1、大学英语四级模拟试卷 896及答案与解析 一、 Part I Writing (30 minutes) 1 For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay on the topic: Computers or Books. You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below. 1. 一些人认为图书馆应该购买更多电脑 2. 另一些人认为应该购买更多图书 3. 你的看法 Computers or Books 二、 Part II
2、Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning) (15 minutes) Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions attached to the passage. For questions 1-7, mark: Y (for YES) if the statement agrees with the information given in the passage; N (fo
3、r NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the passage; NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage. 1 Cartoons in America The new family movie “Ice Age: The Meltdown“ is written for laughs. But some people might also see it as a serious message about the dange
4、rs of climate warming. Ice Age: The Meltdown The film brings back the animated animals from the 2002 hit movie “Ice Age.“ The main characters are a wooly mammoth(猛犸 )named Manny, a sloth(树獭 )named Sid and a saber-toothed tiger(剑齿虎 )named Diego. In the first movie, Manny, Sid and Diego faced the dang
5、ers of the coming prehistoric freeze. This time they are threatened by floods from the melting of the Ice Age. At first, the animals love the water. Later, when they discover the threat, they must warn everyone else and find a way to save their valley. Walt Disney The world of cartooning has changed
6、 a lot since the days when Walt Disney drew his characters by hand. Animated cartoons are especially labor-intensive. Animators create a sense of movement through a progression of many images. Each image is a little different than the one before it. Today many animators, including the ones who made
7、the “Ice Age“ movies, get help from computers. But Walt Disneys work still influences modern cartooning. He started his company in 1923. He had his first big success 5 years later. He combined animation with sound in the 1928 film “Steamboat Willie.“ “Steamboat Willie“ was the first movie to star Mi
8、ckey Mouse. Later came other famous Disney characters, including Donald Duck. Donald Duck is over 70 years old now, but you could never tell by looking at him. To animate something means to give it life. Animated characters can live forever - or at least as long as they stay popular. Comic Strips an
9、d Cartoons Another form of cartooning is the comic strip. Comic strips are a drawing or a series of drawings that present a situation or tell a little story. Comic strips are usually good for a laugh or at least a smile. American newspapers commonly publish a page or more of them each day. These are
10、 usually black- and-white drawings. Sunday funnies are often published in color. Readers of all ages enjoy the comics in the newspaper. On television, cartoons used to be thought of as mainly for children. But times have changed. For example, Cartoon Network says one-third of the people who watch it
11、s programs are over the age of 18. So it offers special late-night programming called “Adult Swim.“ These cartoons are meant to appeal to what it calls “a grown-up sense of humor and other adult sensibilities.“ One of the shows, “The Boondocks(荒野 ),“ is based on a newspaper comic strip. “The Boondoc
12、ks“ is the story of Huey and Riley, two young African-American boys. They come from a rough part of Chicago, Illinois. Now they live with their grandfather in a mainly white community. The characters are known for their sharp observations about life there, and life in general. Huey speaks his mind l
13、ike a revolutionary. “The Boondocks“ often deals with issues of race and social justice. The strip is more political than most comic strips readers are used to. Some think it is great; others think it goes too far. “The Boondocks“ appears in about 350 newspapers. Aaron McGruder is the cartoonist who
14、 created it. He has been taking a break from the print version since March, and does not plan to have new ones until October. “Every well needs refreshing,“ he says. “Peanuts“ is an example of a more traditional comic strip. Charles Schulz is the artist who created Charlie Brown and Snoopy the dog a
15、nd all their friends. Charles Schulz died in 2000. But the cartoons he drew are still being repeated. The humor is timeless. Many readers also enjoy comics like “Garfield and Friends.“ Garfield is a fat cat who likes thinking of food and making fun of his owner. And some readers never miss “Dennis t
16、he Menace.“ This single-drawing cartoon is about a 5-year-old boy. Dennis is always causing trouble for his parents and a retired neighbor, Mister Wilson. But to his fans since the 1950s, Dennis is always likeable. Editorial Cartoons Another form of cartooning is the editorial cartoon. These express
