高级英语阅读二

期末试卷

所有答案必须填写在后面的答案纸

否则试卷无效

I. Reading comprehension

Passage 1

Strip cartoons in newspapers are immensely popular. Some people only buy

certain newspapers in

ｏ

rder to follow the adventures of their favorite cartoon

characters. Generally speaking

，

strip cartoons are neither subtle nor unkind. Their

appeal rests largely on the fact that

ｏ

rdinary people can identify with them

—

the

?little man? in the office

，

the ups

ａ

nd downs of suburban married life

，

the

domineering behavior of neighbors, children, relations

ａ

nd household pets

，

to say

nothing of cars

，

washing machines

，

vacuum cleaners

ａ

nd similar contraptions

（奇

妙的装置）

which frequently seem to have a will of their own.

Weary commuters battling with public transport

，

harassed housewives underpaid

secretaries

ａ

nd clerks

—

har

dworking people who don?t live glamorous

ａ

nd

exciting lives

—

can laugh at themselves in these cartoons. Sometimes a strip cartoon

represents a world of pure fantasy in which Superman

ｏ

r Woman always emerges

triumphant in spite of the most hair-raising adven

tures. We know we aren?t really like

that

，

but it?s fun to think we could be if we had the chance.

Political cartoons are essentially topical

ａ

nd pull no punches. Their wit

mirrors the absurdities

，

prejudices

ａ

nd blunders in law

ａ

nd

ｏ

rder

ａ

nd current

affairs. The physical characteristics of prominent men

ａ

nd women in Government

ｏ

r State are mercilessly caricatured

（讽刺）

. Since the English

，

with the inborn

independence of an island race

，

have a healthy contempt for bureaucracy

ａ

nd are

cheerfully critical of whatever government happens to be in office, political cartoons

provide an endless source of amusement. After all, as a famous politician is reported

to have said

，

“…politics are too serious a matter to be left to politicians.”

1. Strip cartoons generally ________.

A) represent people we know personally

B) are a means of identification

C) are not intended to be offensive

D) bear little relation to

ｏ

rdinary life

2. In the opinion of the writer some household appliances

.

A) behave as if they were human

B) are always falling to pieces

C) are fitted with on controls

D) are not designed to work efficiently

3. Cartoons of office

ｏ

r domestic life have a particular appeal for people who

.

A) have plenty of self- confidence

B) like to indulge their fantasies

C) have routine jobs

D) envy their superiors

4. Political cartoonists are not afraid to

.

A) misrepresent public opinion

B) ridicule government policy

C) offend public opinion

D) break the law

5. Whatever form of government is elected the general public will invariably

it.

A) ignore

B) reject C) laugh at

D) find fault with

Passage 2

Some economists have suggested that the U.S. distribution of income is somehow

naturally more unequal than that of other countries. After all

，

the U.S. is

geographically

ａ

nd racially more diverse than Europe. Nevertheless, it is noted that

even the highest-income regions of the U.S. have significantly higher rates of poverty

than all but the poorest nations of Europe. Romania

ｏ

r Bulgaria might have similar

percentages of poverty, but theirs is hardly a standard f

ｏ

r the w

ｏ

rld?s richest nation

to aspire to.

Even if blacks

，

the racial group with the highest poverty level

，

are eliminated

ｆ

rom the calculations

，

the U.S. still has twice the European rate of poverty.

ａ

nd

American po

ｏ

r w

ｏ

rk just as much as the po

ｏ

r of European nations, if not m

ｏ

re.

M

ｏ

re single mothers in the U.S.

，

f

ｏ

r example

，

have jobs than in Great Britain

（

although fewer than is Sweden

，

where liberal childcare allowances make it easier to

combine family

ａ

nd employment

）

If the exodus

（

退出）

from the bottom of the middle class can be traced to a lack of

government supp

ｏ

rt f

ｏ

r the w

ｏ

rking po

ｏ

r

，

that still leaves departures at the top to

be explained. Although income

ｆ

rom two careers is pushing an increasing number

of households over the threshold to the upper class

，

higher salaries earned by men

account f

ｏ

r the bulk of upward mobility. In addition

，

many are moving up simply

because the salary of the top 10 percent of wage earners is now at least 3.8 time that

of the bottom 20 percent

，

as compared with 2.6 only 25 years ago.

Will the middle class eventually become a min

ｏ

rity in the U.S.

？

Current

numbers suggest there is no danger of that bef

ｏ

re the turn of the century at least.

Nevertheless, the trend seems ominous

（不祥的）

.

As long as the w

ｏ

rk f

ｏ

rce is

increasingly segregated into professionalized

，

high paying jobs

ａ

nd less skilled

，

low-paying ones

，

the middle will be threatened.

6. The highest-income regions of the U.S. have higher rates of poverty than

.

A) Romania

ａ

nd Bulgaria

B) the po

ｏ

rest nations of Europe

C) all European nations

D) all except the po

ｏ

rest European nations