____ the two stories I’ve just read, I like the one written by the young lady better.
A.In
B.By
C.Of
D.From
A.In
B.By
C.Of
D.From
Essays, however, hang somewhere on a line between two sturdy poles: this is what I think, and this is what I am. Autobiographies which aren't novels are generally extended essays, indeed. A personal essay is like the human voice talking, its order being the mind's natural flow, instead of a systematized outline of ideas. Though more changeable or informal than an article or treatise, somewhere it contains a point which is its real center, even if the point couldn't be uttered in fewer words than the essayist has used. Essays don't usually boil down to a summary, as articles do, and the style. of the writer has a "nap" to it, a combination of personality and originality and energetic loose ends that stand up like the nap (绒毛) on a piece of wool and can't be brushed flat. Essays belong to the animal kingdom, with a surface that generates sparks, like a coat of fur, compared with the flat, conventional cotton of the magazine article writer, who works in the vegetable kingdom, instead. But, essays, on the other hand, may have fewer "levels" than fiction, because we are not supposed to argue much about their meaning. In the old distinction between teaching and storytelling, the essayist, however cleverly he tries to conceal his intentions, is a bit of a teacher or reformer, and an essay is intended to convey the same point to each of us.
An essayist doesn't have to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, he can shape or shave his memories, as long as the purpose is served of explaining a truthful point. A personal essay frequently is not autobiographical at all, but what it does keep in common with autobiography is that, through its tone and tumbling progression, it conveys the quality of the author's mind. Nothing gets in the way. Because essays are directly concerned with the mind and the mind's peculiarity, the very freedom the mind possesses is conferred on this branch of literature that does honor to it, and the fascination of the mind is the fascination of the essay.
According to the passage the changes in readers' taste ______.
A.contribute to the incompatibility of essays with stories
B.often result in unfavorable effect, to say the least
C.sometimes come to something undesirable, of course
D.usually bring about beneficial outcome, so to say
According to the passage, visitors from space may have landed on the earth ______.
A.long before man had dreamed of it
B.long before there were human beings
C.in the last few hundred years
D.after the space age began
Five hundred years ago, news of important happenings--battles lost and won, kings or rulers overthrown or killed--took months and even years to travel from one country to another. The news passed by word of mouth and was never accurate. Today we can read in our newspapers of important e vents that occur in faraway countries on the same day they happen.
Apart from supplying news from all over the world, newspapers give us a lot of other useful in formation. There are weather reports, radio, television and film guides, book reviews, stories, and, of course, advertisements. There are all sorts of advertisements. The bigger ones are put in by large companies to bring attention to their products. They pay the newspapers thousands of dollars for their advertising space, but it is worth the money, for news of their products goes into almost every home in the country. For those who produce newspapers, advertisements are also important. Money earned from advertisements makes it possible for them to sell their newspapers at a low price and still make a profit.
The habit of reading newspapers is ______.
A.widespread
B.found among a few families
C.not popular
D.uncommon
Sitting in a dark theater, watching the images on the screen, they enter another world that is real to them. They become involved in the lives of the characters in the movie, and for two hours, they forget all about their own problems. They are in a dream world where things often appear to be more romantic (浪漫的) and beautiful than in real life.
The biggest "dream factories" are in Hollywood, the capital of the film industry. Each year, Hollywood studios make hundreds of movies that are shown all over the world. American movies are popular because they tell stories and they are well-made. They provide the public with heroes who do things the average person would like to do but often can't. People have to cope with many problems and much trouble in real life, so they feel encouraged when they see the" good guys "win in the movies.
The Americans go to the movies mainly because they want______.
A.to enjoy a good story
B.to experience an exciting life
C.to see the actors and actresses
D.to escape their daily life
Franklin's life is full of charming (有趣的) stories which all young men should know--how he peddled(叫卖) ballads in Boston, and stood, the guest of kings, in Europe; how he worked his pas sage as a stowaway to Philadelphia, and rode in the queen's own litter in France; how he walked the streets of Philadelphia, homeless and unknown, with three penny rolls for his breakfast, and dined at the tables of princess, and received his friends in a palace; how he raised a kite from a cow shed, and was showered with all the high degrees the colleges of the world could give, how he was duped by a false friend as a boy, and became the friend of all humanity as a man; how he was made Major Gen eral Franklin, only to resign because; as he said, he was no soldier, and yet helped to organize the army that stood before the trained troops of England and Germany.
