2023年6月24日发(作者：)

2007 英语专业四级阅读理解答案及详解(2)TEXT C

I am afraid to sleep. I have been afraid to sleep for the last few

weeks. I am so tired that, finally, I do sleep, but only for a few

minutes. It is not a bad dream that wakes me ; it is the reality I

took with me into sleep . I try to think of something else.

Immediately the woman in the marketplace comes into my mind.

I was on my way to dinner last night when I saw her . She was selling

skirts. She moved with the same ease and loveliness I often saw in

the women of Laos. Her long black hair was as shiny as the black silk

of the skirts she was selling . In her hair, she wore three silk

ribbons, blue ,green, and white. They reminded me of my childhood and

how my girlfriends and I used to spend hours braiding ribbons into

our hair.

I don’t know the word for “ribbons”, so I put my hand to my own

hair and , with three fingers against my head , I looked at her

ribbons and said “Beautiful. ” She lowered her eyes and said nothing.

I wasn’t sure if she understood me (I don’t speak Laotian very

well).

I looked back down at the skirts. They had designs on them: squares

and triangles and circles of pink and green silk. They were very

pretty. I decided to buy one of those skirts, and I began to bargain

with her over the price. It is the custom to bargain in Asia. In Laos

bargaining is done in soft voices and easy moves with the sort of

quiet peacefulness.

She smiled, more with her eyes than with her lips. She was pleased by

the few words I was able to say in her language, although they were

mostly numbers, and she saw that I understood something about the

soft playfulness of bargaining. We shook our heads in disagreement

over the price ; then, immediately, we made another offer and then

another shake of the head. She was so pleased that unexpectedly, she

accepted the last offer I made. But it was too soon. The price was

too low. She was being too generous and wouldn’t make enough money.

I moved quickly and picked up two more skirts and paid for all three

at the price set ; that way I was able to pay her three times as much

before she had a chance to lower the price for the larger purchase.

She smiled openly then, and, for the first time in months, my spirit

lifted. I almost felt happy.

The feeling stayed with me while she wrapped the skirts in a

newspaper and handed them to me. When I left, though, the feeling

left, too. It was as though it stayed behind in marketplace. I left

tears in my throat. I wanted to cry. I didn’t , of course.

I have learned to defend myself against what is hard ; without knowing

it, I have also learned to defend myself against what is soft and what should be easy.

I get up, light a candle and want to look at the skirts. They are

still in the newspaper that the woman wrapped them in. I remove the

paper, and raise the skirts up to look at them again before I pack

them. Something falls to floor. I reach down and feel something cool

in my hand. I move close to the candlelight to see what I have. There

are five long silk ribbons in my hand, all different colors. The

woman in the marketplace! She has given these ribbons to me!

There is no defense against a generous spirit, and this time I cry,

and very hard, as if I could make up for all the months that I

didn’t cry.

89. According to the writer, the woman in the marketplace ____B____ .

A. refused to speak to her.

B. was pleasant and attractive.

C. was selling skirts and ribbons.

D. recognized her immediately.

解析：B。根据第 3 段对她的细节描写。 “She moved with the same ease

and loveliness … Her long black hair was as shiny as the black silk

of the skirts she was selling . In her hair, she wore three silk

ribbons, blue ,green, and white. They reminded me of my childhood and

how my girlfriends and I used to spend hours braiding ribbons into

our hair. ” 由此可见，作者对她的印象是愉快的。

90. Which of the following in NOT correct? ____A____

A. The writer was not used to bargaining.

B. People in Asia always bargain when buying things.

C. Bargaining in Laos was quiet and peaceful.

D. The writer was ready to bargain with the woman.

解析：A。第 5 段 “It is the custom to bargain in Asia. In Laos

bargaining is done in soft voices and easy moves with the sort of

quiet peacefulness. ” (在亚洲，人们有讨价还价的习俗。在老挝，人们讨

价还价时总是轻言细语) ，由此可知，B、C、D 是正确的。作者了解当地的习

俗，所以很自然地开始bargain，所以 A 选项不对。

91. The writer assumed that the woman accepted the last offer mainly

because woman ____A/C____ .

A. thought that the last offer was reasonable.

B. thought she could still make much money.

C. was glad that the writer knew their way of bargaining.

D. was tired of bargaining with the writer any more.

解析：A/C。“she accepted the last offer I made. But it was too soon.

