暨南大学2020年考研真题：211翻译硕士英语

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2020年招收攻读硕士学位研究生入学考试试题(B卷)

学科、专业名称：翻译硕士专业

研 究 方 向： 英语笔译

考试科目名称： 翻译硕士英语 考试科目代码：211

考生注意：所有答案必须写在答题纸(卷)上，写在本试题上一律不给分。

I. Vocabulary & Grammar (30%)

Directions: There are 30 sentences in this section. Beneath each sentence there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Choose ONE answer that best completes the sentence. Write your answers on the Answer Sheet.

1. Rescue teams from all over the world ______ on the earthquake-stricken area after the news spread that the quake had claimed a toll of 15000 lives.

A. diversified B. disseminated C. converged D. accelerated

2. Without Bob’s testimony, evidence of bribery is lacking and ______ in the case will be impossible.

A. verdict B. sentence C. conviction D. acquittal

3. The two countries have developed a ______ relation and increased a great deal in foreign trade.

A. managerial B. lethal C. metric D. cordial

4. Any person who is in ______ while awaiting trial is considered innocent until he has been declared guilty.

A. jeopardy B. custody C. suspicion D. probation

5. The snow_____ my plan to visit my aunt in the countryside.

A. confused B. bewildered C. conversed D. hampered

6. It is imperative that students _____ their term papers on time

A. hand in B. would hand in C. have to hand in D. handed in

7. He is not under arrest, ______ any restriction on him.

A. or the police have placed B. or have the police placed

C. nor the police have placed D. nor have the police placed

8. Mary is _______ than Alice.

A. more experienced a teacher B. a more experienced teacher

C. more an experienced teacher D. more experienced teacher

9. The trumpet player was certainly loud. But I wasn’t bothered by his loudness ______ by his lack of talent.

A. so much as B. rather than C. as D. than

10. Please don’t ______ too much on the painful memories. Everything will be all right.

A. hesitate B. linger C. retain D. dwell

11. Participants in the Shanghai Co-operation Forum ______ regional teamwork to promote investment and economic development.

A. cursed B. echoed C. bounced D. hailed

12.The 1982 Oil and Gas Act gives power to permit the disposal of assets held by the Corporation, and ______ the Corporation's statutory monopoly in the supply of gas for fuel purposes so as to permit private companies to compete in this supply.

A. defers B. curtails C. triggers D. sparks

13. The slogan "What goes up must come down" was so universally accepted by economists that it was considered a(n)______

A. conjecture B. axiom C. fad D. testimonial

14. After four years in the same job his enthusiasm finally ______.

A. deteriorated B. dispersed C. dissipated D. drained

15. He has ________ strange hobbies like collecting bottle tops and inventing secret codes.

A. gone on B. gone in for C. gone with D. gone through with

16. In 1791 RC, one of the wealthiest plantation owners in Virginia, stunned his family, friends, and neighbors by filing a deed of emancipation, setting free the more than 500 slaves who were legally ___________ his property.

A. considered B. considered as C. considered to be D. considered for

17. While some propose to combat widespread illegal copying of computer programs by attempting to change people’s attitudes toward pirating, others suggest reducing software prices to ____________ for pirating, and still others are calling for the prosecution of those who copy software illegally.

A. increase the incentive B. increase the punishment

C. decrease the incentive D. increase the punishment

18. The federal government subsidized bank loans to mass production builders of suburbs everywhere in the country on condition that those builders ________ no homes to African-Americans.

A. sold B. sell C. have sold D. had sold

19. A recent study of ancient clay deposits has provided new evidence __________ the theory that global forest fires ignited by a meteorite impact _________ to the extinction of the dinosaurs and many other creatures some 65million years ago.

A. to support ...... contributed B. supporting ...... contributed

C. to support ...... contributing D. supporting ...... contributing

20. According to his own account, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty, modeled the face of the statue _________ his mother and the body _________his wife.

A. for that of ...... for that of B. for that on ...... for that on

C. after that on ...... after that on D. after that of ...... after that of

21. A huge flying reptile that died out with the dinosaurs some 65 million years ago, the Quetzalcoatlus had a wingspan of 36 feet, ________ to have been the largest flying creature the world has ever seen.

A. what is believed B. that is believed

C. which is believed D. and it is believed

22. Because new small businesses are growing and are seldom in equilibrium, formulas for cash flow and the ratio of debt to equity do not apply to ______ in the same way ____ to establish big businesses.

A. it ...... Φ B. it ......as C. them ...... as D. them ...... Φ

23. Neanderthals had a vocal tract resembling an ape’s ____________ probably without language, a shortcoming that may explain why they were supplanted by our own species.

A. and so were B. and such was C. and so was D. and such were

24. He had lived his life thus far as a sort of ________ obedient pet - first to his mother and father, then to his wife. Whit had always done what others had wanted him to do, not what he wanted.

A. atrocious B. baroque C. affable D. arrogant

25. In the 1960s, even as liberal thinkers like Martin Luther King Jr. ________ a minimum income for moral reasons, conservatives like Richard Nixon considered it on practical grounds.

A. censured B. championed C. conceited D. confronted

26. The stimulator was proven to be effective but not _______: It could reduce tension and pain, improve mood, and marginally boost memory.

A. mischievous B. miraculous C. momentous D. minatory

27. The word “race” conjures biology, a set of inheritable --- and ________ --- physical characteristics. But it's actually a cultural and social category, not a biological one, which is why it changes over time.

A. changeable B. impeccable C. immutable D. impenetrable

28. With his _______ yet gracious manner, Jon had helped them find a good neighborhood for their family, introduced them to his banker, and even explained some of the odd American colloquialisms they couldn't understand, as they all laughed together over well-aged bottles of his favorite Bordeaux.

A. grandiose B. gullible C. grotesque D. gregarious

29. Virtue is useful in every country, in every time, in all peoples; wherever one finds humans, virtue is _________ because no one fails to sense its usefulness

A. eternal B. estimable C. ethereal D. exquisite

30. Two of his grandchildren implore him to _________ another journey. The city where they live is threatened by a plague.

A. embark on B. embark for C. embark at D. embark of

II. Reading Comprehension (40%)

Directions: This part consists of six passages followed by a total of 30 multiple-choice questions and 5 short-answer questions. Read the passages and write your answers on the Answer Sheet.

Passage 1

The miserable fate of Enron’s employees will be a landmark in business history, one of those awful events that everyone agrees must never be allowed to happen again. This urge is understandable and noble: thousands have lost virtually all their retirement savings with the demise of Enron stock. But making sure it never happens again may not be possible, because the sudden impoverishment of those Enron workers represents something even larger than it seems. It’s the latest turn in the unwinding of one of the most audacious promise of the 20th century.

The promise was assured economic security -even comfort - for essentially everyone in the developed world. With the explosion of wealth, that began in the 19th century it became possible to think about a possibility no one had dared to dream before. The fear at the center of daily living since caveman days- lack of food warmth, shelter- would at last lose its power to terrify. That remarkable promise became reality in many ways. Governments created welfare systems for anyone in need and separate programmes for the elderly (Social Security in the U.S.). Labour unions promised not only better pay for workers but also pensions for retirees. Giant corporations came into being and offered the possibility -in some cases the promise- of lifetime employment plus guaranteed pensions. The cumulative effect was a fundamental change in how millions of people approached life itself, a reversal of attitude that most rank as one of the largest in human history. For millennia the average person’s stance toward providing for himself had been “Ultimately I’m on my own”. Now it became “ultimately I’ll be taken care of”.

