It used to be a matter of fact when Peter Pan – a character from James Matthew Barrie’s 1911 book – said: “All children, except one, grow up.”
But this “fact” doesn’t seem to apply to today’s world anymore.
According to the NPD Group, a US market research company, sales of toys to adults in the UK increased by more than 20 percent in 2016, three times the pace of the children’s toy market itself. These toys ranged from puzzles and Lego building sets to vehicle models and action figures. And more than half of the sales came from millennials – people born between the 1980s and 2000s.
“Adults of the 21st century are channeling (疏导) their inner child, one toy at a time,” commented website Koreaboo. This is also why these adults are sometimes referred to as “kidults”.
According to Frederique Tutt, an analyst at NPD, the motivation of these grown-ups is to escape the stress of today’s fast-paced world. They are driven toward the more immediate pleasures brought by toys than those brought by, say, getting a promotion, which is far less easy to achieve.
“It reminds me of the playful side of life,” Rob Willner, a 25-year-old PhD student in the UK, told The Telegraph when talking about his love for Lego, which he said brings him both comfort and entertainment.
Despite this, some social scientists see the trend as disturbing. To Frank Furendi, a professor at the University of Kent in the UK, the fact that so many adults are pursuing “the thrills (刺激) of youth” is the evidence that “adulthood has got nothing attractive about it anymore”, he told The New York Times.u “That’s actually quite sad.”
But scientists are probably just worrying too much. According to Canadian comic book artist Todd McFarlane, collecting toys could simply be a way for people to express their individuality (个性).
“It’s just pop culture stuff. It’s stuff that says, ‘I like a little of this and I like a little of that’,” he told ABC News. “[It’s] no big deal.”
So now that over 100 years have passed since Peter Pan, perhaps it’s time to introduce a new “fact”, as stated in the tagline (品牌宣传词) of the UK fashion brand KIDULT: “Growing old is mandatory (强制性的), but growing up is optional.”
1.The author mentions Peter Pan in the text mainly to ______.
A. show the influence of the character on millennials
B. explore the similarities Peter Pan and millennials share
C. lead up to the trend of millennials’ love for toys
D. analyze what has made many millennials refuse to grow up
2.Why do many adults feel like collecting toys, according to Frederique Tutt?
A. They find it brings them both comfort and inspiration.
B. They consider it a way to relieve stress.
C. They want to make up for the pleasures they missed during childhood.
D. They usually don’t get along well in their lives and need an emotional outlet.
3.What can we conclude from the article about kidults?
A. They are well-known for their pursuit of independence and freedom.
B. Social scientists feel worried about them because they take nothing seriously.
C. In Todd McFarlane’s eyes, their interest in toys is a way to express their identity.
D. They refuse to make efforts to become promoted at work as they don’t want to grow up.
I always prided myself on being a wise shopper and having a good nose for bargains. So when I came across a sporting goods store with a sign “Going Out of Business Sale”, I marched into the crowded store. Up and down the aisles (通道), I wandered, humming to myself and enjoying the energy and excitement of a sale.
All of a sudden, there, at the back of the store sat a canoe(轻舟) exactly like my husband’s dream Supremo Numero-Uno, whose picture had been stuck on the bathroom mirror for years. My heart beat wildly. I pushed my way through the crowds, and nearly fell into the canoe looking for the price tag. There it was, with the manufacturer’s suggested price at $6,750 plus tax crossed out and a handwritten TO CLEAR $750 AS IS. Must be a mistake. $6000 off? Salesman. I had to talk to a salesman. I spotted a young fellow with a “Hi. I’m Mathew”. “Mathew. Tell me about this El Supremo canoe. What’s wrong with it? Why is it only $750?”
“Oh. There’s nothing wrong with it. It’s brand new. We’re closing the store. It’s on clearance like everything else. I’ll go check.” A few minutes later he came back and said, “I’m sorry ma’am. Someone made a mistake on the sale tag. It should be $4,750 for the whole package.”
I felt tears well up in my eyes. “Oh well”, I said sadly. “Of course, it was too good to be true. This is exactly like my husband’s dreamboat. I guess I started to dream myself when I saw that price tag. He’s going to be 62 years old Friday. Had to retire early for his health. It’s been hard on just the pension but the stubborn old fool has been saving $10 every week for years to buy one just like this. I promise I won’t buy anything, but it’s just an old man’s silly dream, you know. Always said he wanted to fish in a canoe after he retired,” my voice lowered and I turned and walked away.
Paragraph 1:
I was already at the mall door when Mathew caught up with me. “Do you have $750 plus $25 for delivery, ma’am?” ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Paragraph 2:
“Ma’am. There’s something you should know. This store was my Grandpa’s and the canoe had been ordered by him.
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注意：
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
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假定你是李华，校读书俱乐部负责人。俱乐部将在下周三下午三点在报告厅进行英语朗读比赛(recitation contest)。请你给外教Tom写一份电子邮件。内容如下:
1. 邀请他担任比赛评委；
2. 问他届时是否有空出席；
3. 请他向学生推荐合适的文学作品。
注意:
1. 词数80左右。
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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One day, a father and his son were walking with their horse. An old man saw them and said, “You 1. (suppose) to ride a horse, not to walk it!” The father then put his son on the horse.
