In modern society there is a great deal of argument about competition. Some hold an optimistic attitude. They value it highly, believing that it is a natural outcome of social progress and prosperity（繁荣）and that anyone who wants to be outstanding has to keep the pace. Others think otherwise. They say that competition is bad; that it sets one person against another; that the unfriendly relationship between people because of competition.
I have taught many children who held the belief that their self-worth depended on how well they performed at tennis and other skills. For them, playing well and winning are often life-and-death affairs. In their single-minded pursuit（追求）of success, the development of many other human qualities is sadly forgotten.
However, while some seem to be lost in the desire to succeed, others have an opposite opinion. In a culture which values only the winner and pays no attention to the ordinary players, they strongly blame competition. Among the most vocal are youngsters who have suffered under competitive pressures from their parents or society. They have no choice. Teaching these young people, I often observe in them a desire to fail. They seem to seek failure by not trying to win or achieve success. By not trying, they always have an excuse: “I may have lost, but it doesn’t matter because I really didn’t try”. What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that if they had really tried and lost, that would mean a lot. Such a loss would be a measure of their worth. Clearly, this belief is the same as that of the true competitors who try to prove themselves. Both are based on the mistaken belief that one’s self-respect relies on how well one performs compared with others. Both are afraid of not being valued. Only as this basic and often troublesome fear is overcome can discover a new meaning in competition.
1.What does this passage mainly talk about?
A. Competition helps to set up self-respect.
B. Opinions about competition are different among people.
C. Competition is harmful to personal quality development.
D. Failures are necessary experience in competition.
2.Why do some people favor competition according to the passage?
A. It pushes society forward.
B. It builds up a sense of duty.
C. It improves personal abilities.
D. It encourages individual efforts.
3.The underlined phrase “the most vocal” in Paragraph 3 means .
A. those who try their best to win
B. those who value competition most highly
C. those who are against competition most strongly
D. those who rely on others most for success
4.What is the similar belief of the true competitors and those with a “desire to fail”?
A. One’s worth lies in his performance compared with others.
B. One’s success in competition needs great efforts.
C. One’s achievement is determined by his particular skills.
D. One’s success is based on how hard he has tried.
5.Which point of view may the author agree to?
A. Every effort should be paid back.
B. Competition should be encouraged.
C. Winning should be a life-and-death matter.
D. Fear of failure should be removed in competition.
While income worry is a rather common problem of the aged, loneliness is another problem that aged parents may face. Of all the reasons that explain their loneliness, a large geographical distance between parents and their children is the major one. This phenomenon is commonly known as “Empty Nest syndrome”.
In order to find better chances outside their countries, many young people have gone abroad, leaving their parents behind with no clear idea of when they will return home. Their parents spend countless lonely days and nights, taking care of themselves, in the hope that someday their children will come back to stay with them. The fact that most of these young people have gone to Europeanized or Americanized societies makes it unlikely that they will hold as tightly to the value of duty as they would have if they had not left their countries. Whatever the case, it has been noted that the values they hold do not necessarily match what the actually do. This geographical and cultural distance also prevents the grown-up children from providing response in time for their aged parents living by themselves.
The situation in which grown-up children live far away from their aged parents has been described as “distant parent phenomenon”, which is common both in developed countries and in developing countries. Our society has not yet been well prepared for “Empty Nest Syndrome”.
1.According to the passage, the loneliness of aged parents is mainly caused by ________.
A. their earlier experience of living alone
B. the poor living conditions in their native countries
C. the common worry that they have not saved much money
D. the distance between where parents live and where their children live
2.Many young people have gone abroad, leaving their aged parents behind, to ________.
A. realize their dreams in foreign countries
B. seek a better place for their aged parents
C. live in the countries with more money
D. continue their studies abroad
3.If young people go abroad, ________.
A. they do not hold to the value of duty at all
B. they can give some help to their parents back home
C. they cannot do what they should for their parents
D. they believe what they actually do is right
4.From the last paragraph, we can infer that ________.
A. the situations in the developed and developing countries are different
B. “Empty Nest Syndrome” has arrived unexpectedly in our society
C. children will become independent as soon as they go abroad
D. the aged parents are not fully prepared for “Empty Nest Syndrome”
5.The society discussed in the passage is most probably ________.
A. France B. America C. China D. Britain
Recently I spoke to some of my students about what they wanted to do after they graduated, and what kind of job prospects they thought they had.
Given that I teach students who are trained to be doctors, I was surprised to find that most thought that they would not be able to get the jobs they wanted without “outside help”. “What kind of help is that?” I asked, expecting them to tell me that they would need a relative or family friend to help them out.
“Surgery（外科手术）”, one replied. I was pretty alarmed by that response. It seems that the graduates of today are increasingly willing to go under the knife to get ahead of others when it comes to getting a job. One girl told me that she was considering surgery to increase her height. “They break your legs, put in special extending screws, and slowly expand the gap between the two ends of the bone as it regrows. You can get at least 5 cm taller!”
At that point, I was shocked. I am short. I can’t deny that, but I don’t think I would put myself through months of pain just to be a few centimeters taller. I don’t even bother to wear shoes with thick soles, as I’m not trying to hide the fact that I am just not tall!
It seems to me that there is a trend toward wanting “perfection”, and that is an ideal that just does not exist in reality.
No one is born perfect, yet magazines, TV shows and movies present images of thin, tall, beautiful people as being the norm（标准）. Advertisements for slimming aids, beauty treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics fill the pages of newspapers, further creating an idea that “perfection” is a requirement, and that it must be purchased, no matter what the cost. In my opinion, skills, rather than appearance, should determine how successful a person is in his chosen career.