The early hints that this promise might be broken on a large scale came in the 1980s. U.S. business had become uncompetitive globally and began restructuring massively, with huge Layoffs. The trend accelerated in the 1990s as the bastions of corporate welfare faced reality. IBM ended its no-layoff policy. AT&T fired thousands, many of whom found such a thing simply incomprehensible, and a few of whom killed themselves. The other supposed guarantors of our economic security were also in decline. Labour-union membership and power fell to their lowest levels in decades. President Clinton signed a historic bill scaling back welfare. Americans realized that Social Security won’t provide social security for any of us.

A less visible but equally significant trend affected pensions. To make costs easier to control, companies moved away from defined benefit pension plans, which obligate them to pay out specified amounts years in the future, to define contribution plans, which specify only how much goes into the play today. The most common type of defined-contribution plan is the 401(k). The significance of the 401(k) is that it puts most of the responsibility for a person’s economic fate back on the employee. Within limits the employee must decide how much goes into the plan each year and how it gets invested-the two factors that will determine how much it’s worth when the employee retires.

Which brings us back to Enron? Those billions of dollars in vaporized retirement savings went in employees’ 401(k) accounts. That is, the employees chose how much money to put into those accounts and then chose how to invest it. Enron matched a certain proportion of each employee’s 401(k) contribution with company stock, so everyone was going to end up with some Enron in his or her portfolio; but that could be regarded as a freebie, since nothing compels a company to match employee contributions at all. At least two special features complicate the Enron case. First, some shareholders charge top management with illegally covering up the company’s problems, prompting investors to hang on when they should have sold. Second, Enron’s 401(k) accounts were locked while the company changed plan administrators in October, when the stock was falling, so employees could not have closed their accounts if they wanted to.

But by far the largest cause of this human tragedy is that thousands of employees were heavily overweighed in Enron stock. Many had placed 100% of their 401(k) assets in the stock rather than in the 18 other investment options they were offered. Of course that wasn’t prudent, but it’s what some of them did.

The Enron employees’ retirement disaster is part of the larger trend away from guaranteed economic security. That’s why preventing such a thing from ever happening again may be impossible. The huge attitudinal shift to “I’ll-be-taken-care-of” took at least a generation. The shift back may take just as long. It won’t be complete until a new generation of employees see assured economic comfort as a 20th- century quirk, and understand not just intellectually but in their bones that, like most people in most times and places, they’re on their own.

31. Why does the author say at the beginning “The miserable fate of Enron’s employees will be a landmark in business history…”?

A. Because the company has gone bankrupt.

B. Because such events would never happen again.

C. Because many Enron workers lost jobs.

D. Because it signifies a turning point in economic security.

32. According to the passage, the combined efforts by governments, layout unions and big corporations to guarantee economic comfort have led to a significant change in

A. people’s outlook on life. B. people’s life styles.

C. people’s living standard D. people’s social values.

33. Garanttee on economic security declined in 1980-1990 because ________.

A. the corporate laid off large number of employees

B. the government cut in welfare spending

C. the economic restructuring occurred as American lost its competitiveness globally

D. the power of labors unions declined

34. Thousands of employees chose Enron to invest mainly because

A. The 401(k) made them responsible for their own future.

B. Enron offered to add company stock to their investment.

C. their employers intended to cut back on pension spending.

D. Enron’s offer was similar to a defined-benefit plan.

35. Which is NOT seen as a lesson drawn from the Enron disaster?

A. 401(k) assets should be placed in more than one investment option.

B. Employees have to take up responsibilities for themselves.

C. Such events could happen again as it is not easy to change people’s mind.

D. Economic security won’t be taken for granted by future

36. What has made economic security possible and change people’s attitude towards life in 19th century?

Passage 2

The majority of successful senior managers do not closely follow the classical rational model of first clarifying goals, assessing the problem, formulating options, estimating likelihoods of success, making a decision, and only then taking action to implement the decision. Rather, in their day-by-day tactical maneuvers, these senior executives rely on what is vaguely termed intuition to manage a network of interrelated problems that require them to deal with ambiguity, inconsistency, novelty, and surprise and to integrate action into the process of thinking.

Generations of writers on management have recognized that some practicing managers rely heavily on intuition. In general, however, such writers display a poor grasp of what intuition is. Some see it as the opposite of rationality; others view it as an excuse for capriciousness.

Isenberg’s recent research on the cognitive processes of senior managers reveals that managers’ intuition is neither of these. Rather, senior managers use intuition in at least five distinct ways. First, they intuitively sense when a problem exists. Second, managers rely on intuition to perform well-learned behavior patterns rapidly. This intuition is not arbitrary or irrational, but is based on years of painstaking practice and hands-on experience that build skills. A third function of intuition is to synthesize isolated bits of data and practice into an integrated picture, often in an “Aha” experience. Fourth, some managers use intuition as a check on the results of more rational analysis. Most senior executives are familiar with the formal decision analysis models and tools, and those who use such systematic methods for reaching decisions are occasionally leery of solutions suggested by these methods which run counter to their sense of the correct course of action. Finally, managers can use intuition to bypass in-depth analysis and move rapidly to engender a plausible solution. Used in this way, intuition is an almost instantaneous cognitive process in which a manager recognizes familiar patterns.

One of the implications of the intuitive style of executive management is that thinking is inseparable from acting. Since managers often know what is right before they can analyze and explain it, they frequently act first and explain later. Analysis is inextricably tied to action in thinking/acting cycles, in which managers develop thoughts about their companies and organizations not by analyzing a problematic situation and then acting, but by acting and analyzing in close concert.

Given the great uncertainty of many of the management issues that they face, senior managers often instigate a course of action simply to learn more about an issue. They then use the results of the action to develop a more complete understanding of the issue. One implication of thinking/acting cycles is that action is often part of defining the problem, not just of implementing the solution.

37. The text suggests which of the following about the writers on management mentioned in line 1, paragraph 2?

A. They have criticized managers for not following the classical rational model of decision analysis.

B. They have not based their analyses on a sufficiently large sample of actual managers.

C. They have relied in drawing their conclusions on what managers say rather than on what managers do.

D. They have misunderstood how managers use intuition in making business decisions.

38. According to the text, senior managers use intuition in all of the following ways EXCEPT to

A. Speed up of the creation of a solution to a problem.

B. Identify a problem.

C. Bring together disparate facts.

D. Stipulate clear goals.

39. It can be inferred from the text that which of the following would most probably be one major difference in behavior between Manager X, who uses intuition to reach decisions, and Manager Y, who uses only formal decision analysis?

A. Manager X analyzes first and then acts;Manager Y does not.

B. Manager X checks possible solutions to a problem by systematic analysis; Manager Y does not.

C. Manager X takes action first and then explains later in solving a problem;Manager Y does not.

D. Manager Y draws on years of hands-on experience in creating a solution to a problem; Manager X does not.

40. The text provides support for which of the following statements?

A. Managers who rely on intuition are more successful than those who rely on formal decision analysis.

B. Managers cannot justify their intuitive decisions.

C. Managers’ intuition works contrary to their rational and analytical skills.

D. Intuition enables managers to employ their practical experience more efficiently.

41. What is the author’s attitude towards using institution in management?

A. It is arbitrary and irrational.

B. It deters the effective implementation of the work.

C. It improves the efficiency of the work.

D. It is better than analyzing the issue thoroughly first and then acting.

42. Why does the author say “thinking is inseparable from acting in the intuitive style of executive management”?

Passage 3

Joy and sadness are experienced by people in all cultures around the world, but how can we tell when other people are happy or despondent? It turns out that the expression of many emotions may be universal. Smiling is apparently a universal sign of friendliness and approval. Baring the teeth in a hostile way, as noted by Charles Darwin in the nineteenth century, may be a universe sign of anger. As the originator of the theory of evolution, Darwin believed that the universal recognition of facial expressions would have survival value. For example, facial expressions could signal the approach of enemies (or friends) in the absence of language.