Soon they passed a group of people, 2. said, “That’s a lazy boy! He gets to ride the horse while his father walks.” The father decided to take his son off and get on the horse himself.3. they kept going, they came upon two 4. (passer-by). One said, “You are a 5. (self) man! Your son has to walk while you get to ride!” The man then reached down and put his son on the horse with him. 6. a while, they entered a town. Everyone started to laugh at them, 7. (say), “You are too heavy for that horse!” The father and his son didn’t know what 8. (do).
Finally, they decided to carry the horse. When they came to a bridge, the horse 9. (fall) to the water. “If you try to please 10. ,” the father told his son, “in the end, you will please no one.” Then they went home.
Last Friday when Jose Rodriguez , a 5-year-old white boy, asked his mother Lydia Rodriguez if he could get his blonde hair cut like his black friend Reddy’s, and of course his mother agreed. For a very ____ reason the two pre-school friends decided to ____ their teacher with matching haircuts.
Jose ____ that if he and Reddy had the same haircut, no one would be able to ____ them. Reddy apparently thought this trick was ____ as well.
“It is just two ____ boys. Obviously, they see they are different colors, they just don’t care. It is not ____ , Rodriguez said. She sees Jose’s inability to see a ____ between himself and his friend as a parenting win. “I just taught him to ____ everyone the same,” she said.
The teacher played along and ____ she was talking to Jose when Reddy arrived before Jose, he told the teacher and his _____he was Jose.
On Monday, Rodriguez ____ the story on the Facebook.78,000 people ____ it and the story has gone viral（疯传）. On the post she wrote: “If this isn’t proof that ____ and prejudice is something that is ____ , I don’t know what is. Their ____ is the only difference Jose sees in the two of them. Though Jose loves ____ himself on TV and the Internet, he remains unsure why his haircut became such a big ____ .
“He still has no idea why people ____ so much”, Rodriguez said. “He wanted to ____ Reddy and now he thinks they look the same.”
1.A. wrong B. obvious C. sweet D. funny
2.A. trick B. entertain C. surprise D. frighten
3.A. feared B. decided C. promised D. admitted
4.A. tease B. substitute C. persuade D. distinguish
5.A. simple B. amusing C. perfect D. stupid
6.A. innocent B. naughty C. happy D. clever
7.A. ridiculous B. important C. reasonable D. convincing
8.A. friendship B. cooperation C. respect D. difference
9.A. praise B. blame C. love D. attend
10.A. confirmed B. pretended C. reminded D. explained
11.A. classmates B. parents C. relatives D. guests
12.A. downloaded B. commented C. read D. shared
13.A. contributed to B. submitted to C. reacted to. D. turned to
14.A. hate B. identity C. justice D. happiness
15.A. forbidden B. taught C. permitted D. expected
16.A. colors B. characters C. hair D. status
17.A. watching B. introducing C. reflecting D. amusing
18.A. reward B. gift C. debate D. deal
19.A. care B. envy C. talk D. admire
20.A. believe in B. look like C. appreciate D. inspire
Things You Should Quit Doing to be Successful
Would you like to be successful? But what are you willing to do in order to reach your goal? 1. If you want it bad enough, you will get it. When you are productive, you efficiently finish various tasks and achieve better results. However, there are many bad habits that successful people will try to avoid to reach their desired success.
They don’t do without first learning. The greatest thing about learning is the benefit that we receive in all aspects of our lives. If we stop learning, then the only thing we can do is settle with what we already know; if we settle for that, then there is no way to expand our minds. 2. Since our minds require learning for expansion, we must never stop seeking new knowledge.
They don’t work in their comfort zone. What is your comfort zone? Your comfort zone is defined as “A psychological state in which a person feels familiar, at ease, in control, and experiences low anxiety.” When you get outside of your comfort zone, it doesn’t mean that you should strive for a constant state of anxiety and stress. 3.
4. Social networks are great for staying in touch with family and friends. However, when chatting, posting, sharing, and looking at various funny photos, we waste hours just scrolling through pages. Usually, before we fall asleep, we decide to check if there is something new in the news feed and end up falling asleep very late at night. You then feel tired in the morning and incapable of doing anything that demands focus and hard work.
They don’t hang around negative people. Negative people are very harmful to be around when it comes to achieving success. 5. When you are around negative people enough, you start to see things negatively and you begin to lose sight of your dream. If that happens, life will reward you with negative outcomes to deal with.
A. They don’t fear asking for advice.
B. Expansion is essential on the path to success!
C. They don’t spend a lot of time on social networks.
D. Success is not something that happens by accident.
E. Getting lost in small things causes us to miss out on the overall views.
F. Success is more about a person’s way of thinking than anything else.
G. It simply means that, in order to grow, you should try new things and expand your horizons.