This poor Boston boy, with scarcely a day's schooling, became master of six languages and never stopped studying; this neglected apprentice tamed the lightening, made his name famous, received degrees and diplomas from colleges in both hemispheres, and became forever remembered as "Doctor Franklin" ,philosopher ,patriot ,scientist ,philanthropist(慈善家) and statesman.
Self-made, self-taught, self-reared ,the candle maker's son gave light to all the world; the street ballad seller set all men singing of liberty; the runaway apprentice became the most sought-after man of two continents, and brought his native land to praise and honour him.
He built America--for what our Republic today is largely due to the prudence, the forethought, the statesmanship, the enterprise, the wisdom, and the ability of Benjamin Franklin. He belongs to the world, but especially does he belong to America. As the nations honoured him while living, so the Re public glorifies him when dead, and has enshrined him in the choicest of its niches--the one he regarded as the loftiest--the hearts of the common people, from whom he had sprung and in their hearts Franklin will live forever.
Which of the following is not mentioned in the first paragraph?
A.Franklin lived a poor life in Boston when he was young.
B.When Franklin first got to philadelphia, he was homeless and unknown, and he had to buy cheap bread for breakfast.
C.Franklin was cheated by a false friend as a boy.
D.Franklin was a candle maker's son and mastered six languages.
Fairy tales were not always intended for children.We know this because some of these stories have existed for hundreds of years and were passed down from generation to generation through songs and drama.They were considered entertainment for everyone, not only for young people.In these ancient stories, the heroes were extremely clever, fiercely independent, and never gave up.Over the years, some of the heroes’ qualities and story lines have been changed to fit the times. Psychologists think that fairy tales have a positive influence on children because they present the two sides of good and evil very clearly.When children hear the stories, they develop sympathetic feelings for the heroic characters.In each tale, they can see that there are many different kinds of people in the world and that we all have a choice about what kind of person we want to be.We can choose to do good actions, rather that bad ones, in our lives.
What kind of values can children learn from fairy tales? In “The Princess and the Pea,” a poorly dressed girl who insists she is a princess is given a difficult test by the Queen.When she passes the test, we learn that she is rewarded because she stayed true to herself.In “The Little Mermaid,” the mermaid(美人鱼)who lives under the sea longs to be with the humans on land.Through her experiences, we learn about the importance of living with and accepting other cultures.In “Pinocchio,” a wooden puppet(木偶)turns into a boy when he finally learns how to tell the truth. Teaching values is the reason most often given for teaching literature and encouraging reading.These old stories can indeed teach us lessons about human relationships that are universal(普遍的) enough to survive throughout the centuries.This might be the reason why they have been around for so long and are unlikely to disappear any time soon.
1.What do we learn about fairy tales from the passage? _______
A.They are written solely for children
B.They teach universal lessons about human relationships
C.They are all passed down through songs and drama
D.They are adapted to TV and movies as entertainment
2.Why do fairy tales have a positive influence on children?
A.Good and evil are presented in way they can easily understand
B.The characters are all good examples for them to follow
C.The heroes go through all kinds of hardships but never give up
D.There are many different kinds of characters for them to imitate
3.Some of the heroes’ qualities in fairy tales have been changed over the years ________.
A.to reflect the change of values
B.to suit the tastes of different people
C.to arouse the interest of little children
D.to adapt to the change of the times
4.Children who have heard about the story of the little mermaid might ________.
A.learn to be better self-disciplined
B.be more likely to tell the truth than to tell lies
C.learn to stay true to themselves all their lives
D.be better able to accept foreign cultures
5.Parents encourage children to read fairy tales so that they ________.
A.can entertain themselves without bothering others
B.can get to know great literature of the world
C.can stay away from violence shown on TV
D.can learn how to behave in society
Which of the following statements about news stories is TRUE?
A.News stories reflect the opinions of the publisher and editor.
B.News stories contain both facts and opinions.
C.News stories tell the facts without any comments.
D.News stories express the writers' opinions.
A.some, any
B.other, some
C.some, other
D.other, other
______born in Chicago, the writer is most famous for his stories about New York City.
A.Although
B.Since
C.When
D.As
d specified time to live.