1.We can know from the passage that the author works as ________.
A. a professor B. a model C. a teacher D. a reporter
2.Many graduates today turn to cosmetic surgery to ________.
A. marry a better man/woman
B. become a model
C. get an advantage over others in job-hunting
D. attract more admirers
3.What was the author’s reaction towards the girl’s decision?
A. Excited. B. Surprised. C. Happy. D. Angry.
4.According to the passage, the author believes that ________.
A. everyone should pursue perfection, whatever the cost
B. it’s right for graduates to ask for others to help them out in hunting for jobs
C. media are to blame for misleading young people in their seeking for surgery
D. it is one’s appearance instead of skills that really matters in one’s career
5.What does the author think of his height?
A. He hates to be called a short man.
B. He tries to increase his height through surgery.
C. He always wears shoes with thick soles to hide the fact.
D. He just accepts it as it is.
Compassion is a desire within us to help others. With effort, we can translate compassion into action. An experience last weekend showed me this is true, I work part-time in a supermarket across from a building for the elderly. These old people are our main customers, and it’s not hard to lose patience over their slowness. But last Sunday, one aged gentleman appeared to teach me a valuable lesson. This untidy man walked up to my register（收款机）with a box of biscuits. He said he was out of cash, had just moved into his room, and had nothing in his cupboards. He asked if we could let him have the food on trust. He promised to repay me the next day.
I couldn’t help staring at him, I wondered what kind of person he had been ten or twenty years before, and what he would be like if luck had gone his way. I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul, all alone in the world, I told him that I was sorry, but store rules didn’t allow me to do so. I felt stupid and unkind saying this, but I valued my job.
Just then, another man, standing behind the first, spoke up. If anything, he looked more pitiable. “Charge it to me” was all he said.
What I had been feeling was pity. Pity is soft and safe and easy. Compassion, on the other hand, is caring in action. I thanked the second man but told him that was not allowed either, then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself. I reached into my pocket because these two men had reached into my heart and taught me compassion.
1.The aged gentleman who wanted to buy the biscuits ________.
A. promised to obey the store rules
B. forgot to take any money with him
C. hoped to have the food first and pay later
D. could not afford anything more expensive
2.Which of the following best describes the old gentleman?
A. Kind and lucky.
B. Poor and lonely.
C. Friendly and helpful.
D. Hurt and disappointed.
3.The writer acted upon the store rules because ________.
A. he wanted to keep his present job
B. he felt no pity for the old gentleman
C. he considered the old man dishonest
D. he expected someone else to pay for the old man
4.What does the writer learn from his experience?
A. wealth is more important than anything else.
B. Helping others is easier said than done.
C. experience is better gained through practice.
D. Obeying the rules means more than compassion.
5.How would the old men feel at the end of the story?
A. Sad and disappointed. B. Happy and lucky.
C. Depressed and unlucky. D. Surprised and grateful.
Some years ago when I was in my first year in college, I heard Salome Bey sing for the first time. The moment was exciting. Salome’s filled the room and brought the theater to life. I was so that I decided to write an article about her.
I Salome Bey, telling her I was from Essence magazine, and that I wanted to meet her to talk about her career .She and told me to come to her Studio next Tuesday. When I hung up, I was scared out of mind. I I was lying. I was not a writer at all and hadn’t even written a grocery list.
I interviewed Salome Bey the next Tuesday. I sat there , taking notes and asking questions that all began with, “Can you tell me…?” I soon realized that Salome Bey was one thing, but writing a story for a national magazine was just impossible. The was almost unbearable. I struggled for days draft（草稿）after draft. Finally I put my manuscript（手稿）into a large envelope and dropped it into a mailbox.
It didn’t take long. My manuscript . How stupid of me! I thought. How could I
in a world of professional writers? Knowing I couldn’t the rejection letter, I threw the unopened envelope into a drawer.
Five years later, I was moving to California. While my apartment, I came across the unopened envelope. This time I opened it and read the editor’s letter in :
Ms Profit,
Your story on Salome Bey is fantastic. Yet we need some materials. Please add those and return the article immediately. We would like to your story soon.
Shocked, it took me a long time to . Fear of rejection cost me greatly. I lost at least five hundred dollars and the chance of having my article appear in a major magazine. More importantly, I lost years of writing. Today, I have become a full-time writer. Looking back on this , I learned a very important lesson: You can’t to doubt yourself.
1.A. joyB. voice C. speech D. smile
2.A. proudB. activeC. satisfiedD. moved
3.A. visited B. emailedC. phonedD. interviewed
4.A. agreedB. refusedC. hesitatedD. paused
5.A. repliedB. discoveredC. explainedD. knew
6.A. seriouslyB. patientlyC. nervouslyD. quietly
7.A. blamingB. foolingC. invitingD. urging
8.A. hardshipB. failureC. commentD. pressure
9.A. withB. byC. onD. in
10.A. Disappeared B. returnedC. spreadD. improved
11.A. Compare B. struggleC. surviveD. Compet2e
12.A. ignore B. deliverC. faceD. receive
13.A. Decorating B. repairingC. cleaningD. leaving
14.A. surprise B. anxietyC. horrorD. trouble
15.A. Subjective B. detailedC. privateD. complex
16.A. broadcast B. createC. publishD. Asses7s
17.A. recover B. prepareC. escapeD. Concen9trate
18.A. Energetic B. endlessC. typicalD. enjoyable
19.A. Experience B. successC. benefitD. accident
20.A. attempt B. affordC. expectD. Pretend
—I need to get changed. —________! We’ll be late for the party.
A. Oh, come on B. Go ahead C. Take it easy D. It’s a pity