17、 the opinion of the artist or the artists publication. The 19th century cartoonist Thomas Nast drew for Harpers Weekly and the humor magazine Puck. In his political cartoons he drew an elephant to represent Republicans and a donkey for Democrats. Today these animals are still used to represent the t
18、wo major parties in America. In the 20th century, cartoonists like Peter Arno, James Thurber and Charles Addams drew for the New Yorker magazine. The New Yorker has a tradition of publishing cartoons as social commentary. Peter Arno liked to make fun of people of wealth and social position and self-
19、importance. He drew his subjects with heavy lines. James Thurbers cartoons pointed out human weaknesses. He drew his subjects with a light touch. James Thurber also wrote many humor books. He created the character of Walter Mitty. Walter Mitty is a mild little man who daydreams of doing exciting thi
20、ngs. Cartoonist Charles Addams created the Addams Family. They looked like a scary family out of a horror movie. But Addams made funny situations from these strange characters. Somehow his artistry made normal people seem strange. Today, New Yorker cartoons are still known for their sharp humor. For
21、 example, a lawyer advises a man that the best defense in his situation is to lie. New Yorker cartoonists can find humor in almost any situation. A well-known cartoon that appeared in 1993 was drawn by Peter Steiner. Two dogs are at a computer. One says to the other, “On the Internet, nobody knows y
22、oure a dog.“ One of Americas most influential political cartoonists worked at the Washington Post for 55 years. His name was Herbert Block. But readers knew him better as Herblock, the name he used to sign his work. During the 1950s, Herblock was known for his cartoons against Senator Joseph McCarth
23、y. McCarthy accused many people of being communists. Finally, the Senate condemned McCarthy for his actions. Over the years, Herblock won 3 Pulitzer prizes(普利策奖 )and a Presidential Medal of Freedom. He continued drawing until shortly before his death in 2001, at the age of 91. Cartoons can make powe
24、rful statements about events. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy was shot. That led cartoonist Bill Mauldin to draw another president who died that way. He drew the statue of Abraham Lincoln in Washington. In the cartoon, President Lincoln is crying. Almost 40 years later, in 2001, cartoonists drew
25、the Statue of Liberty crying in New York Harbor. That was after the September 11th attack on the nearby World Trade Center. Cartoons can make people sad. They can also make them angry. Last September a newspaper in Den- mark published cartoons that insulted Muslims. Other newspapers later republishe
26、d these cartoons. Protests and deadly riots took place in a number of countries earlier this year. The cartoons and the reaction led to international debate about responsibility and freedom of speech. Cartoons can make us think, they can make us laugh, they can make us cry. Cartoons can make a diffe
27、rence in how we look at life. 2 Beginning by the hot cartoon movie “Ice Age: The Meltdown“, the article introduces the world of cartoons in America. ( A) Y ( B) N ( C) NG 3 “Ice Age: The Meltdown“ is a follow-up of “Ice Age“ which was shown in 200 ( A) Y ( B) N ( C) NG 4 In 192, the film “Steamboat
28、Willie“ became the first animation with sound, which was starred by the cartoon star Donald Duck. ( A) Y ( B) N ( C) NG 5 People usually enjoy comic strips by its presentation of a situation or telling a little laughable story. ( A) Y ( B) N ( C) NG 6 The cartoon show “The Boondocks“ concerns issues
29、 of racial problems and social justice. ( A) Y ( B) N ( C) NG 7 The world known characters of comic strip, Charlie Brown and Snoopy, were created by artist Charles Schulz who was born in Minnesota. ( A) Y ( B) N ( C) NG 8 Thomas Nast was the cartoonist who drew an elephant and a donkey to represent
30、Democrats and Republicans respectively in cartoons. ( A) Y ( B) N ( C) NG 9 A famous character, who always daydreams of doing exciting things, created by James Thurber, is named _. 10 Herblock, who had ever won 3 Pulitzer prizes and a Presidential Medal of Freedom, worked years at _. 11 In cartoon,
31、Bill Mauldin drew President 1ncoln who was shot to death, which reflected the death of President John F. Kennedy in the year of _. Section A Directions: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked
32、 about what was said. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After each question there will be a pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A, B, C and D, and decide which is the best answer. ( A) Laurie failed to go to attend the party. ( B) The woman
33、gave a successful party yesterday. ( C) Peter regretted inviting the woman to the party. ( D) The man reminded the woman about the party. ( A) At two oclock. ( B) At four oclock. ( C) At six oclock. ( D) At eight oclock. ( A) It is too dark. ( B) Its strange to wear in the office. ( C) The jacket an
