Question

A culture’s values can be mirrored by its humor．Humor has been evaluated by many great minds such as Thomas Hobbes，who，in“On Nature”，disliked humor,“Laughter is nothing else but sudden glory arising from sudden thought of feeling far better than others．”He thought humor to be a negative quality of human narrow-mindedness．

However, Mordechai Gordon，Ph. D of Education，insists，“Humor allows us to view the

world from an angle that is amusing rather than serious．”1 agree with Gordon．Learning to look

at the world through humor is important．

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 mothering the masses by metaphorically(隐喻地) airplane-ing  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 self image．On the topic of self-image，Hari Kondabolu stands out．He has a joke about the popular musical group“The Pussycat Dolls”，describing their hit song“Don't 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 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

(粗俗)and racism，but，like everything else，it has potential to unite human beings by allowing

us to laugh at ourselves，our failures and our connection with one another．

Though 1ife 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 wasn’t

aware of．

With that in mind，remember to laugh with humanity and sometimes at humanity．

1.Hobbes believes that humor__________．

A．was only a way to laugh at others to make oneself feel better

B．resulted in narrow-mindedness of human beings

C．had the power to mirror personal glory and national values

D．was for people to view the world from another angle

2.What is the author’s attitude towards political humor?

A．Worried      B．Disappointed

C．Curious       D．Appreciative

3.The fourth paragraph is developed mainly__________．

A．by example   B．by process

C．by comparison  D．by classification

4.What can we learn from the last two paragraphs?

A．Chaplin wasn’t aware of being laughed at

B．The author feels 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．

Answer

1.A

2.D

3.A

4.D

【解析】

试题分析: 一种文化的价值可以通过幽默来体现。然而不同的人对幽默有不同的看法。作者认为幽默是很重要的，并举例说明了自己的想法。

1.A细节题。根据第一段Laughter is nothing else but sudden glory arising from sudden thought of feeling far better than others.笑声不过是突然想到比别人好得多而产生的优越感。可知Thomas Hobbes不喜欢幽默，因为他认为幽默是嘲笑别人使自己开心的一种方式，是人性狭隘的表现，故选A项。。

2.D 推断题。根据最后一段最后一段话提到With that in mind，remember to laugh with humanity and sometimes at humanity考虑到这一点，记得微笑，故是一种欣赏的态度，故选D项。

3.A结构分析题。作者通过列举Hari Kondabolu的例子来证明自己的观点，社会幽默反应了一个时代的文化情况，故选A项。

4.D推理判断题。根据倒数第二段Though 1ife may seem tough and depressing at times, all I have to do is look in the mirror at my increased wrinkles to know that there is a comedy out there that even Chaplin wasn’t aware of. 尽管生活有时候会很艰难并且令人沮丧，我要做的是看着镜子里自己日益增加的皱纹，告诉自己生活中总是有一些卓别林都没意识到的欢乐。可知作者支持生活中保持幽默，故选D项。

考点：日常生活类阅读。