Question

Failure is probably the most exhausting experience a person ever has. There is nothing more tiring than not succeeding.

We experience this tiredness in two ways: as start-up fatigue (疲惫) and performance fatigue. In the former case, we keep putting off a task because it has either too boring or too difficult. And the longer we delay it, the more tired we feel.

Such start-up fatigue is very real, even if not actually physical, not something in our muscles and bones. The solution is obvious though perhaps not easy to apply: always handle the most difficult job first.

Years ago, I was asked to write 102 essays on the great ideas of some famous authors. Applying my own rule, I determined to write them in alphabetical order, never letting myself leave out a tough idea. And I always started the day’s work with the difficult task of essay-writing. Experience proved that the rule works.

Performance fatigue is more difficult to handle. Though willing to get started, we cannot seem to do the job right. Its difficulties appear so great that, however hard we work, we fail again and again. In such a situation, I work as hard as I can—then let the unconscious take over.

When planning Encyclopedia Britannica( 《大英百科全书》), I had to create a table of contents based on the topics of its articles. Nothing like this had ever been done before, and day after day I kept coming up with solutions, but none of them worked. My fatigue became almost unbearable.

One day, mentally exhausted, I wrote down all the reasons why this problem could not be solved. I tried to convince myself that the trouble was with the problem itself, not with me. Relived, I sat back in an easy chair and fell asleep.

An hour later, I woke up suddenly with the solution clearly in mind. In the weeks that followed, the solution which had come up in my unconscious mind proved correct at every step. Though I worked as hard as before, I felt no fatigue. Success was now as exciting as failure had been depressing.

Human beings, I believe, must try to succeed. Success, then, means never feeling tired.

1.People with start-up fatigue are most likely to           .

A. work hard

B. delay tasks

C. seek help

D. accept failure

2.On what occasion does a person probably suffer from performance fatigue?

A. Before starting a difficult task.

B. After finding a way out.

C. If the job is rather boring.

D. When all the solutions fail.

3.According to the author, the unconscious mind may help us          .

A. find the right solution

B. get some nice sleep

C. gain complete relief

D. ignore mental problems

4.What could be the best title for the passage?

A. Success Is Built upon Failure

B. How to Handle Performance Fatigue

C. Getting over Fatigue: A Way to Success

D. Fatigue: An Early Sign of Health Problems

Answer

1.B

2.D

3.A

4.C

【解析】本文是一篇说明文。作者围绕失败、疲倦、成功之间的关系展开论述。重点提出start-up fatigue 和 performance fatigue两种类型的疲倦问题，并分别以自己的亲身经历提出解决办法。最后指出克服疲倦的关键是获得成功。

1.细节理解题。根据文章第二段最后一句the longer we delay it, the more tired we feel可知，开始性疲劳是因为我们一直在拖延任务，而且我们拖延得越久，我们就会越觉得疲惫。故选B。

2.细节理解题。根据第五段第二句Its difficulties appear so great that, however hard we work, we fail again and again. In such a situation, I work as hard as I can—then let the unconscious take over可推断，能力型疲劳是无论我们工作的多艰辛，但是我们还是一遍又一遍的失败，故，当所有的解决办法都失败的时候，一个人会感到能力型疲劳。A项意为：当一个人开始一项困难的任务之前。B项意为：在找到解决办法之后。C项意为：如果这个工作相当无聊。均不符合文意。故选D。

3.细节理解题。根据倒数第二段第一句An hour later, I woke up suddenly with the solution clearly in mind. In the weeks that followed, the solution which had come up in my unconscious mind proved correct at every step在“我”精疲力竭睡了一觉之后，我的脑海里清晰地出现了一个解决办法。故这种潜意识有助于找到解决办法。故选A。

4.主旨大意题。本文主要针对两种不同类型的疲劳，作者给出了解释和解决办法并通过自己的例子给出了证明。第一段和第二段是总领全文段落，引出两种不同的疲劳。第三段和第四段是对于“开始性疲劳”给出的定义，解决方法和自身的经历。第五段到第八段是对于“能力型疲劳”给出的定义，解决方案和自身经历。最后一段对文章中心的升华。由此可知，文章是关于克服疲劳，走向成功的文章。A项意为：成功建立与失败之上。B项意为：怎样处理能力型疲劳。C项意为：克服疲劳是走向成功方法。D项意为：疲劳是健康问题的早期信号。均不符合文意，故选C。

【点睛】主旨大意题型范围一般包括：短文标题、主旨大意或段落大意等。此题要求考生在理解文章后归纳文章要点、概括中心思想。考生需要分析文章的篇章结构，抓住文章的开头和结尾从而找出概括文章的主题句。主题句特点：一、语言特点：归纳性、概括性、抽象性。二、位置特点：主题句常出现在总结性语言的信号词后面。如：In a word, as a result, In conclusion.