1、扬州市2014高考英语阅读理解精品训练（9）及答案解析(2011山东卷，A)Arthur Miller(19152005)is universally recognized as one of the greatest dramatists of the 20th century. Millers father had moved to the USA from AustriaHungary, drawn like so many others by the“Great American Dream”. However, he experienced severe financial hard
2、ship when his family business was ruined in the Great Depression of the early 1930s. Millers most famous play, Death of a Salesman, is a powerful attack on the American system, with its aggressive way of doing business and its insistence on money and social status as indicators of worth. In Willy Lo
3、man, the hero of the play, we see a man who has got into trouble with this system. Willy is “burnt out” and in the cruel world of business there is no room for sentiment: if he cant do the work, then he is no good to his employer, the Wagner Company, and he must go. Willy is painfully aware of this,
4、 and at a loss as to what to do with his lack of success. He refuses to face the fact that he has failed and kills himself in the end.When it was first staged in 1949, the play was greeted with enthusiastic reviews，and it won the Tony Award for Best Play，the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, and
5、the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.It was the first play to win all three of these major awards.Miller died of heart failure at his home in Roxbury，Connecticut, on the evening of February 10, 2005, the 56th anniversary of the first performance of Death of a Salesman on Broadway.本文讲述了亚瑟米勒，美国著名的剧作家，以及他的著名的戏
6、剧男售货员之死，当这部戏剧第一次搬上舞台时，赢得了巨大的成功，获得了三项大奖。4. Why did Arthur Miller s father move to the USA?A. He suffered from severe hunger in his home country.B. He was attracted by the “Great American Dream”C. He hoped to make his son a dramatist. D. His family business failed.答案：B。细节理解题。根据短文第一段第二句话“Millers father
7、 had moved to the USA from AustriaHungary，drawn like so many others by the Great American Dream”可知答案。5The play Death of a Salesman _.A. exposes the cruelty of the American business world B. discusses the ways to get promoted in a company C. talks about the business career of Arthur Miller D. focuses
8、 on the skills in doing business答案：A。细节理解题。根据短文第二段第三、四句话可知，Willy Loman已陷入美国社会制度的困境中，他已精疲力尽，在这残酷的商业世界中，他不知道应该怎样做，最后，他选择了自杀。由此可知A项正确。6. What can we learn about Willy Loman?A. He treats his employer badly. B. He runs the Wagner Company. C. He is a victim of the American system.D. He is regarded as a he
9、ro by his colleagues.答案：C。推理判断题。由短文第二段可知，Willy Loman在这残酷的商业世界中，根本没有情感可言，但是他又不能对不起他的雇主和公司，他又不知道如何处理自己的失败，只有选择自杀，由此可知他是美国社会制度的牺牲品。7. After it was first staged, Death of a Salesman_.A. achieved huge success B. won the first Tony AwardC. was warmly welcomed by salesmen D. was severely attacked by dramat
10、ists答案：A。细节理解题。由短文第三段可知，戏剧Death of a Salesman第一次搬上舞台，就赢得了三项大奖，故A项正确。8. What is the text mainly about?A. Arthur Miller and his family. B. The awards Arthur Miller won.C. The hardship Arthur Miller experienced. D. Arthur Miller and his bestknown play.答案：D。主旨大意题。综观全文可知，本文主要讲述了亚瑟米勒及他的名著Death of a Salesm
11、an，故D项正确。(2011江苏卷，A)We know the famous onesthe Thomas Edisons and the Alexander Graham Bellsbut what about the less famous inventors? What about the people who invented the traffic light and the windshield wiper(雨刮器)？Shouldnt we know who they are?Joan McLean thinks so. In fact, McLean, a professor o
12、f physics at Mountain University in Range, feels so strongly about this matter that shes developed a course on the topic. In addition to learning “who”invented“what”， however, McLean also likes her students to learn the answers to the“why” and “how” questions. According to McLean，“When students lear
13、n the answers to these questions, they are better prepared to recognize opportunities for inventing and more motivated to give inventing a try.”Her students agree. One young man with a patent for an unbreakable umbrella is walking proof of McLeans statement. “If I had not heard the story of the wind
14、shield wipers invention，”said Tommy Lee, a senior physics major，“I never would have dreamed of turning my bad experience during a rainstorm into something so constructive.”Lee is currently negotiating to sell his patent to an umbrella producer.So, just what is the story behind the windshield wiper?
