Question

Harper Lee, whose 1961 novel To Kill a Mockingbird on the racial troubles of the American deep south, has died at the age of 89.

Until last year, Lee had been something of a one-book literary legend. To kill a Mockingbird sold more than 40 million copies around the world and earned her a Pulitzer prize, remaining a towering presence in American literature. Another novel, Go Set A Watchman, was controversially published in July 2015 as a “sequel” to Mockingbird, though it was later confirmed to be Mockingbird’s first draft.

But from the moment Mockingbird was published to almost instant success, the author consistently avoided public attention. Lee had lived for several years in a nursing home near the house in which she had grown up in Monroeville, Alabama—the setting for Maycomb of her famous book. Her neighbor for 40 years, Sue Sellers, said, “She was such a private person. All she wanted was privacy, but she didn’t get much. There was always somebody following her around.”

James Naughtie, BBC Books Editor, commented on the novels of Harper Lee: “I think she stands, particularly among American readers, as someone who shone a light into a very dark place. She was writing at a time when people were beginning to lift the lid on everything in the South which they’d chosen not to understand. That all changed in the 1960s. So I think her status for writing that book in its extraordinarily direct way will remain.

1.What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A. Lee became successful with stories on American south.

B. People owe Lee’s success to luck to some degree.

C. Mockingbird makes Lee a wonder in American literature.

D. Mockingbird was a bestseller by selling 40 million copies.

2.What does “Maycomb” in Paragraph 3 probably refer to?

A. A nursing home.

B. Lee’s hometown.

C. A fiction place.

D. A main character.

3.Which best describes Americans’ attitude towards racial troubles before the 1960s?

A. Tolerant.B. Unconcerned.C. Sympathetic.D. Dissatisfied

4.What can we learn from the text?

A. Lee based all her stories on her life.

B. Lee had to avoid being followed by her fans.

C. Lee wrote Go Set A Watchman before Mockingbird.

D. Lee lived in the house where she grew up for the whole life.

Answer

1.C

2.C

3.B

4.C

【解析】

试题分析：文章主要是介绍著名作家Harper Lee和她的名作《杀死一只知更鸟》。

1. 句意猜测题。根据后一句To kill a Mockingbird sold more than 40 million copies around the world and earned her a Pulitzer prize, remaining a towering presence in American literature.可知，这本书使得她成为美国文坛上的一个奇迹，故选C。

2.

3.She was writing at a time when people were beginning to lift the lid on everything in the South which they’d chosen not to understand. That all changed in the 1960s.可知，在1960s之前人们对种族问题是不关心的，选B。

4. 推理判断题。根据最后一段中Another novel, Go Set A Watchman, was controversially published in July 2015 as a “sequel” to Mockingbird, though it was later confirmed to be Mockingbird’s first draft.可知，Go Set A Watchman是To Kill a Mockingbird的初稿，故Go Set A Watchman写在前面，选C。

【名师点睛】

英语阅读理解中人物传记是一个主要类型，它主要涉及某人的生平事迹、趣闻铁事、生活背景、个性特征、成长和奋斗历程等。特点是以时间先后或事件的发展为主线，脉络清楚，可读性较强。因此，阅读这类文章的英语阅读理解技巧是应该抓住时间线索来获取有关信息，即主人翁在某个时间做过什么。然后通过分析推理、综合归纳的方法进行解题。

考点：考查人物传记阅读