Most investigators concur that certain facial expressions suggest the same emotions in a people. Moreover, people in diverse cultures recognize the emotions manifested by the facial expressions. In classic research Paul Ekman took photographs of people exhibiting the emotions of anger, disgust, fear, happiness, and sadness. He then asked people around the world to indicate what emotions were being depicted in them. Those queried ranged from European college students to members of the Fore, a tribe that dwells in the New Guinea highlands. All groups including the Fore, who had almost no contact with Western culture, agreed on the portrayed emotions. The Fore also displayed familiar facial expressions when asked how they would respond if they were the characters in stories that called for basic emotional responses. Ekman and his colleagues more recently obtained similar results in a study of ten cultures in which participants were permitted to report that multiple emotions were shown by facial expressions. The participants generally agreed on which two emotions were being shown and which emotion was more intense.

Psychological researchers generally recognize that facial expressions reflect emotional states. In fact, various emotional states give rise to certain patterns of electrical activity in the facial muscles and in the brain. The facial-feedback hypothesis argues, however, that the causal relationship between emotions and facial expressions can also work in the opposite direction. According to this hypothesis, signals from the facial muscles ("feedback") are sent back to emotion centers of the brain, and so a person's facial expression can influence that person's emotional state. Consider Darwin's words: "The free expression by outward signs of an emotion intensifies it. On the other hand, the repression, as far as possible, of all outward signs softens our emotions." Can smiling give rise to feelings of good will, for example, and frowning to anger?

Psychological research has given rise to some interesting findings concerning the facial-feedback hypothesis. Causing participants in experiments to smile, for example, leads them to report more positive feelings and to rate cartoons (humorous drawings of people or situations) as being more humorous. When they are caused to frown, they rate cartoons as being more aggressive.

What are the possible links between facial expressions and emotion? One link is arousal, which is the level of activity or preparedness for activity in an organism. Intense contraction of facial muscles, such as those used in signifying fear, heightens arousal. Self-perception of heightened arousal then leads to heightened emotional activity. Other links may involve changes in brain temperature and the release of neurotransmitters (substances that transmit nerve impulses.) The contraction of facial muscles both influences the internal emotional state and reflects it. Ekman has found that the so-called Duchenne smile, which is characterized by "crow's feet" wrinkles around the eyes and a subtle drop in the eye cover fold so that the skin above the eye moves down slightly toward the eyeball, can lead to pleasant feelings.

Ekman's observation may be relevant to the British expression "keep a stiff upper lip" as are commendation for handling stress. It might be that a "stiff" lip suppresses emotional response-as long as the lip is not quivering with fear or tension. But when the emotion that leads to stiffening the lip is more intense, and involves strong muscle tension, facial feedback may heighten emotional response.

43. The word despondent in the passage is closest in meaning to _______.

A. curious B. depressed C. thoughtful D. aggressive

44. The author mentions "Baring the teeth in a hostile way" in order to________.

A. differentiate different meanings of a particular facial expression

B. support Darwin's theory of evolution

C. provide an example of a facial expression whose meaning is widely understood

D. contrast a facial expression that is easily understood with other facial expressions

45. Which of the following statement CAN NOT prove the universality of facial expressions?

A. People use the same facial expressions when smiling.

B. People from other cultures can easily recognize the facial expressions with similar meaning.

C. Some expressions are more intense in one culture than in the other.

D. People have similar response to the same story.

46. According to paragraph 2, which of the following was true of the Fore people of New Guinea?

A. They were confused at the emotion shown in photographs.

B. They were famous for their story-telling skills.

C. They knew very little about Western culture.

D. They did not encourage the expression of emotions.

47. According to the passage, what did Darwin believe would happen to human emotions that were not expressed?

A. They would become less intense. B. They would last longer than usual.

C. They would cause problems later. D. They would become more negative.

48. Explain “The free expression by outward signs of an emotion intensifies it. On the other hand, the repression, of all outward signs softens our emotions."” based on “facial-feedback hypothesis”.

Passage 4

No one can be a great thinker who does not realize that as a thinker it is her first duty to follow her intellect to whatever conclusions it may lead. Truth gains more even by the errors of one who with due study and preparation, thinks for himself, than by the true opinions of those who only hold them because they do not suffer themselves to think. No that it is solely, of chiefly, to form great thinkers that freedom of thinking is required. One the contrary, it is as much or even more indispensable to enable average human beings to attain the mental stature which they are capable of. There have been and many again be great individual thinkers in a general atmosphere of mental slavery. But there never has been, nor ever will be, in that atmosphere an intellectually active people.

Where any of heterodox speculation was for a time suspended, where there is a tacit convention that principles are not to be disputed: where the discussion of the greatest questions which can occupy humanity is considered to be closed, we cannot hope to find that generally high scale of mental activity which has made some periods of history so remarkable. Never when controversy avoided the subjects which are large and important enough to kindle enthusiasm was the mind of a people stirred up fro9m its foundation and the impulse given which raised even persons of the most ordinary intellect to something of the dignity of thinking beings.

She who knows only her own side of the case knows little of that. Her reasons may be food, and no one may have been able to refute them. But if she is equally unable to refute the reasons of the opposite side; if she does not so much as know what they are, she has no ground for preferring either opinion. The rational position for her would be suspension of judgment, and unless she contents herself with that, she is either led by authority, or adopts, like the generality of the world the side to which she feels the most inclination. Nor is it enough that she should heat the arguments of adversaries from her own teachers, presented as they state them, and accompanied by what they offer as refutations.

That is not the way to do justice to the arguments, or bring them into real contact with her own mind. She must be able to hear them form persons who actually believe them; who defend them in earnest, and do their very utmost for them. She must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form; she must feel the whole force of the difficulty which the true view of the subject has to encounter and dispose of; else she will never really possess herself of the portion of truth which meets and removes that difficulty. Ninety-nine in a hundred of what are called educated persons are in this condition; even of those who can argue fluently for their opinions. Their conclusion may be true, but it might be false for anything they know; they have never thrown themselves into the mental position of those who think differently from them and considered what such persons may have to say; and consequently they do not, in any proper sense of the word, know the doctrines which they themselves profess.

49. The best title for this passage is ___________

A. The Age of Reason B. The Need for Independent Thinking

C. The Value of Reason 　D. Stirring People’s Minds

50. According to the author, it is always advisable to ___________

A. have opinions which cannot be refuted.

B. adopt the point of view to which one feels the most inclination.

C. be acquainted with the arguments favoring the point of view with which one disagrees,

D. suspend heterodox speculation in favor of doctrinaire approaches.

51. According to the author, in a great period such as the Renaissance we may expect to find _______

A. acceptance of truth 　　B. controversy over principles

C. inordinate enthusiasm 　　D. a dread of heterodox speculation

52. According to the author, the person who holds orthodox beliefs without examination may be described in all of the following ways EXCEPT as ___________

A. enslaved by tradition B. less than fully rational

C. determined on controversy D. having a closed mind

53. It can be inferred from the passage that the author would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements ___________

A. A truly great thinker makes no mistakes.

B. Periods of intellectual achievement are periods of unorthodox reflection,

C. The refutation of accepted ideas can best be provided by one’s own teachers.

D. excessive controversy prevents clear thinking

54. What is one's rational position if she is confusing about her attitude according to the passage?

Passage 5

Once upon a time, the emblematic jazz singer was an African-American woman, serenading a smoke-filled room. Think Billie Holliday and Ella Fitzgerald. Today, a talented crop of cosmopolitan young singers are creating a new breed of jazz vocalist: the globalized chanteuse. They come from multicultural backgrounds, live all over the world, and are infusing the traditional American sound with new energy. Take today’s rising star, 26-year-old Sophie Milman. Bom in Russia, she fled with her family to Israel at the age of 7, then settled in Canada at 16. Now she sells out the Blue Note jazz club in Tokyo. Her roots and her reach are global. In looks and language, she couldn't be further from the pioneers who came more than a half century before.