15、Well，Mary Anderson came up with the idea in 1902 after a visit to New York City.The day was cold and stormy, but Anderson still wanted to see the sights，so she jumped aboard a streetcar. Noticing that the driver was struggling to see through the snow covering the windshield，she found herself wonderi
16、ng why there couldnt be a builtin device for cleaning the window. Still wondering about this when she returned home to Birmingham, Alabama, Anderson started drafting out solutions. One of her ideas, a lever(操作杆)on the inside of a vehicle that would control an arm on the outside, became the first win
17、dshield wiper.Today we benefit from countless inventions and innovations. Its hard to imagine driving without Garrett AMorgans traffic light. Its equally impossible to picture a world without Katherine JBlodgetts innovation that makes glass invisible. Can you picture life without clear windows and e
18、yeglasses?大发明家与重要的发明固然令人振奋，但生活中也离不开小发明，本篇文章鼓励年轻人要善于把握发明的契机。9By mentioning “traffic light”and “windshield wiper”，the author indicates that countless inventions are_.A. beneficial，because their inventors are famousB. beneficial，though their inventors are less famousC. not useful, because their invento
19、rs are less famousD. not useful, though their inventors are famous答案：B。细节理解题。由文章最后一段，特别是第一句“Today we benefit from countless inventions and innovations.”可知信号灯和雨刮器等这些小的发明使我们受益。第一段最后一句“Shouldnt we know who they are？”意思是“难道我们不该知道他们(发明者)是谁吗？”可知发明者不怎么出名。10Professor Joan McLeans course aims to_.A. add colo
20、ur and variety to students campus lifeB. inform students of the windshield wipers inventionC. carry out the requirements by Mountain UniversityD. prepare students to try their own inventions答案：D。细节理解题。由第二段内容，特别是最后一句“.When students learn the answers to these questions, they are better prepared to rec
21、ognize opportunities for inventing and more motivated to give inventing a try.”可知D项最佳。11Tommy Lees invention of the unbreakable umbrella was_.A. not eventually accepted by the umbrella producer B. inspired by the story behind the windshield wiper C. due to his dream of being caught in a rainstormD.
22、not related to Professor Joan McLeans lectures答案：B。细节理解题。由第三段中Tommy Lee的话“If I had not heard the story of the windshield wipers invention.I never would have dreamed of turning my bad experience during a rainstorm into something so constructive.”可知他的发明是因为受到雨刮器的发明故事的启发。12Which of the following can bes
23、t serve as the title of this passage?A. How to Help Students to Sell Their Inventions to Producers?B. How to Design a Builtin Device for Cleaning the Window?C. Shouldnt We Know Who Invented the Windshield Wiper?D. Shouldnt We Develop Invention Courses in Universities? 答案：C。主旨大意题。全文讲述一些重要的发明，虽不为人知，却非
24、常有益，借以鼓励年轻人要善于把握发明的契机。其他选项都比较片面。C72013陕西卷 CAccording to sociologists(社会学家), every modern industrial society has some form of social stratification(阶层)Class, power and status are important in deciding peoples rank in society.Class means a persons economic position in society.A commonly used classific
25、ation is lower class, middle class and upper class.While sociologists disagree on how these terms should be exactly defined, they do describe societies like the United States quite well.One study shows that 53% of Americans belong to the lower class, 46% the middle class, and 1% the upper class.Inte
26、restingly, a surgeon earning $ 500，000 a year and a bus driver earning $ 50，000 a year both regard themselves as the middle class!Power refers to the amount of control a person has over other people.Obviously, people in positions of great power(such as governors) exercise(行使) big power, but people w
27、ho take orders from others have less power.Power and class do not always go hand in hand, however.For example, the governor of a state has great power, but he or she may not belong to a corresponding(相应的) economic class.Generally, however, there is a relationship between power and class. To our know
28、ledge, there arent too many people who arent millionaires in the US.Senate!Status is the honor or respect attached to a persons position in society.It can also be affected by power and class, but not necessarily so.For example, a university professor may have a high status but not belong to a high s
