Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill once said, "The British are the only people who like to be told how bad things are." This is definitely true of British comedy. Most people think humor is about happy things, but for the British, the opposite is true. We love to use our cruel sense of humor to complain and be negative.
British comedy, for example, draws a fine line between comedy and tragedy（悲剧）. BBC's The Office is a TV show, famous for its dry humor. The main character, David Brent, is a foolish man, and the show's comedy comes from his delusions. For example, he often tells himself that he is loved by everyone but the viewer can see that everyone hates him.
Stupid characters for the audience to laugh at are an old tradition in Britain. In Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night, the character Malvolio is an old man whom people play tricks on. The audience will laugh away, although the reality is that this man is a truly tragic individual.
This side of British humor is reflected in friendships as well. At university, my friends and I would always laugh at one another. I had an American friend who actually found this sarcasm（挖苦）quite upsetting. She didn't realize that in Britain, the better friends you are with someone, the more you laugh at them.
This approach—laughing at everything—may sound rather depressing（让人郁闷的）, but our strange humor played a big part in British history. In World War II, along with a stiff upper lip（坚定沉着）, the British got through it by laughing. What else was there to do?
There is a saying in English: "Laugh and the world laughs with you; cry and you cry alone." If you are ever on the receiving end of British sarcasm, you may feel like crying, but it's best to just laugh it off!
1.How is British humor special?
A.It is often surprising and boring.
B.It is often about negative things.
C.It often laughs at happy people.
D.It often makes happy things depressing.
2.From paragraph 2-5 we can know that .
A.British people will not laugh at their good friends
B.there is a great difference between comedy and tragedy
C.stupid people are often treated well in Shakespeare's plays
D.British humor used to give people courage in face of sufferings
3.How does the author advise people to react to British humor?
A.Keep silent.
B.Cry as you like.
C.Don't take it seriously.
D.Try to hold back your laughter.
I was standing in a class of wild 14-year-old girls as they threw paper and howl with laughter. They wouldn’t listen to me. І was 22 and І never wanted to teach. І wanted to be a writer. When the bell finally rang, I rushed out of the classroom, red with anger. The other teachers weren't surprised. “That's 4B, the worst class in school,” one said.
But I couldn't give up. I needed the job. So, I abandoned formal lessons. Instead, I brought topics for class discussion. One of the liveliest talks was about the arguments they had with their parents. They paid attention and shared about their lives. Then I encouraged them to write down their stories. Most wrote about families with little money and big problems. As time went on, their stories became a bridge between us. I admired their humor, toughness and insight, and I think they appreciated my interest in their lives.
The musical My Fair Lady was playing in the West End, but they had never seen a live stage performance. I suggested taking them to see it. They thought I was joking. No teacher had ever done that. A few weeks later, 4B and I were sitting in the theater. They loved the music, the costumes and the characters. It was the highlight of their year, and they talked about it for days.
Near the end of the semester, someone knocked on the door of the staff room. The two most rebellious(叛逆的) girls in 4B were there—with flowers.
Several years later, for the first time in my life, I stopped dreaming and started writing. My first story was titled "My Fair Ladies". Teaching wasn't the end of my writing career; it was the beginning.
1.How was the author's class in 4B at the beginning?
A.It was impressive. B.It was rather boring.
C.It was a total mess. D.It was lively and interesting.
2.What happened to the girls after they were encouraged to tell and write their stories?
A.They came to like the author. B.They made great progress in writing.
C.They became more humorous. D.They stopped arguing with their parents.
3.How did the students feel about the experience to the theatre?
A.Confused. B.Excited. C.Proud. D.Encouraged.
4.What can we infer from the last two paragraphs?
A.Only two girls liked the author.
B.The author became a famous writer several years later.
C.The author didn't dream any more.
D.The author's teaching experiences inspired her writing.
When it comes to the greatest inventions of the world, China's name is sure to be mentioned several times. There are hundreds of things which were invented by the Chinese.
Alcohol
Shocked? It was because when they said alcohol I thought about either the US or the UK. China had never crossed my mind. In China, alcohol was made by two legendary persons named Yi Di and Du Kang who belonged to the Xia Dynasty. This period was about 2000 BC—1600 BC. Research says that in ancient China, beer with 4% alcoholic content was widely consumed by people.