Yet Milman and others like her are redefining jazz by drawing on the American songbook. In his book The Jazz Singers, Scott Yanow argues that among 21st-century jazz vocalists, only "a few manage to reinvent standards in new ways," which is exactly what this new class is doing so well. Milman — who is fluent in French, English, Russian, and Hebrew — sings Cole Porter’s “Love for Sale” in a clear, valiant alto that booms down low and reaches effortlessly up high. Elisabeth Kontomanou, who is Greek and Guinean, insists on knowing the African-American roots of the music she plays. “Jazz is innovation, but with all the culture and the understanding of what has already been done,” she says. “If you don’t look at that, you get a tasteless, odorless, and colorless music.” On her last CD, Brewin’ the Blues, she follows her own rules by revisiting less famous songs by jazz icons, such as Billie Holiday’s "Tell Me More and More (and Then Some)”.

Language has proved no barrier to these women; all sing in English. Virginie Teychene comes from the south of France but learned English with her father, who used to show American Marines the French way of life. French doesn't lend itself to jazz,” she says. “Words can often fall flat, as it is hard to sing in French on rhythm.” Teychene, who was named a “new revelation” at France’s Juan-les-Pins jazz festival last year, covers songs like “Take the A Train” in her pure, low voice. Bom and raised in Turin, the Italian chanteuse Roberta Gambarini recorded Swedish folk songs early in her career but has lately turned to the romantic era of American jazz. Her new record, So in Love, revolves around sweet renditions of tunes like “That Old Black Magic” — a song Sarah Vaughan made famous in the 40s. The bulk of good songs that allow you to improvise happen to largely be part of the Great American Songbook," she says.

That’s not to say that these vocalists aren't pushing boundaries. Esperanza Spalding, who was born to a Welsh—Hispanic—Native American mother and a black father and raised in the States, sings in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. When recording the 1930s standard “Body and Soul”, she renamed it “Cuerpo y Alma", and pulled off a fiery Spanish rendition. “You always create something new even when you use vocabulary from the past," she says.

Ultimately, this return to the roots of jazz has to do with authenticity and accessibility. "I like when people come see me at the end of a concert, surprised that this is actually jazz and that they can enjoy it without really knowing the culture," says Teychene. Yet if asked where the winding road of fame starts, these singers give a traditional answer. "If you live deep in the heart of China and you want to be a jazz musician, you still have to go to New York or New Orleans and play jazz," says Kontomanou. Then you move to another country and share it with the world.

55. Which of the following is true about Sophie Milman?

A. She has multicultural backgrounds.

B. She is an emblematic jazz singer.

C. She loves the music of Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald.

D. She creates the new jazz music.

56. What do the new jazz singers have in common?

A. They all come from Europe.

B. They resemble the pioneers of jazz music in looks and language.

C. They all bring something new to jazz music.

D. They don't like sing in languages other than English.

57. It can be inferred that Scott Yanow’s attitude towards the new jazz singers is

A. critical B. positive C. neutral D. negative

58. What does the author mean by saying that those new jazz singers are “ pushing boundaries，，(Paragraph 4)?

A. They sometimes don t stick to the traditional rendering of jazz music.

B. They do not always sing in English.

C. They like to try different musical instrument when playing jazz.

D. They would prefer to sing songs all created by themselves.

59. According to the last paragraph, those popular new jazz singers attribute their success to _____.

A. early exposure to American jazz culture

B. good command of English language

C. innovation and originality

D. travelling around world

60. What are the present features of the jazz relating to the main idea the passage conveys?

Passage 6

Biologically, there is only one quality which distinguishes us from animals: the ability to laugh. In a universe which appears to be utterly devoid of humor, we enjoy this supreme luxury. And it is a luxury, for unlike any other bodily process, laughter does not seem to serve a biologically useful purpose. In a divide world, laughter is a unifying force. Human beings oppose each other on a great many issues. Nations may disagree about systems of government and human relations may be plagued by ideological factions and political camps, but we all share the ability to laugh. And laughter, in turn, depends on that most complex and subtle of all human qualities: a sense of humor Certain comic stereotypes have a universal appeal. This can best be seen from the world-wide popularity of Charlie Chaplin’s early films. The little man at odds with society never fails to amuse no matter which country we come from. As that great commentator on human affairs, Dr. Samuel Johnson, once remarked, ‘Men have been wise in very different modes; but they have always laughed in the same way.’

A sense of humor may take various forms and laughter may be anything from a refined tingle to an earth-quaking roar, but the effect is always the same. Humor helps us to maintain a correct sense of values. It is the one quality which political fanatics appear to lack. If we can see the funny side, we never make the mistake of taking ourselves too seriously. We are always reminded that tragedy is not really far removed from comedy, so we never get a lopsided view of things.

This is one of the chief functions of satire and irony. Human pain and suffering are so grim; we hover so often on the brink of war; political realities are usually enough to plunge us into total despair. In such circumstances, cartoons and satirical accounts of somber political events redress the balance. They take the wind out of pompous and arrogant politicians who have lost their sense of proportion. They enable us to see that many of our most profound actions are merely comic or absurd. We laugh when a great satirist like Swift writes about war in Gulliver’s Travels. The Lilliputians and their neighbors attack each other because they can’t agree which end to break an egg. We laugh because we meant to laugh; but we are meant to weep too. It is too powerful a weapon to be allowed to flourish.

The sense of humor must be singled out as man’s most important quality because it is associated with laughter. And laughter, in turn, is associated with happiness. Courage, determination, initiative – these are qualities we share with other forms of life. But the sense of humor is uniquely human. If happiness is one of the great goals of life, then it is the sense of humor that provides the key.

61. The most important of all human qualities is ___________

A. a sense of humor. 　　B. A sense of satire.

C. A sense of laughter. D. A sense of history.

62. The author mentions about Charlie Chaplin’s early films because ___________

A. they can amuse people.

B. Human beings are different from animals.

C. They show that certain comic stereotypes have a universal appeal.

D. They show that people have the same ability to laugh.

63. One of the chief functions of irony and satire is ___________

A. to show absurdity of actions. 　B. to redress balance.

C. to take the wind out of politicians. D. to show too much grimness in the world.

64. What do we learn from the sentence ‘it is too powerful a weapon to be allowed to flourish in totalitarian regimes?’

A. It can reveal the truth of political events with satire.

B. It can arouse people to riot.

C. It shows tragedy and comedy are related.

D. It can make people laugh.

65. Who is Swift?

A. A novelist. B. A poet. 　　C. A dramatist. D. A essayist.

III. Writing (30%)

Directions: In this part you are going to write an essay of about 400-500 words within 60 minutes on the following topic. Write your essay on the Answer Sheet.

Would you like to live in a big city or small town? A survey with 2,004 respondents has revealed only 35.5 percent of those surveyed prefer to live in big cities, and 61.3 percent prefer low-pressure and a more comfortable life in small cities, according to China Youth Daily on Tuesday.

Where would you prefer to live? Please develop your point of view into a 400-500 words article.

