1、考博英语（阅读理解）历年真题试卷汇编 2及答案与解析 一、 Reading Comprehension 0 In 1896 a Georgia couple suing for damages in the accidental death of their two year old was told that since the child had made no real economic contribution to the family, there was no liability for damages. In contrast, less than a century late
2、r, in 1979, the parents of a three year old sued in New York for accidental-death damages and won an award of $ 750, 000. The transformation in social values implicit in just a posing these two incidents is the subject of Viviana Zelizers excellent book, Pricing the Priceless Child. During the ninet
3、eenth century, she argues, the concept of the “useful“ child who contributed to the family economy gave way gradually to the present-day notion of the “useless“ child who, though producing no income for, and indeed extremely costly to, its parents, is yet considered emotionally “priceless“. Well est
4、ablished among segments of the middle and upper classes by the mid-1800s, this new view of childhood spread through-out society in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries as reformers introduced child-labor regulations and compulsory education laws predicated in part on the assumption that
5、 a childs emotional value made child labor taboo. For Zelizer the origins of this transformation were many and complex. The gradual erosion of childrens productive value in a maturing industrial economy, the decline in birth and death rates, especially in child mortality, and the development of the
6、companionate family(a family in which members were united by explicit bonds of love rather than duty)were all factors critical in changing the assessment of childrens worth. Yet “expulsion of children from the cash nexus , . although clearly shaped by profound changes in the economic, occupational,
7、and family structures,“ Zelizer maintains. “Was also part of a cultural process of sacralization of childrens lives. “ Protecting children from the crass business world became enormously important for late-nineteenth-century middle-class Americans, she suggests; this sacralization was a way of resis
8、ting what they perceived as the relentless corruption of human values by the marketplace. In stressing the cultural determinants of a childs worth. Zelizer takes issue with practitioners of the new “ sociological economics“ , who have analyzed such traditionally sociological topics as crime, marriag
9、e, education, and health solely in terms of their economic determinants. Allowing only a small role for cultural forces in the form of individual “preferences“ , these sociologists tend to view all human behavior as directed primarily by the principle of maximizing economic gain. Zelizer is highly c
10、ritical of this approach, and emphasizes instead the opposite phenomenon: the power of social values to transform price. As children became more valuable in emotional terms, she argues, their “ exchange“ or “surrender“ value on the market, that is, the conversion of their intangible worth into cash
11、terms, became much greater. 1 It can be inferred from the passage that accidental death damage awards in America during the nineteenth century tended to be based principally on the_. （ A） earnings of the person at time of death （ B） wealth of the party causing the death （ C） degree of culpability of
12、 the party causing the death （ D） amount of money that had been spent on the person killed 2 It can be inferred from the passage that in the early 1800s children were generally regarded by their families as individuals who_. （ A） needed enormous amounts of security and affection （ B） required consta
13、nt supervision while working （ C） were important to the economic well-being of a family （ D） were unsuited to spending long hours in school 3 Which of the following alternative explanations of the change in the cash value of children would be most likely to be put forward by sociological economists
14、as they are described in the passage? （ A） The cash value of children rose during the nineteenth century because parents began to increase their emotional investment in the upbringing of their children. （ B） The cash value of children rose during the nineteenth century because their expected earning
15、 over the course of a lifetime increased greatly. （ C） The cash value of children rose during the nineteenth century because the spread of humanitarian ideals resulted in a whole a sale reappraisal of the worth of an individual. （ D） The cash value of children rose during the nineteenth century beca
16、use compulsory education laws reduced the supply, and thus raised the costs, of available child labor. 4 The primary purpose of the passage is to_. （ A） review the literature in a new academic subfield （ B） present the central thesis of a recent book （ C） contrast two approaches to analyzing histori
17、cal change （ D） refute a traditional explanation of a social phenomenon 5 Zelizer refers to all of the following as important influences in changing the assessment of childrens worth except changes in_. （ A） the mortality rate （ B） the nature of industry （ C） the nature of the family （ D） attitudes
