”

   Jim leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Thanks, Mom,” he whispered. We smiled at each other and once again shook our heads…this time in awe of a remarkable teacher.

1.When Mom said, “Whirr”, what did she really want to do?

A.She wanted to tell her sons her will.

B.She wanted to have something to eat before she died.

C.She wanted to correct the mistakes Jim made while talking.

D.She wanted to teach her sons more because she was dying.

2.Which of the following statements is NOT right?

A.Mom was a good teacher and never wanted to stop her teaching.

B.Mom was always making her teaching fun.

C.Mom didn’t forget her teaching until she died.

D.Mom was no longer a teacher when she was at home.

3.What does the writer think of his mother?

A.He loved her but was tired of his mother’s teaching at home.

B.His mother should forget her teaching and enjoyed the rest of her life.

C.His mother was great because she devoted herself to teaching.

D.His mother was an excellent teacher before she was retired.

4.Which of the following is the best title of this passage?

A. Once a teacher, always  B. Mom’s will

C. A teacher’s life D. A teacher’s devotion

 

When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings. Week by week her list grew: I was very thin; I wasn’t a good student; I talked too much; I was too proud and so on. I tried to bear all these things as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.

He listened to me quietly, then he asked, “Are the things she said true or not? Janet, didn’t you ever wonder what you are really like? Well, you now have the girl’s opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said, mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to other things she said.”

I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half of the things were true. Some of them I couldn’t change (like being very thin), but a good number I could and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I got a fairly clear picture of myself.

I brought the list back to Daddy. He refused to take it, “That’s just for you,” he said. “You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just closing your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something that is said about you is true, you’ll find it will be of help to you. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to other people’s opinions, but hear the truth and do what you think is right.”

Daddy’s advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I’ve never had a better piece of advice. 

1.The underlined sentence “Week by week her list grew” means “__________”. 

A. Week by Week, my shortcomings grew more serious

B. She had made a list of shortcomings and kept on adding new ones to it so that it was growing longer and longer

C. I was having more and more shortcomings as time went on

D. Week by week she discovered more shortcomings of mine and point them out

2.Why did her father listen to her quietly? 

A. Because he believed that what her daughter’s enemy said was mostly true.

B. Because he had been so angry with his daughter’s shortcomings that he wanted to show this by keeping silent for a while.

C. Because he didn’t believe in his daughter

D. Because he wasn’t quite sure which girl was telling the truth.

3.What did the father do after he heard his daughter’s complaint? 

A. He told her not to pay any attention to what her “enemy” said.

B. He criticized her and told her to overcome her shortcomings.

C. He told her to write down all that her "enemy" had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true.

D. He refused to take the list and have a look at it.  

4.Which do you think would be the best title for this passage? 

A. Not an Enemy, but a Best Friend  

B. My Father

C. The Best Advice I’ve Ever Had        

D. My Childhood

 

Edgar felt quite excited at the thought of his first swim of the summer. With the sun shining down so strongly, the sea was certain to be warm enough. He walked quickly along the sea-front towards the steps that led on to the sands. He smiled cheerfully at the passersby. He had just smiled and raised his hat to an elderly lady when a man with a camera caught his arm and stopped him. Edgar heard a little buzzing noise from the camera.

“Your photograph, sir, in glorious colour in just one moment if you please,” said the man in one breath. Then the buzzing stopped, and he held the photograph in his hand and was waving it to and fro. In a

moment he handed it over, and Edgar saw the bright blue splash of his shirt half filling the picture.

“Seventy pence, sir,” the man said. “It’s the bargain of your holiday.”

“Seventy pence,” Edgar repeated, mildly. “For this?” He stared at the photographer.

“They’re normally eighty-five, sir, but for a single subject I make a cut-price offer. It’s the best value you’ll get in Chadwell.”

“You’ll have to make a better offer,” Edgar said. It was a good photo though, he thought, so bright and clear. His hat was held high, and he was smiling broadly at the old lady, whose arm and handbag came into a lower corner. He had had no idea that he was being snapped. He thought he was really quite a good-looking chap.

“That’s as good as any studio job that would cost you pounds,” said the cameraman. “It’s better in a way because it’s so natural. Only seventy pence, sir.”

“I’ve never paid so much for a snap in my life. It simply isn’t worth that kind of money. It’s not as if I need the thing. Look, I’ll give you twenty-five.”

 “No, I can’t do that. Each of these instant colour shots costs me 50p — that’s the price of the blank frame, so you see…”

“Criminal, criminal,” Edgar broke in. “You want a profit of forty per cent. Well, not at my expense, I’m afraid. I’ll give you your 50p and that’s that.”

“Let me see, then.” The man suddenly took the photograph out of Edgar’s hand. “I can’t waste any more time with you. It’s 70p or I keep it.”

 “Keep it,” Edgar said. He turned, looked out to the sea, and then walked quickly away.

1.Why do you suppose Edgar was in Chadwell?

A. It was his hometown.

B. He was there on holiday.

C. He was in the making of a film.

D. He was there to have his photograph taken.

2.Edgar smiled at and raised his hat to the lady because ________.

A. he thought he recognized her

B. he wanted the photograph to be amusing

C. she was having her photograph taken

D. he was feeling excited and cheerful

3. The photographer lowered his price to 70p because __________.

A. Edgar wanted to bargain for the photo

B. Edgar couldn’t afford to pay the normal price

C. Edgar was the only person in the photo

D. there was only one copy of the photo

4.What did Edgar think of the photo?

A. He thought it made him look like a criminal.

B. He liked it but thought it was too dear.

C. It annoyed him because he hadn’t expected it.

D. He thought it was a bargain at the price.

5.We can infer from the passage that _______ .

A. Edgar was an indifferent but good-looking man

B. Edgar smiled at the photographer because he was being photographed

C. the photographer was actually a criminal

D. Edgar didn’t buy the snap at length.