 

2020年招收攻读硕士学位研究生入学考试试题(B卷)

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学科、专业名称：翻译硕士专业

研 究 方 向： 英语笔译

考试科目名称： 翻译硕士英语 考试科目代码：211

考生注意：所有答案必须写在答题纸(卷)上，写在本试题上一律不给分。

I. Vocabulary & Grammar (30%)

Directions: There are 30 sentences in this section. Beneath each sentence there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Choose ONE answer that best completes the sentence. Write your answers on the Answer Sheet.

1. Rescue teams from all over the world ______ on the earthquake-stricken area after the news spread that the quake had claimed a toll of 15000 lives.

A. diversified B. disseminated C. converged D. accelerated

2. Without Bob’s testimony, evidence of bribery is lacking and ______ in the case will be impossible.

A. verdict B. sentence C. conviction D. acquittal

3. The two countries have developed a ______ relation and increased a great deal in foreign trade.

A. managerial B. lethal C. metric D. cordial

4. Any person who is in ______ while awaiting trial is considered innocent until he has been declared guilty.

A. jeopardy B. custody C. suspicion D. probation

5. The snow_____ my plan to visit my aunt in the countryside.

A. confused B. bewildered C. conversed D. hampered

6. It is imperative that students _____ their term papers on time

A. hand in B. would hand in C. have to hand in D. handed in

7. He is not under arrest, ______ any restriction on him.

A. or the police have placed B. or have the police placed

C. nor the police have placed D. nor have the police placed

8. Mary is _______ than Alice.

A. more experienced a teacher B. a more experienced teacher

C. more an experienced teacher D. more experienced teacher

9. The trumpet player was certainly loud. But I wasn’t bothered by his loudness ______ by his lack of talent.

A. so much as B. rather than C. as D. than

10. Please don’t ______ too much on the painful memories. Everything will be all right.

A. hesitate B. linger C. retain D. dwell

11. Participants in the Shanghai Co-operation Forum ______ regional teamwork to promote investment and economic development.

A. cursed B. echoed C. bounced D. hailed

12.The 1982 Oil and Gas Act gives power to permit the disposal of assets held by the Corporation, and ______ the Corporation's statutory monopoly in the supply of gas for fuel purposes so as to permit private companies to compete in this supply.

A. defers B. curtails C. triggers D. sparks

13. The slogan "What goes up must come down" was so universally accepted by economists that it was considered a(n)______

A. conjecture B. axiom C. fad D. testimonial

14. After four years in the same job his enthusiasm finally ______.

A. deteriorated B. dispersed C. dissipated D. drained

15. He has ________ strange hobbies like collecting bottle tops and inventing secret codes.

A. gone on B. gone in for C. gone with D. gone through with

16. In 1791 RC, one of the wealthiest plantation owners in Virginia, stunned his family, friends, and neighbors by filing a deed of emancipation, setting free the more than 500 slaves who were legally ___________ his property.

A. considered B. considered as C. considered to be D. considered for

17. While some propose to combat widespread illegal copying of computer programs by attempting to change people’s attitudes toward pirating, others suggest reducing software prices to ____________ for pirating, and still others are calling for the prosecution of those who copy software illegally.

A. increase the incentive B. increase the punishment

C. decrease the incentive D. increase the punishment

18. The federal government subsidized bank loans to mass production builders of suburbs everywhere in the country on condition that those builders ________ no homes to African-Americans.

A. sold B. sell C. have sold D. had sold

19. A recent study of ancient clay deposits has provided new evidence __________ the theory that global forest fires ignited by a meteorite impact _________ to the extinction of the dinosaurs and many other creatures some 65million years ago.

A. to support ...... contributed B. supporting ...... contributed

C. to support ...... contributing D. supporting ...... contributing

20. According to his own account, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty, modeled the face of the statue _________ his mother and the body _________his wife.

A. for that of ...... for that of B. for that on ...... for that on

C. after that on ...... after that on D. after that of ...... after that of

21. A huge flying reptile that died out with the dinosaurs some 65 million years ago, the Quetzalcoatlus had a wingspan of 36 feet, ________ to have been the largest flying creature the world has ever seen.

A. what is believed B. that is believed

C. which is believed D. and it is believed

22. Because new small businesses are growing and are seldom in equilibrium, formulas for cash flow and the ratio of debt to equity do not apply to ______ in the same way ____ to establish big businesses.

A. it ...... Φ B. it ......as C. them ...... as D. them ...... Φ

23. Neanderthals had a vocal tract resembling an ape’s ____________ probably without language, a shortcoming that may explain why they were supplanted by our own species.

A. and so were B. and such was C. and so was D. and such were

24. He had lived his life thus far as a sort of ________ obedient pet - first to his mother and father, then to his wife. Whit had always done what others had wanted him to do, not what he wanted.

A. atrocious B. baroque C. affable D. arrogant

25. In the 1960s, even as liberal thinkers like Martin Luther King Jr. ________ a minimum income for moral reasons, conservatives like Richard Nixon considered it on practical grounds.

A. censured B. championed C. conceited D. confronted

26. The stimulator was proven to be effective but not _______: It could reduce tension and pain, improve mood, and marginally boost memory.

A. mischievous B. miraculous C. momentous D. minatory

27. The word “race” conjures biology, a set of inheritable --- and ________ --- physical characteristics. But it's actually a cultural and social category, not a biological one, which is why it changes over time.

A. changeable B. impeccable C. immutable D. impenetrable

28. With his _______ yet gracious manner, Jon had helped them find a good neighborhood for their family, introduced them to his banker, and even explained some of the odd American colloquialisms they couldn't understand, as they all laughed together over well-aged bottles of his favorite Bordeaux.

A. grandiose B. gullible C. grotesque D. gregarious

29. Virtue is useful in every country, in every time, in all peoples; wherever one finds humans, virtue is _________ because no one fails to sense its usefulness

A. eternal B. estimable C. ethereal D. exquisite

30. Two of his grandchildren implore him to _________ another journey. The city where they live is threatened by a plague.

A. embark on B. embark for C. embark at D. embark of

II. Reading Comprehension (40%)

Directions: This part consists of six passages followed by a total of 30 multiple-choice questions and 5 short-answer questions. Read the passages and write your answers on the Answer Sheet.

Passage 1

The miserable fate of Enron’s employees will be a landmark in business history, one of those awful events that everyone agrees must never be allowed to happen again. This urge is understandable and noble: thousands have lost virtually all their retirement savings with the demise of Enron stock. But making sure it never happens again may not be possible, because the sudden impoverishment of those Enron workers represents something even larger than it seems. It’s the latest turn in the unwinding of one of the most audacious promise of the 20th century.

The promise was assured economic security -even comfort - for essentially everyone in the developed world. With the explosion of wealth, that began in the 19th century it became possible to think about a possibility no one had dared to dream before. The fear at the center of daily living since caveman days- lack of food warmth, shelter- would at last lose its power to terrify. That remarkable promise became reality in many ways. Governments created welfare systems for anyone in need and separate programmes for the elderly (Social Security in the U.S.). Labour unions promised not only better pay for workers but also pensions for retirees. Giant corporations came into being and offered the possibility -in some cases the promise- of lifetime employment plus guaranteed pensions. The cumulative effect was a fundamental change in how millions of people approached life itself, a reversal of attitude that most rank as one of the largest in human history. For millennia the average person’s stance toward providing for himself had been “Ultimately I’m on my own”. Now it became “ultimately I’ll be taken care of”.