29、ocial class or have a lot of power over others.54What can we learn about “the middle class” from Paragraph 2?APeople earning $50，000 a year belong to the middle class.BNearly half Americans belong to the middle class.CPeople generally consider bus drivers as the middle class.DSociologists have a cle
30、ar definition of the middle class.55According to the text, we know that _Apower and class do not always correspond with each otherBstatus refers to a persons economic position in societyCpeople with high status have a lot of control over othersDclass is less important in deciding a persons social ra
31、nk56Which of the following shows the structure of the whole text?A B.C D.【要点综述】 本文说明了一个社会现象：每个现代工业社会都有其社会阶层。阶级权力和社会地位是判断一个人的社会阶层的重要标准。54B推理判断题。由第二段倒数第二句中的“46% the middle class”一句可知在美国，有差不多一半的人属于中产阶级，选B。55A细节理解题。由第三段中的“Power and class do not always go hand in hand, however.”可知，权力和阶级并不总是保持一致。选A。56A篇章结
32、构题。本文第一段是主题段，“Class, power and status are important in deciding peoples rank in society.”是本文的主题句，后三段分别从这三个方面来论述，故本篇文章是总分的结构。选A。C72013四川卷 DHome to me means a sense of familiarity and nostalgia(怀旧)Its fun to come home. It looks the same. It smells the same. Youll realize whats changed is you. Home is
33、where we can remember pain，love，and some other experiences：We parted here; My parents met here; I won three championships here.If I close my eyes, I can still have a clear picture in mind of my first home. I walk in the door and see a brown sofa surrounding a low glasstop wooden table. To the right
34、of the living room is my first bedroom. Its empty，but its where my earliest memories are.There is the dining room table where I celebrated birthdays, and where I cried on Halloweenwhen I didnt want to wear the skirt my mother made for me.I always liked standing on that table because it made me feel
35、tall and strong. If I sit at this table, I can see my favorite room in the house，my parents room. It is simple: a brown wooden dresser lines the right side of the wall next to a television and a couple of photos of my grandparents on each side. Their bed is my safe zone. I can jump on it anytimewaki
36、ng up my parents if I am scared or if I have an important announcement that cannot wait until the morning.Im lucky because I know my first home still exists. It exists in my mind and heart, on a physical property(住宅)on West 64th street on the western edge of Los Angeles. It is proof I lived, I grew,
37、 and I learned.Sometimes when I feel lost，I lie down and shut my eyes, and I go home. I know its where Ill find my family，my dogs, and my belongings.I purposely leave the window open at night because I know Ill be blamed by Mom. But I dont mind, because I want to hear her say my name，which reminds m
38、e Im home.43Why does the author call her parents bed her “safe zone”(Paragraph 3)?AIt is her favorite place to play.B. Her needs can be satisfied there.C. Her grandparents photos are lined on each side.D. Her parents always play together with her there.44What can be learned from the passage?A. The o
39、ld furniture is still in the authors first bedroom.B. The author can still visit her first physical home in Los Angeles.C. The authors favorite room in her first home is the dining room.D. Many people of the authors age can still find their first physical homes.45Sometimes when she feels lost，the au
40、thor will _A. open the window at nightB. lie down in bed to have a dreamC. try to bring back a sense of homeD. go to Los Angeles to visit her mom46What is the authors purpose of writing this passage?A. To express how much she is attached to her home.B. To declare how much she loves her first house.C
41、. To describe the state of her family.D. To look back on her childhood.【要点综述】 这是一篇记叙文。作者采用回忆的手法，描写了对家的记忆和感怀。43B推理判断题。根据第三段“Their bed is my safe zone.I can jump on it anytimewaking up my parents if I am scared or if I have an important announcement that cannot wait until the morning.”可知，他们的床是作者的安全地带，
42、如果作者害怕的话，随时可以跳上床叫醒父母；如果作者有重要的事要宣告，不必等到早上(作者可以随时叫醒父母)。故可以判断选B。44B推理判断题。根据第四段“Im lucky because I know my first home still exists.It exists in my mind and heart, on a physical property(住宅)on West 64th street on the western edge of Los Angeles.It is proof I lived, I grew, and I learned.”可知，作者很幸运，因为作者知道她的第一个家仍然存在，它存在于她的头脑和心里。故可以判断选B。45C细节理解题。根据最后一段“Sometimes when I feel lost, I lie down and shut my eyes, and I go home.I know its where Ill find my family, my dogs, and my belongings.”可知，有时，当作者感到失落，就躺下，闭上她的眼睛，回家。作者知道在那里她会找到她的家人、她的狗、她的财物及回家的感觉。故选C。46A归纳概括题。文章通篇描绘对家的思念，落脚点在对家的无限牵挂上。故选A。
