Question

Social change is more likely to occur in societies where there is a mixture of different kinds of people than in societies where people are similar in many ways. The simple reason for this is that there are more different ways of looking at things present in the first kind of society. There are more ideas, more disagreements in interest, and more groups and organizations with different beliefs. In addition, there is usually a greater worldly interest and greater tolerance in mixed societies. All these factors tend to promote social change by opening more areas of life to decision. In a society where people are quite similar in many ways, there are fewer occasions for people to see the need or the opportunity for change because everything seems to be the same. And although conditions may not be satisfactory, they are at least conventional and generally agreed.

Within a society, social change is also likely to occur more frequently and more readily in the material aspects of the culture than in the non-material, for example, in technology rather than in values; in what has been learned later in life rather than what was learned early; in the less basic and less emotional aspects of society-than in their opposites; in the simple elements rather than in the complex ones; in form rather than in substance; and in elements that are acceptable to the culture rather than in strange elements.

Furthermore, social change is easier if it is gradual. This is one reason why change has not come more quickly to Black Americans as compared to other American minorities, because of the sharp difference in appearance between them and white people.

1.Which of the following factors tends to promote social change?

A. Different points of view.    B. Traditional values.

C. Advanced technology.    D. Similar needs.

2.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

A. Social change tends to meet with more difficulty in basic and emotional aspects of society.

B. Disagreement with and argument about conditions tend to slow down social change.

C. Social change is more likely to occur in the material aspect of society.

D. Social change is less likely to occur in what people learned when they were young.

3.What is this passage mainly discussing?

A. Two different kinds of society.

B. Certain factors affecting social change.

C. The importance of social change.

D. Consequences of social change

Answer

1.A

2.B

3.B

【解析】本文是一篇说明文。主要讲述社会的变化更有可能发生在拥有不同种类的人群中，而不是具有很多相似性的人群中。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段“There are more ideas, more disagreements in interest, and more groups and organizations with different beliefs. In addition, there is usually a greater worldly interest and greater tolerance in mixed societies. All these factors tend to promote social change”可知，不同的观点、不同的信仰、不同的利益等更有可能引起社会的变化。故选A。

2.细节理解题。根据第一段“more disagreements in interest, and more groups and organizations with different beliefs. In addition, there is usually a greater worldly interest and greater tolerance in mixed societies. All these factors tend to promote social change”可知，不同的意见和争议会加快社会变化。故选B。

3.主旨大意题。纵览全文，本文主要是讲述引起社会变化的因素，根据“Social change is more likely to occur in societies where there is a mixture of different kinds of people than in societies where people are similar in many ways. The simple reason for this is that there are more different ways of looking at things present in the first kind of society”以及“Within a society, social change is also likely to occur more frequently and more readily in the material aspects of the culture than in the non-material, for example, in technology rather than in values”可知，特定的因素会引起社会的变化。故选B。