The early hints that this promise might be broken on a large scale came in the 1980s. U.S. business had become uncompetitive globally and began restructuring massively, with huge Layoffs. The trend accelerated in the 1990s as the bastions of corporate welfare faced reality. IBM ended its no-layoff policy. AT&T fired thousands, many of whom found such a thing simply incomprehensible, and a few of whom killed themselves. The other supposed guarantors of our economic security were also in decline. Labour-union membership and power fell to their lowest levels in decades. President Clinton signed a historic bill scaling back welfare. Americans realized that Social Security won’t provide social security for any of us.

A less visible but equally significant trend affected pensions. To make costs easier to control, companies moved away from defined benefit pension plans, which obligate them to pay out specified amounts years in the future, to define contribution plans, which specify only how much goes into the play today. The most common type of defined-contribution plan is the 401(k). The significance of the 401(k) is that it puts most of the responsibility for a person’s economic fate back on the employee. Within limits the employee must decide how much goes into the plan each year and how it gets invested-the two factors that will determine how much it’s worth when the employee retires.

Which brings us back to Enron? Those billions of dollars in vaporized retirement savings went in employees’ 401(k) accounts. That is, the employees chose how much money to put into those accounts and then chose how to invest it. Enron matched a certain proportion of each employee’s 401(k) contribution with company stock, so everyone was going to end up with some Enron in his or her portfolio; but that could be regarded as a freebie, since nothing compels a company to match employee contributions at all. At least two special features complicate the Enron case. First, some shareholders charge top management with illegally covering up the company’s problems, prompting investors to hang on when they should have sold. Second, Enron’s 401(k) accounts were locked while the company changed plan administrators in October, when the stock was falling, so employees could not have closed their accounts if they wanted to.

But by far the largest cause of this human tragedy is that thousands of employees were heavily overweighed in Enron stock. Many had placed 100% of their 401(k) assets in the stock rather than in the 18 other investment options they were offered. Of course that wasn’t prudent, but it’s what some of them did.

The Enron employees’ retirement disaster is part of the larger trend away from guaranteed economic security. That’s why preventing such a thing from ever happening again may be impossible. The huge attitudinal shift to “I’ll-be-taken-care-of” took at least a generation. The shift back may take just as long. It won’t be complete until a new generation of employees see assured economic comfort as a 20th- century quirk, and understand not just intellectually but in their bones that, like most people in most times and places, they’re on their own.

31. Why does the author say at the beginning “The miserable fate of Enron’s employees will be a landmark in business history…”?

A. Because the company has gone bankrupt.

B. Because such events would never happen again.

C. Because many Enron workers lost jobs.

D. Because it signifies a turning point in economic security.

32. According to the passage, the combined efforts by governments, layout unions and big corporations to guarantee economic comfort have led to a significant change in

A. people’s outlook on life. B. people’s life styles.

C. people’s living standard D. people’s social values.

33. Garanttee on economic security declined in 1980-1990 because ________.

A. the corporate laid off large number of employees

B. the government cut in welfare spending

C. the economic restructuring occurred as American lost its competitiveness globally

D. the power of labors unions declined

34. Thousands of employees chose Enron to invest mainly because

A. The 401(k) made them responsible for their own future.

B. Enron offered to add company stock to their investment.

C. their employers intended to cut back on pension spending.

D. Enron’s offer was similar to a defined-benefit plan.

35. Which is NOT seen as a lesson drawn from the Enron disaster?

A. 401(k) assets should be placed in more than one investment option.

B. Employees have to take up responsibilities for themselves.

C. Such events could happen again as it is not easy to change people’s mind.

D. Economic security won’t be taken for granted by future

36. What has made economic security possible and change people’s attitude towards life in 19th century?

Passage 2

The majority of successful senior managers do not closely follow the classical rational model of first clarifying goals, assessing the problem, formulating options, estimating likelihoods of success, making a decision, and only then taking action to implement the decision. Rather, in their day-by-day tactical maneuvers, these senior executives rely on what is vaguely termed intuition to manage a network of interrelated problems that require them to deal with ambiguity, inconsistency, novelty, and surprise and to integrate action into the process of thinking.

Generations of writers on management have recognized that some practicing managers rely heavily on intuition. In general, however, such writers display a poor grasp of what intuition is. Some see it as the opposite of rationality; others view it as an excuse for capriciousness.

Isenberg’s recent research on the cognitive processes of senior managers reveals that managers’ intuition is neither of these. Rather, senior managers use intuition in at least five distinct ways. First, they intuitively sense when a problem exists. Second, managers rely on intuition to perform well-learned behavior patterns rapidly. This intuition is not arbitrary or irrational, but is based on years of painstaking practice and hands-on experience that build skills. A third function of intuition is to synthesize isolated bits of data and practice into an integrated picture, often in an “Aha” experience. Fourth, some managers use intuition as a check on the results of more rational analysis. Most senior executives are familiar with the formal decision analysis models and tools, and those who use such systematic methods for reaching decisions are occasionally leery of solutions suggested by these methods which run counter to their sense of the correct course of action. Finally, managers can use intuition to bypass in-depth analysis and move rapidly to engender a plausible solution. Used in this way, intuition is an almost instantaneous cognitive process in which a manager recognizes familiar patterns.

One of the implications of the intuitive style of executive management is that thinking is inseparable from acting. Since managers often know what is right before they can analyze and explain it, they frequently act first and explain later. Analysis is inextricably tied to action in thinking/acting cycles, in which managers develop thoughts about their companies and organizations not by analyzing a problematic situation and then acting, but by acting and analyzing in close concert.

Given the great uncertainty of many of the management issues that they face, senior managers often instigate a course of action simply to learn more about an issue. They then use the results of the action to develop a more complete understanding of the issue. One implication of thinking/acting cycles is that action is often part of defining the problem, not just of implementing the solution.

37. The text suggests which of the following about the writers on management mentioned in line 1, paragraph 2?

A. They have criticized managers for not following the classical rational model of decision analysis.

B. They have not based their analyses on a sufficiently large sample of actual managers.

C. They have relied in drawing their conclusions on what managers say rather than on what managers do.

D. They have misunderstood how managers use intuition in making business decisions.

38. According to the text, senior managers use intuition in all of the following ways EXCEPT to

A. Speed up of the creation of a solution to a problem.

B. Identify a problem.

C. Bring together disparate facts.

D. Stipulate clear goals.

39. It can be inferred from the text that which of the following would most probably be one major difference in behavior between Manager X, who uses intuition to reach decisions, and Manager Y, who uses only formal decision analysis?

A. Manager X analyzes first and then acts;Manager Y does not.

B. Manager X checks possible solutions to a problem by systematic analysis; Manager Y does not.

C. Manager X takes action first and then explains later in solving a problem;Manager Y does not.

D. Manager Y draws on years of hands-on experience in creating a solution to a problem; Manager X does not.

40. The text provides support for which of the following statements?

A. Managers who rely on intuition are more successful than those who rely on formal decision analysis.

B. Managers cannot justify their intuitive decisions.

C. Managers’ intuition works contrary to their rational and analytical skills.

D. Intuition enables managers to employ their practical experience more efficiently.

41. What is the author’s attitude towards using institution in management?

A. It is arbitrary and irrational.

B. It deters the effective implementation of the work.

C. It improves the efficiency of the work.

D. It is better than analyzing the issue thoroughly first and then acting.

42. Why does the author say “thinking is inseparable from acting in the intuitive style of executive management”?

Passage 3

Joy and sadness are experienced by people in all cultures around the world, but how can we tell when other people are happy or despondent? It turns out that the expression of many emotions may be universal. Smiling is apparently a universal sign of friendliness and approval. Baring the teeth in a hostile way, as noted by Charles Darwin in the nineteenth century, may be a universe sign of anger. As the originator of the theory of evolution, Darwin believed that the universal recognition of facial expressions would have survival value. For example, facial expressions could signal the approach of enemies (or friends) in the absence of language.

