Question

You are a new manager at the American branch of your German firm in Chicago. With a few minutes to spare between meetings, you go to get a quick cup of coffee.

“Hey, David, how are you?” one of the senior partners at the firm asks you.

“Good, thank you, Dr. Greer,” you reply. You’ve really been wanting to make a connection with the senior leadership at the firm, and this seems like a great opportunity. But as you start to think of something to say, your American colleague breaks in to steal your spotlight.

“So Arnold”, your colleague says to your boss, in such a casual manner that it makes your German soul cringe(畏缩), “So what’s your Super bowl prediction? I mean, you’re a Niners fan, right?”

The conversation moves on, and you walk silently back to your desk with your coffee. You know how important small talk is in the U.S., and you feel jealous of people who can do it well.

There’s nothing small about the role that small talk plays in American professional culture. People from other countries are often surprised at how important small talk is in the U.S. and how naturally and comfortably people seem to do it ------ with peers, men, women, and even with superiors. You can be the most technically skilled worker in the world, but your ability to progress in your job in the United States is highly dependent on your ability to build and maintain positive relationships with people at work. And guess what skill is critical for building and maintaining these relationships? Small talk.

What can you do if you are from another culture and want to learn to use small talk in the U.S. to build relationships and establish trust? Work hard to hone(磨练) your own version of American-style small talk. Watch how others do it. You don’t have to mimic what they do; in fact, that would likely backfire because people would see you as inauthentic. But if you can develop your own personal version, that can go a long way toward making you feel comfortable and competence．

1.The author introduces the topic of the passage by______.

A. describing an interesting scene

B. offering a plot

C. making comparisons

D. telling a small jokes

2.What do we know about German people?

A．They usually make small talk in work breaks．

B．They hate making small talk．

C．They don’t make so much small talk．

D．They are good at making small talk too．

3.What makes people from other countries surprised in American professional culture?

A．American workers’ ability to make progress．

B．American workers’ attitude towards superiors．

C．The special meaning of small talk．

D．The role small talk plays in work settings．

4.What does “backfire” underlined in the last paragraph mean?

A．have a warm atmosphere

B．have the opposite effect

C．have a good result

D．have a hard time

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.D

4.B

【解析】

试题分析：本文属于文化类阅读，介绍了美国文化中的一个重要的内容：small talk，同时阐述了small talk在生活中的巨大作用。

1.A 推理判断题。根据文章第二句With a few minutes to spare between meetings, you go to get a quick cup of coffee.可知作者叙述了在会议期间到咖啡馆喝咖啡时，有同事和你进行了small talk。以这样的一个场景导入到文章所要讨论的话题：small talk在美国文化中很重要。故A正确。

2.C 推理判断题。根据文章第五段“So Arnold”, your colleague says to your boss, in such a casual manner that it makes your German soul cringe(畏缩), “So what’s your Super bowl prediction? I mean, you’re a Niners fan, right?”和第六段The conversation moves on, and you walk silently back to your desk with your coffee.可知你的美国同事聊的很开心，而你安静的端着咖啡回到自己的桌子。根据文章第一句You are a new manager at the American branch of your German firm in Chicago.可知你来自德国。说明德国人并不擅长于别人进行如此随意的small talk。故C正确。

3.D 细节理解题。根据第六段第二句People from other countries are often surprised at how important small talk is in the U.S. and how naturally and comfortably people seem to do it ------ with peers, men, women, and even with superiors.乐子其他国家的人惊讶的原因是在美国文化中，small talk是多么的重要。无论和什么对象进行交流，这样的small talk都 很重要。故D正确。

4.B 猜测词义题。根据前句You don’t have to mimic what they do; in fact, that would likely backfire because people would see you as inauthentic.你不必模仿别人进行small talk的方法，如果你这样做，人们会认为你不真实，反而对你有不好的影响。后一句But if you can develop your own personal version...说明作者建议我们有自己的small talk的技巧。所以上句中的“backfire”指B项含义。

考点：考查文化生活类阅读