18、toward reform movements 5 A stout old lady was walking with her basket down the middle of a street in Petrograd to the great confusion of the traffic and with no small peril to herself. It was pointed out to her that the pavement was the place for pedestrians, but she replied; “Im going to walk wher
19、e I like. Weve got liberty now. “ It did not occur to the dear old lady that if liberty entitled the pedestrian to walk down the middle of the road, then the end of such liberty would be universal chaos. Everybody would be getting in everybody elses way and nobody would get anywhere. Individual libe
20、rty would have become social anarchy. There is a danger of the world getting liberty-drunk in these days like the old lady with the basket, and it is just as well to remind ourselves of what the rule of the road means. It means that in order that the liberties of all may be preserved, the liberties
21、of everybody must be curtailed. When the policeman, say, at Piccadilly Circus steps into the middle of the road and puts out his hand, he is the symbol not of tyranny, but of liberty. You may not think so. You may, being in a hurry, and seeing your car pulled up by this insolence of office, feel tha
22、t your liberty has been outraged. How dare this fellow interfere with your free use of the public highway? Then, if you are a reasonable person, you will reflect that if he did not interfere with you, he would interfere with no one, and the result would be that Piccadilly Circus would be a maelstrom
23、 that you would never cross at all. You have submitted to a curtailment of private liberty in order that you may enjoy a social order which makes your liberty a reality. Liberty is not a personal affair only, but a social contract. It is an accommodation of interests. In matters which do not touch a
24、nybody elses liberty, of course, I may be as free as I like. If I choose to go down the road in a dressing-gown who shall say me nay? You have liberty to laugh at me, but I have liberty to be indifferent to you. And if I have a fancy for dyeing my hair, or waxing my moustache(which heaven forbid), o
25、r wearing an overcoat and sandals, or going to bed late or getting up early, I shall follow my fancy and ask no mans permission. I shall not inquire of you whether I may eat mustard with my mutton. And you will not ask me whether you may follow this religion or that, whether you may prefer Ella Whee
26、ler Wilcox to Wordsworth, or champagne to shandy. In all these and a thousand other details you and I please ourselves and ask no ones leave. We have a whole kingdom, in which we rule alone, can do what we choose, be wise or ridiculous, harsh or easy, conventional or odd. But directly we step out of
27、 that kingdom, our personal liberty of action becomes qualified by other peoples liberty. I might like to practice on the trombone from midnight till three in the morning. If I went on to the top of Everest to do it, I could please myself, but if I do it in my bedroom my family will object, and if I
28、 do it out in the streets then neighbors will remind me that my liberty to blow the trombone must not interfere with their liberty to sleep in quiet. There are a lot of people in the world, and I have to accommodate my liberty to their liberties. We are all liable to forget this, and unfortunately w
29、e are much more conscious of the imperfections of others in this respect than of our own. A reasonable consideration for the rights or feelings of others is the foundation of social conduct. It is in the small matters of conduct, in the observance of the rule of the road, that we pass judgment upon
30、ourselves, and declare that we are civilized or uncivilized. The great moments of heroism and sacrifice are rare. It is the little habits of commonplace intercourse that make up the great sum of life and sweeten or make bitter the journey. 6 The author might have stated his “rule of the road“ as_. （
31、 A） do not walk in the middle of the road （ B） follow the orders of policemen （ C） do not behave inconsiderately in public （ D） do what you like in private 7 The authors attitude to the old lady in paragraph one is_. （ A） condescending （ B） intolerant （ C） objective （ D） supportive 8 A situation ana
32、logous to the “insolence of office“ described in paragraph 2 would be_. （ A） a teacher correcting grammar errors （ B） an editor shortening the text of an article （ C） a tax inspector demanding to see someones accounts （ D） an army office giving orders to a soldier 9 The author assumes that he may be
33、 as free as he likes in_. （ A） all matters of dress and food （ B） any situation which does not interfere with the liberty of others （ C） anything that is not against the law （ D） his own home 10 In the sentence “We are all liable.“ the author is_. （ A） pointing out a general weakness （ B） emphasizin