Most investigators concur that certain facial expressions suggest the same emotions in a people. Moreover, people in diverse cultures recognize the emotions manifested by the facial expressions. In classic research Paul Ekman took photographs of people exhibiting the emotions of anger, disgust, fear, happiness, and sadness. He then asked people around the world to indicate what emotions were being depicted in them. Those queried ranged from European college students to members of the Fore, a tribe that dwells in the New Guinea highlands. All groups including the Fore, who had almost no contact with Western culture, agreed on the portrayed emotions. The Fore also displayed familiar facial expressions when asked how they would respond if they were the characters in stories that called for basic emotional responses. Ekman and his colleagues more recently obtained similar results in a study of ten cultures in which participants were permitted to report that multiple emotions were shown by facial expressions. The participants generally agreed on which two emotions were being shown and which emotion was more intense.

Psychological researchers generally recognize that facial expressions reflect emotional states. In fact, various emotional states give rise to certain patterns of electrical activity in the facial muscles and in the brain. The facial-feedback hypothesis argues, however, that the causal relationship between emotions and facial expressions can also work in the opposite direction. According to this hypothesis, signals from the facial muscles ("feedback") are sent back to emotion centers of the brain, and so a person's facial expression can influence that person's emotional state. Consider Darwin's words: "The free expression by outward signs of an emotion intensifies it. On the other hand, the repression, as far as possible, of all outward signs softens our emotions." Can smiling give rise to feelings of good will, for example, and frowning to anger?

Psychological research has given rise to some interesting findings concerning the facial-feedback hypothesis. Causing participants in experiments to smile, for example, leads them to report more positive feelings and to rate cartoons (humorous drawings of people or situations) as being more humorous. When they are caused to frown, they rate cartoons as being more aggressive.

What are the possible links between facial expressions and emotion? One link is arousal, which is the level of activity or preparedness for activity in an organism. Intense contraction of facial muscles, such as those used in signifying fear, heightens arousal. Self-perception of heightened arousal then leads to heightened emotional activity. Other links may involve changes in brain temperature and the release of neurotransmitters (substances that transmit nerve impulses.) The contraction of facial muscles both influences the internal emotional state and reflects it. Ekman has found that the so-called Duchenne smile, which is characterized by "crow's feet" wrinkles around the eyes and a subtle drop in the eye cover fold so that the skin above the eye moves down slightly toward the eyeball, can lead to pleasant feelings.

Ekman's observation may be relevant to the British expression "keep a stiff upper lip" as are commendation for handling stress. It might be that a "stiff" lip suppresses emotional response-as long as the lip is not quivering with fear or tension. But when the emotion that leads to stiffening the lip is more intense, and involves strong muscle tension, facial feedback may heighten emotional response.

43. The word despondent in the passage is closest in meaning to _______.

A. curious B. depressed C. thoughtful D. aggressive

44. The author mentions "Baring the teeth in a hostile way" in order to________.

A. differentiate different meanings of a particular facial expression

B. support Darwin's theory of evolution

C. provide an example of a facial expression whose meaning is widely understood

D. contrast a facial expression that is easily understood with other facial expressions

45. Which of the following statement CAN NOT prove the universality of facial expressions?

A. People use the same facial expressions when smiling.

B. People from other cultures can easily recognize the facial expressions with similar meaning.

C. Some expressions are more intense in one culture than in the other.

D. People have similar response to the same story.

46. According to paragraph 2, which of the following was true of the Fore people of New Guinea?

A. They were confused at the emotion shown in photographs.

B. They were famous for their story-telling skills.

C. They knew very little about Western culture.

D. They did not encourage the expression of emotions.

47. According to the passage, what did Darwin believe would happen to human emotions that were not expressed?

A. They would become less intense. B. They would last longer than usual.

C. They would cause problems later. D. They would become more negative.

48. Explain “The free expression by outward signs of an emotion intensifies it. On the other hand, the repression, of all outward signs softens our emotions."” based on “facial-feedback hypothesis”.

Passage 4

No one can be a great thinker who does not realize that as a thinker it is her first duty to follow her intellect to whatever conclusions it may lead. Truth gains more even by the errors of one who with due study and preparation, thinks for himself, than by the true opinions of those who only hold them because they do not suffer themselves to think. No that it is solely, of chiefly, to form great thinkers that freedom of thinking is required. One the contrary, it is as much or even more indispensable to enable average human beings to attain the mental stature which they are capable of. There have been and many again be great individual thinkers in a general atmosphere of mental slavery. But there never has been, nor ever will be, in that atmosphere an intellectually active people.

Where any of heterodox speculation was for a time suspended, where there is a tacit convention that principles are not to be disputed: where the discussion of the greatest questions which can occupy humanity is considered to be closed, we cannot hope to find that generally high scale of mental activity which has made some periods of history so remarkable. Never when controversy avoided the subjects which are large and important enough to kindle enthusiasm was the mind of a people stirred up fro9m its foundation and the impulse given which raised even persons of the most ordinary intellect to something of the dignity of thinking beings.

She who knows only her own side of the case knows little of that. Her reasons may be food, and no one may have been able to refute them. But if she is equally unable to refute the reasons of the opposite side; if she does not so much as know what they are, she has no ground for preferring either opinion. The rational position for her would be suspension of judgment, and unless she contents herself with that, she is either led by authority, or adopts, like the generality of the world the side to which she feels the most inclination. Nor is it enough that she should heat the arguments of adversaries from her own teachers, presented as they state them, and accompanied by what they offer as refutations.

That is not the way to do justice to the arguments, or bring them into real contact with her own mind. She must be able to hear them form persons who actually believe them; who defend them in earnest, and do their very utmost for them. She must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form; she must feel the whole force of the difficulty which the true view of the subject has to encounter and dispose of; else she will never really possess herself of the portion of truth which meets and removes that difficulty. Ninety-nine in a hundred of what are called educated persons are in this condition; even of those who can argue fluently for their opinions. Their conclusion may be true, but it might be false for anything they know; they have never thrown themselves into the mental position of those who think differently from them and considered what such persons may have to say; and consequently they do not, in any proper sense of the word, know the doctrines which they themselves profess.

49. The best title for this passage is ___________

A. The Age of Reason B. The Need for Independent Thinking

C. The Value of Reason 　D. Stirring People’s Minds

50. According to the author, it is always advisable to ___________

A. have opinions which cannot be refuted.

B. adopt the point of view to which one feels the most inclination.

C. be acquainted with the arguments favoring the point of view with which one disagrees,

D. suspend heterodox speculation in favor of doctrinaire approaches.

51. According to the author, in a great period such as the Renaissance we may expect to find _______

A. acceptance of truth 　　B. controversy over principles

C. inordinate enthusiasm 　　D. a dread of heterodox speculation

52. According to the author, the person who holds orthodox beliefs without examination may be described in all of the following ways EXCEPT as ___________

A. enslaved by tradition B. less than fully rational

C. determined on controversy D. having a closed mind

53. It can be inferred from the passage that the author would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements ___________

A. A truly great thinker makes no mistakes.

B. Periods of intellectual achievement are periods of unorthodox reflection,

C. The refutation of accepted ideas can best be provided by one’s own teachers.

D. excessive controversy prevents clear thinking

54. What is one's rational position if she is confusing about her attitude according to the passage?

Passage 5

Once upon a time, the emblematic jazz singer was an African-American woman, serenading a smoke-filled room. Think Billie Holliday and Ella Fitzgerald. Today, a talented crop of cosmopolitan young singers are creating a new breed of jazz vocalist: the globalized chanteuse. They come from multicultural backgrounds, live all over the world, and are infusing the traditional American sound with new energy. Take today’s rising star, 26-year-old Sophie Milman. Bom in Russia, she fled with her family to Israel at the age of 7, then settled in Canada at 16. Now she sells out the Blue Note jazz club in Tokyo. Her roots and her reach are global. In looks and language, she couldn't be further from the pioneers who came more than a half century before.