Tea
China is the proud inventor of tea which was first drunk by Shen Nong, a Chinese emperor around 2737 BC. Tea production was rapidly developed, making tea a popular drink during the Tang and Song Dynasties.
The Mechanical Clock
Have you ever wondered what on earth we would be doing without any idea of time? A clock really is an invention without which things were incomplete. The credit of making the first mechanical clock goes to ancient China. The first mechanical clock was invented by Yi Xing in the Tang Dynasty. This was during 618 AD and 907 AD.
Silk Fabric
Silk, the favorite fabric of many girls out there, is also a Chinese invention. Although we all know that silk is made by silkworms, it was Chinese people who first invented a way to harvest the silk and then use it to make clothes. The oldest silk which has been found so far is in Henan Province and dates back to 3630 BC.
1.What can we learn from paragraph 2?
A.Beer was popular in the Xia Dynasty. B.Yi Di and Du Kang invented alcohol.
C.Alcohol was first invented in the US. D.It is well known that alcohol is a Chinese invention.
2.The author asks the question in paragraph 4 to show .
A.ancient Chinese inventors were wiser B.many things in our lives are incomplete
C.ancient Chinese people never wasted time D.the mechanical clock is an important invention
3.Which of the following inventions has a longer history?
A.Silk fabric. B.Tea.
C.Alcohol. D.The mechanical clock.
假设你是李华，你和外国朋友Tom约好这个周五晚上去体育馆看足球赛，但你因故不能 赴约 请根据以下要点用英语给他写一封电子邮件：
1.表示歉意；2.解释原因；3.另约时间
注意：1. 词数100左右；2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯
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假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每次错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用(＼)划掉。
修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
The first person I met in my high school was my deskmate, with that I fell in love at first sight.
She was warm-hearted and always wore a honest smile on her face. I was homesick in the first few days, unable to adjust the new school. It was with her help which I got familiar with the school. However, what impressed me most was her diligence and determine. When faced with a challenge in study, she would try out her best to solve it. Whenever I was in trouble, she would encourage myself and help me out. But for her encouragement, I wouldn’t have progressed so fast and steady.
Have so nice a girl as my friend is great luck for me. May our friendship lasts forever.
Liz was quite excited these days. She was going to travel to Asia with her mom. Neither of them had ______ traveled out of the United States before. They were going to ______ to Hong Kong. They would travel on their cruise(乘船游览) ship to Shanghai and Beijing after ______ in Hong Kong for three days.
“Beijing is inland, so we have to _____ about a two-hour bus ride to get there from the port. I _____ the name of the port. Anyway, we’re going to ______ the Great Wall, the Tian’anmen Square, and the Forbidden City. It's going to be so ______!” she told her neighbor Jane.
From China, the cruise ship would go to Pusan in South Korea, and ______ to Tokyo. From Tokyo, they would _____ a flight back to Los Angeles.
“The trip is going to ______ three weeks. It's only going to ______ us about $ 2,800 each if we don’t _____ anything.” She laughed.
“I hope your trip is more _______ than mine was” said Jane. “I took a cruise to the Bahamas, _____ almost all the passengers got _______. I caught some kind of disease that made me ______ for almost three days. They ______ us a discount(折扣) that we could use on a _____ trip. No more cruising for me. That is really a pity.”
“We’ve ______ those things,” said Liz. “Mom and I are going to be ______ our hands every 30 minutes, and we’re bringing surgical masks with us.” Good preparations may help a lot in the travel and make it a pleasant and successful one.
1.A.ever B.never C.still D.also
2.A.walk B.ship C.fly D.drive
3.A.trying B.searching C.staying D.studying
4.A.know B.take C.look D.practice
5.A.leave B.choose C.forget D.call
6.A.find B.remember C.pass D.see
7.A.cool B.difficult C.terrible D.disappointed
8.A.sadly B.finally C.secretly D.simply
9.A.make B.miss C.meet D.catch
10.A.run B.prepare C.last D.stop
11.A.cost B.offer C.save D.give
12.A.visit B.shop C.meet D.show
13.A.important B.confusing C.funny D.helpful
14.A.if B.because C.but D.so
15.A.mysterious B.sick C.angry D.nervous
16.A.travel B.dream C.regret D.waste
17.A.refuse B.give C.cheat D.order
18.A.familiar B.normal C.future D.quick
19.A.heard about B.looked forward C.called back D.made up
20.A.watching B.washing C.using D.changing