34、g his main point （ C） countering a general misconception （ D） suggesting a remedy 10 The name of Florence Nightingale lives in the memory of the world by virtue of the heroic adventure of the Crimea. Had she died as she nearly did upon her return to England, her reputation would hardly have been dif
35、ferent; her legend would have come down to us almost as we know it today that gentle vision of female virtue which first took shape before the adoring eyes of the sick soldiers at Scutari. Yet, as a matter of fact, she lived for more than half a century after the Crimean War; and during the greater
36、part of that long period all the energy and all the devotion of her extraordinary nature were working at their highest pitch. What she accomplished in those years of unknown labor could, indeed, hardly have been more glorious than her Crimean triumphs; but it was certainly more important. The true h
37、istory was far stranger even than the myth. In Miss Nightingales own eyes the adventure of the Crimea was a mere incident scarcely more than a useful stepping-stone in her career. It was the fulcrum with which she hoped to move the world; but it was only the fulcrum. For more than a generation she w
38、as to sit in secret, working her lever: and her real life began at the very moment when, in popular imagination, it had ended. She arrived in England in a shattered state of health. The hardships and the ceaseless efforts of the last two years had undermined her nervous system; her heart was affecte
39、d; she suffered constantly from fainting-fits and terrible attacks of utter physical prostration. The doctors declared that one thing alone would save her a complete and prolonged rest. But that was also the one thing with which she would have nothing to do. She had never been in the habit of restin
40、g; why should she begin now? Now, when her opportunity had come at last; now, when the iron was hot, and it was time to strike? No, she had worked to do; and, come what might, she would do it. The doctors protested in vain; in vain her family lamented and entreated, in vain her friends pointed out t
41、o her the madness of such a course. Madness? Mad possessed perhaps she was. A frenzy had seized upon her. As she lay upon her sofa, gasping, she devoured blue-books, dictated letters, and, in the intervals of her palpitations, cracked jokes. For months at a stretch she never left her bed. But she wo
42、uld not rest. At this rate, the doctors assured her, even if she did not die, she would become an invalid for life. She could not help that; there was work to be done; and, as for rest, very likely she might rest . when she had done it. Wherever she went, to London or in the country, in the hills of
43、 Derbyshire, or among the rhododendrons at Embley, she was haunted by a ghost. It was the specter of Scutari the hideous vision of the organization of a military hospital. She would lay that phantom, or she would perish. The whole system of the Army Medical Department, the education of the Medical O
44、fficer, the regulations of hospital procedure . rest? How could she rest while these things were as they were, while, if the like necessity were to arise again, the like results would follow? And, even in peace and at home, what was the sanitary condition of the Army? The mortality in the barracks,
45、was, she found, nearly double the mortality in civil life. “You might as well take 1,100 men every year out upon Salisbury Plain and shoot them,“ she said. After inspecting the hospitals at Chatham, she smiled grimly. “Yes, this is one more symptom of the system which, in the Crimea, put to death 16
46、, 000 men. “ Scutari had given her knowledge; and it had given her power too: her enormous reputation was at her back an incalculable force. Other work, other duties, might lie before her; but the most urgent, the most obvious, of all was to look to the health of the Army. 11 According to the author
47、, the work done during the last fifty years of Florence Nightingales life was, when compared with her work in the Crimea, all of the following except_. （ A） less dramatic （ B） less demanding （ C） less well-known to the public （ D） more important 12 Paragraph two paints a picture of a woman who is_.
48、（ A） mentally shattered （ B） stubborn and querulous （ C） physically weak but mentally indomitable （ D） purposeful yet tiresome 13 The primary purpose of paragraph 3 is to_. （ A） account for conditions in the army （ B） show the need for hospital reform （ C） explain Miss Nightingales main concerns （ D
49、） argue that peacetime conditions were worse than wartime conditions 14 The authors attitude to his material is_. （ A） disinterested reporting of biographical details （ B） over-inflation of a reputation （ C） debunking a myth （ D） interpretation as well as narration 15 In her statement(in the last paragraph)Miss Nightingale intended to_. （ A） criticize the conditions in hospitals （ B） highlight the unhealthy conditions under which ordinary soldiers were living （ C） prove that conditions