Yet Milman and others like her are redefining jazz by drawing on the American songbook. In his book The Jazz Singers, Scott Yanow argues that among 21st-century jazz vocalists, only "a few manage to reinvent standards in new ways," which is exactly what this new class is doing so well. Milman — who is fluent in French, English, Russian, and Hebrew — sings Cole Porter’s “Love for Sale” in a clear, valiant alto that booms down low and reaches effortlessly up high. Elisabeth Kontomanou, who is Greek and Guinean, insists on knowing the African-American roots of the music she plays. “Jazz is innovation, but with all the culture and the understanding of what has already been done,” she says. “If you don’t look at that, you get a tasteless, odorless, and colorless music.” On her last CD, Brewin’ the Blues, she follows her own rules by revisiting less famous songs by jazz icons, such as Billie Holiday’s "Tell Me More and More (and Then Some)”.

Language has proved no barrier to these women; all sing in English. Virginie Teychene comes from the south of France but learned English with her father, who used to show American Marines the French way of life. French doesn't lend itself to jazz,” she says. “Words can often fall flat, as it is hard to sing in French on rhythm.” Teychene, who was named a “new revelation” at France’s Juan-les-Pins jazz festival last year, covers songs like “Take the A Train” in her pure, low voice. Bom and raised in Turin, the Italian chanteuse Roberta Gambarini recorded Swedish folk songs early in her career but has lately turned to the romantic era of American jazz. Her new record, So in Love, revolves around sweet renditions of tunes like “That Old Black Magic” — a song Sarah Vaughan made famous in the 40s. The bulk of good songs that allow you to improvise happen to largely be part of the Great American Songbook," she says.

That’s not to say that these vocalists aren't pushing boundaries. Esperanza Spalding, who was born to a Welsh—Hispanic—Native American mother and a black father and raised in the States, sings in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. When recording the 1930s standard “Body and Soul”, she renamed it “Cuerpo y Alma", and pulled off a fiery Spanish rendition. “You always create something new even when you use vocabulary from the past," she says.

Ultimately, this return to the roots of jazz has to do with authenticity and accessibility. "I like when people come see me at the end of a concert, surprised that this is actually jazz and that they can enjoy it without really knowing the culture," says Teychene. Yet if asked where the winding road of fame starts, these singers give a traditional answer. "If you live deep in the heart of China and you want to be a jazz musician, you still have to go to New York or New Orleans and play jazz," says Kontomanou. Then you move to another country and share it with the world.

55. Which of the following is true about Sophie Milman?

A. She has multicultural backgrounds.

B. She is an emblematic jazz singer.

C. She loves the music of Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald.

D. She creates the new jazz music.

56. What do the new jazz singers have in common?

A. They all come from Europe.

B. They resemble the pioneers of jazz music in looks and language.

C. They all bring something new to jazz music.

D. They don't like sing in languages other than English.

57. It can be inferred that Scott Yanow’s attitude towards the new jazz singers is

A. critical B. positive C. neutral D. negative

58. What does the author mean by saying that those new jazz singers are “ pushing boundaries，，(Paragraph 4)?

A. They sometimes don t stick to the traditional rendering of jazz music.

B. They do not always sing in English.

C. They like to try different musical instrument when playing jazz.

D. They would prefer to sing songs all created by themselves.

59. According to the last paragraph, those popular new jazz singers attribute their success to _____.

A. early exposure to American jazz culture

B. good command of English language

C. innovation and originality

D. travelling around world

60. What are the present features of the jazz relating to the main idea the passage conveys?

Passage 6

Biologically, there is only one quality which distinguishes us from animals: the ability to laugh. In a universe which appears to be utterly devoid of humor, we enjoy this supreme luxury. And it is a luxury, for unlike any other bodily process, laughter does not seem to serve a biologically useful purpose. In a divide world, laughter is a unifying force. Human beings oppose each other on a great many issues. Nations may disagree about systems of government and human relations may be plagued by ideological factions and political camps, but we all share the ability to laugh. And laughter, in turn, depends on that most complex and subtle of all human qualities: a sense of humor Certain comic stereotypes have a universal appeal. This can best be seen from the world-wide popularity of Charlie Chaplin’s early films. The little man at odds with society never fails to amuse no matter which country we come from. As that great commentator on human affairs, Dr. Samuel Johnson, once remarked, ‘Men have been wise in very different modes; but they have always laughed in the same way.’

A sense of humor may take various forms and laughter may be anything from a refined tingle to an earth-quaking roar, but the effect is always the same. Humor helps us to maintain a correct sense of values. It is the one quality which political fanatics appear to lack. If we can see the funny side, we never make the mistake of taking ourselves too seriously. We are always reminded that tragedy is not really far removed from comedy, so we never get a lopsided view of things.

This is one of the chief functions of satire and irony. Human pain and suffering are so grim; we hover so often on the brink of war; political realities are usually enough to plunge us into total despair. In such circumstances, cartoons and satirical accounts of somber political events redress the balance. They take the wind out of pompous and arrogant politicians who have lost their sense of proportion. They enable us to see that many of our most profound actions are merely comic or absurd. We laugh when a great satirist like Swift writes about war in Gulliver’s Travels. The Lilliputians and their neighbors attack each other because they can’t agree which end to break an egg. We laugh because we meant to laugh; but we are meant to weep too. It is too powerful a weapon to be allowed to flourish.

The sense of humor must be singled out as man’s most important quality because it is associated with laughter. And laughter, in turn, is associated with happiness. Courage, determination, initiative – these are qualities we share with other forms of life. But the sense of humor is uniquely human. If happiness is one of the great goals of life, then it is the sense of humor that provides the key.

61. The most important of all human qualities is ___________

A. a sense of humor. 　　B. A sense of satire.

C. A sense of laughter. D. A sense of history.

62. The author mentions about Charlie Chaplin’s early films because ___________

A. they can amuse people.

B. Human beings are different from animals.

C. They show that certain comic stereotypes have a universal appeal.

D. They show that people have the same ability to laugh.

63. One of the chief functions of irony and satire is ___________

A. to show absurdity of actions. 　B. to redress balance.

C. to take the wind out of politicians. D. to show too much grimness in the world.

64. What do we learn from the sentence ‘it is too powerful a weapon to be allowed to flourish in totalitarian regimes?’

A. It can reveal the truth of political events with satire.

B. It can arouse people to riot.

C. It shows tragedy and comedy are related.

D. It can make people laugh.

65. Who is Swift?

A. A novelist. B. A poet. 　　C. A dramatist. D. A essayist.

III. Writing (30%)

Directions: In this part you are going to write an essay of about 400-500 words within 60 minutes on the following topic. Write your essay on the Answer Sheet.

Would you like to live in a big city or small town? A survey with 2,004 respondents has revealed only 35.5 percent of those surveyed prefer to live in big cities, and 61.3 percent prefer low-pressure and a more comfortable life in small cities, according to China Youth Daily on Tuesday.

Where would you prefer to live? Please develop your point of view into a 400-500 words article.