Question

A few months ago as I wandered through my parents’ house, the same house I grew up in, I had a sudden, scary realization. When my parents bought the house, in 1982, they were only two years older than I am now. I tried to imagine myself in two years, ready to settle down and buy the house I’d still be living in almost 30 years later.

It seemed ridiculous. On a practical level, there’s no way I could afford to buy a house anytime soon. More importantly, I wouldn’t want to. I’m not sure where I’ll be living in two years, or what kind of job I’ll have. And I don’t think I’ll be ready to settle down and stay in one place.

So this is probably the generation gap that divides my friends and me from our parents. When our parents were our age, they’d gotten their education, chosen a career, and were starting to settle into responsible adult lives.

My friends and I – “Generation Y” – still aren’t sure what we want to do with our lives. Whatever we end up doing, we want to make sure we’re happy doing it. We’d rather take risks first, try out different jobs, and move from one city to another until we find our favorite place. We’d rather spend our money on travel than put it in a savings account.

This casual attitude towards responsibility has caused some critics to call my generation “arrogant”, “impatient”, and “overprotected”. Some of these complaints have a point. As children we were encouraged to succeed in school, but also to have fun. We grew up in a world full of technological innovation: cellphones, the Internet, instant messaging, and video games.

Our parents looked to rise vertically（垂直的）– starting at the bottom of the ladder and slowly making their way to the top, on the same track, often for the same company. That doesn’t apply to my generation.

Because of that, it may take us longer than our parents to arrive at responsible, stable adulthood. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In our desire to find satisfaction, we will work harder, struggle for ways to keep life interesting, and gain a broader set of experiences and knowledge than our parents’ generation did.

1.What is the main “generation gap” between the author and her friends and their parents according to the article?

A. Their ways of gaining experience.

B. Their attitude towards responsibility.
C. Their attitude toward high technology.
D. Their ways of making their way to the top.

2.Which of the following might the author agree with?

A. It involves too much effort to rise vertically.
B. It’s better to take adult responsibility earlier.
C. It’s all right to try more before settling down.
D. It’s ridiculous to call her generation “arrogant”.

3.What can we conclude from the article?

A. The author is envious of her parents enjoying a big house at her age.

B. “Generation Y” people don’t want to grow up and rush into adulthood.

C. Growing up in a hi-tech world makes “Generation Y” feel insecure about relationships.

D. The author wrote this article so that others would be able to understand her generation better.

4.What is the main theme of the article?
A. Criticisms of the young generation.
B. The sudden realization of growing up.
C. A comparison between lifestyles of generations.
D. The factors that have changed the young generation.

Answer

1.B

2.C

3.D

4.C

【解析】

试题分析: 本文讲述了作者他们这一代人与父辈之间的生活方式的不同，希望别人对他们这一代人更加理解。

1.B细节题。根据第五段This casual attitude toward responsibility has caused some critics to call my generation “arrogant”, “impatient”, and “overprotected”.可知作者和朋友和父母主要的代沟正在于对责任的态度，答案为B

2.C推断题。根据第四段We’d rather take risks first, try out different jobs, and move from one city to another until we find our favorite place. We’d rather spend our money on travel than put it in a savings account.可知作者同意应该早些承担起成年人的责任，选C

3.D推断题。根据第五段This casual attitude towards responsibility has caused some critics to call my generation “arrogant”, “impatient”, and “overprotected”.可知评论家称他们这一代是自大的，没有耐心的，被过度保护的，可知她写文章是为了让别人对他们这一代人更加理解。选D

4.C主旨大意题。作者写本文就是为了向读者介绍他们这一代人的思想，让别人更好的理解他们，接受他们，故D正确。

考点：文化类阅读。