34、d the pants dont match. ( D) The suit is really light for cold weather. ( A) Go to the movie. ( B) Work with his Italian boss. ( C) Hold an important meeting. ( D) Have a dinner with a customer. ( A) People are too noisy. ( B) The show is very boring. ( C) The room is too small for the audience. ( D
35、) The play is difficult for him to understand. ( A) Feeling better now. ( B) Staying in a hospital. ( C) Talking about the mans mother. ( D) Doing an operation on a patient ( A) The woman went to many different stores. ( B) Both the speakers shopped all over the town. ( C) The books the woman bought
36、 were expensive. ( D) The woman asked the man to wait for him longer. ( A) He wrapped the gift. ( B) He paid by check. ( C) He left without paying. ( D) He bought something by credit card. ( A) 110,000. ( B) 1.2 million. ( C) One million. ( D) Over a thousand. ( A) Heart disease and lung cancer. ( B
37、) Heart disease and increased blood pressure. ( C) Increased blood pressure and lung cancer. ( D) Increased heart rate and lung cancer. ( A) It is a powerful and fast-acting drug. ( B) It causes the familiar yellow and brown stain. ( C) Increased heart rate, and blood disease. ( D) Increased heart r
38、ate, and blood pressure. ( A) To Colorado. ( B) To Arizona. ( C) To the Nile River. ( D) To the Museum of Natural History. ( A) Archaeological. ( B) Biological. ( C) Meteorological. ( D) Sociological. ( A) In a cave. ( B) In a river. ( C) In a tree. ( D) In a boat. ( A) Solve a mystery. ( B) See the
39、 valley. ( C) Find some driftwood. ( D) Take some photographs. Section B Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear some questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the
40、best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. ( A) Beijing. ( B) Hong Kong. ( C) Shenzhen. ( D) Shanghai. ( A) red, white and blue. ( B) blue, black, brown and green. ( C) white, brown and black. ( D) blonde, brown, black and red. ( A) Lincoln, Edinburgh and Cardiff. ( B) London, Birmingha
41、m and Manchester. ( C) London, Edinburgh and Cardiff. ( D) London, Lincoln and Manchester. ( A) They had known each other since childhood. ( B) They shared many extracurricular activities. ( C) They shared mutual friends in school. ( D) They had many interests in common. ( A) At a local club. ( B) A
42、t Joes house. ( C) At the boarding school. ( D) At the sports center. ( A) It is hard for people from different backgrounds to become friends. ( B) Durable friendships can be very difficult to maintain. ( C) One has to be respectful of other people in order to win respect. ( D) Social divisions will
43、 break down if people get to know each other. ( A) The number of roles human beings play is much more than that of insects. ( B) The roles human beings play is more important. ( C) The insects have fewer opportunities to change their roles. ( D) Different individual performs different functions in h
44、uman society but not the case in insect society. Section C Directions: In this section, you will hear a passage three times. When the passage is read for the first time, you should listen carefully for its general idea. When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in the bl
45、anks numbered from 36 to 43 with the exact words you have just heard. For blanks numbered from 44 to 46 you are required to fill in the missing information. For these blanks, you can either use the exact words you have just heard or write down the 33 Time is, for the average American, of utmost impo
46、rtance. To the【 B1】_visitor, Americans seem to be more concerned with getting things【 B2】_on time (according to a predetermined schedule) than they are with developing deep【 B3】 _relations. Schedules, for the American, are meant to be planned and then followed in the smallest【 B4】 _. It may seem to
47、you that most Americans are completely【 B5】 _by the little machines they wear on their wrists, cutting their discussions off【 B6】 _to make it to their next appointment on time. Americans language is filled with【 B7】 _ to time, giving a clear【 B8】_of how much it is valued. Time is something to be “on
48、,“ to be “kept,“ “filled,“ “saved,“ “wasted,“ “gained,“ “planned,“ “given,“ “made the most of,“ even “killed. “ The international visitor soon learns that【 B9】 _. Time is so valued in America because by considering time to be important one can clearly achieve more than if one “wastes“ time and doesn
49、t keep busy. This philosophy has proven its worth.【 B10】 _. Many American proverbs (谚语 ) stress the value of guarding time, using it wisely and setting and working toward specific goals.【 B11】_. 34 【 B1】 35 【 B2】 36 【 B3】 37 【 B4】 38 【 B5】 39 【 B6】 40 【 B7】 41 【 B8】 42 【 B9】 43 【 B10】 44 【 B11】 Section A Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank followi