Question

In modern society there is a great deal of argument about competition. Some value it highly, believing that it is responsible for social progress and prosperity(繁荣). Others say that competition is bad; that it sets one person against another; that it leads to unfriendly relationship between people.

I have taught many children who held the belief that their self-worth relied 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 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 take an opposite attitude. In a culture which only values 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. 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 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 in comparison with others. Both are afraid of not being valued. Only as this basic and often troublesome fear begins to disappear can we discover a new meaning in competition.

1.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.

2.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

3.What is the similar belief of the true competition 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.

4.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.

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.A

4.D

【解析】本文主要讲述的是不同的人对待竞争的不同的观点，。有人认为竞争有利于社会进步，有人则认为竞争让人与人之间的关系变得紧张。集中考查了推理题，做此类题时，学生应尽可能地利用生词所在的上下文来猜测，即利用我们所熟悉的词或短语和上下文中的已知部分进行逻辑上的推理，有时还需依靠常识和经验。

1. 细节理解题。根据第一段第二行Some value it highly , believing that it is responsible for socialprogress and prosperity说明A正确。

2. 推理判断题。根据本句Among the most vocal are youngsters who have suffered undercompetitive pressures from their parents or society .该词就是指那些遭受巨大竞争压力的人，他们反对竞争，故C正确。

3.细节理解题，根据最后一段倒数第四行：Both are based on the mistaken belief that one‘s self-respect relies on how well one performs in comparison with others。可以得出结论：这两种持不同观点的学生，其实有一个共同点，那就是都把自己的价值体现在与别人的比较和竞争中。故选A。

4.推理判断题。根据最后一段“What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that ifthey had really tried and lost, that would mean a lot说明这些人害怕失败，害怕竞争。所有才会有各种各样的逃避竞争的现象，所以我们要把对失败的恐惧从竞争中去除掉。故D正确。