Question

There is a popular Chinese saying that “Fair skin (皮肤) will make up for three flaws(缺陷)”. This mentions the fact that in Chinese culture, it is believed that people who have fair skin are more beautiful. In Western culture, however, the opposite is true---many Westerners think tanned skin is prettier. The example shows that different cultures have different ideas of what they think is beautiful. These cultural meanings of beauty, however, are no longer important, As more and more people travel overseas, ideas about beauty are being shared among cultures. The Internet has also made it easier for people to share different types of beauty since people are always posting pictures on social media. The result is an ever-changing idea of what is considered beautiful.

The cultural practice of ear piercings, for example, has become a part of modern day culture. In Kenya, it is a tradition among the Marci men and women to pierce and then make their ear lobes (耳垂) longer using ivory and wood or stones. They then wear colorful things on their ear lobes. This is a common practice since longer ear lobes are seen as a sign of beauty. This tradition has now found its way into present-day culture. Nowadays, this might still seem unusual to some, but with more and more well-known actors and film stars showing off their longer ear lobes. i: will finally become more fashionable.

It is understood that different cultures around the world have different ways of showing beauty. However, since we now live in a worldwide society, people's views about beauty are always changing. With the help of the Internet, people are now able to easily borrow ideas from other cultures to help them stand out. So what new fashions can we expect to see in the future?

1.What has made it easier for people to share ideas about beauty?

A. The development of technology.

B. The popularity of the latest fashions.

C. The unchanged cultural traditions.

D. The worlds growing population.

2.What can be learned about the Masai people from the passage?

A. Longer ear lobes are their new fashion.

B. Only women make their ear lobes longer.

C. They think longer ear lobes look beautiful.

D. They make actors and film stars famous.

3.The underlined word "them" in the last paragraph refers to _______ .

A. people

B. ideas

C. cultures

D. fashions

4.What is the passage mainly about?

A. People in Asian countries like fair skin better.

B. Beauty is considered important in many cultures.

C. Different cultures have different ideas about beauty.

D. People's ideas about beauty are changing all the time.

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.A

4.D

【解析】文章大意：本文主要讲述了中西方文化的差异，以及人们对美的表现的不同方式和认知的不断改变。

1.细节理解题。根据The Internet has also made it easier for people to share different types of beauty since people are always posting pictures on social media. 互联网让人们更容易分享不同类型的美，因为人们总是在社交媒体上发布图片；以及With the help of the Internet, people are now able to easily borrow ideas from other cultures to help them stand out. 在互联网的帮助下，人们现在可以很容易地从其他文化中借鉴思想，帮助他们脱颖而出。可知是技术的进步和发展让人们更容易分享关于美的想法，故答案选A。

2.细节理解题。根据In Kenya, it is a tradition among the Marci men and women to pierce and then make their ear lobes (耳垂) longer using ivory and wood or stones. …This is a common practice since longer ear lobes are seen as a sign of beauty.可知，我们可以了解到马赛人视长耳垂为美丽，故答案选C。

3.词义猜测题。根据With the help of the Internet, people are now able to easily borrow ideas from other cultures to help them stand out.在互联网的帮助下，人们现在可以很容易地从其他文化中借鉴思想，帮助他们脱颖而出。联系上下文语境可知，前面说“人们现在可以很容易地从其他文化中借鉴思想”，这里是承接上文“帮助他们脱颖而出”，所以此处的“them”应指的是上文提到的“people”，故答案选A。

4.主旨大意题。根据文中的句子The result is an ever-changing idea of what is considered beautiful.其结果是人们对美的看法不断变化，以及However, since we now live in a worldwide society, people's views about beauty are always changing.然而，我们生活在一个世界性的社会中，人们对美的看法总是在改变，可知本文主要告诉我们人们对美的看法一直在改变，故答案选D。