The price was too low. She was being too generous and wouldn’t make

enough money. ” 92. Why did the writer finally decide to buy three skirts? ____C____

A. The skirts were cheap and pretty.

B. She liked the patterns on the skirts.

C. She wanted to do something as compensation.

D. She was fed up with further bargaining with the woman.

解析：C。第 6 段: “that way I was able to pay her three times as much

before she had a chance to lower the price for the larger purchase. ”

由此可知，作者因为价格很低，所以想多买几件作为对卖裙子的姑娘的一种补

偿。

did the writer left the marketplace, she wanted to cry, but

did not because ____A____.

A. she had learned to stay cool and unfeeling.

B. she was afraid of crying in public.

C. she had learned to face difficulties bravely.

D. she had to show in public that she was strong.

解析：A。第 8 段： “I have learned to defend myself against what is

hard ; without knowing it, I have also learned to defend myself

against what is soft and what should be easy. ” (我学会了抗拒困难，不

知不觉中，我也学会了不被温柔和轻松俘获。) 由此可知，作者没有哭是因为

她已经学会控制自己的情绪不会轻易受到影响，所以选 A。

94. Why did the writer cry eventually when she looked at the skirts

again? ____C____

A. she suddenly felt very sad.

B. she liked the ribbons so much.

C. she was overcome by emotion.

D. she felt sorry for the woman.

解析：C。最后一段：“There is no defense against a generous spirit,

and this time I cry…” (对于一颗慷慨的心你是无法防备的，所以这次我哭

了， …) 由此可知我哭是因为被卖丝绸裙子的姑娘感动了。

TEXT D

The kids are hanging out. I pass small bands of students, in my way

to work these mornings. They have become a familiar part of the

summer landscape.

These kids are not old enough for jobs. Nor are they rich enough for

camp. They are school children without school. The calendar called

the school year ran out on them a few weeks ago. Once supervised by

teachers and principals, they now appear to be “self care”.

Passing them is like passing through a time zone. For much of our

history, after all, Americans arranged the school year around the

needs of work and family. In 19th-century cities, schools were open

seven or eight hours a day, 11 months a year. In rural America, the year was arranged around the growing season. Now, only 3 percent of

families follow the agricultural model, but nearly all schools are

scheduled as if our children went home early to milk the cows and

took months off to work the crops. Now, three-quarters of the mothers

of school-age children work, but the calendar is written as if they

were home waiting for the school bus.

The six-hour day, the 180-day school year is regarded as something

holy. But when parents work an eight-hour day and a 240-day year, it

means something different. It means that many kids go home to empty

houses. It means that, in the summer, they hang out.

“We have a huge mismatch between the school calendar and realities

of family life, ” says Dr. Ernest Boyer ,head of the Carnegie

Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

Dr. Boyer is one of many who believe that a radical revision of the

school calendar is inevitable. “School, whether we like it or not,

is educational. It always has been. ”

His is not popular idea. School are routinely burdened with the job

of solving all our social problems. Can they be asked to meet the

needs of our work and family lives?

It may be easier to promote a longer school year on its educational

merits and, indeed, the educational case is compelling. Despite the

complaints and studies about our kids’ lack of learning, the United

State still has a shorter school year than any industrial nation. In

most of Europe, the school year is 220 days. In Japan, it is 240 days

long. While classroom time alone doesn’t produce a well-educated

child, learning takes time and more learning takes more time. The

long summers of forgetting take a toll.

The opposition to a longer school year comes from families that want

to and can provide other experiences for their children. It comes

from teachers. It comes from tradition. And surely from kids. But the

most important part of the conflict has been over the money.

95. Which of the following is an opinion of the author’s? ____A____

A. “The kids are hanging out. ”

B. “They are school children without school. ”

C. “These kids are not old enough for jobs. ”

D. “The calendar called the school year ran out on them a few weeks

ago. ”

解析：A。 第一段的第一句：“The kids are hanging out. ”跟第二段的最后

一句： “Once supervised by teachers and principals, they now appear

to be “self care”. 相呼应。作者的观点是现在的孩子上学的时间太短，很

多时间都在外闲逛，无所事事。这里的hang out 是指在某地逗留，浪费时间。

后面也可以加个地方， 旨在那个地方逗留，浪费时间。也可以 with 某人，指与

某人在一起瞎混，浪费时间。例如：You guys spent too much time hanging out.

你们花太多时间瞎混了。B、C、D 是客观事实陈述，并不是作者观点。

96. The current American school calendar was developed in the 19th

century according to ____A____

A. the growing season on nation’s farm.

B. the labor demands of the industrial age.

C. teachers’ demands for more vacation time.

D. parents’ demands for other experiences for their kids.

解析：A。第三段提到： “In rural America, the year was arranged around

the growing season. Now, only 3 percent of families follow the

agricultural model, but nearly all schools are scheduled as if our

children went home early to milk the cows and took months off to work

the crops. (19 世纪的时候，上学时间是根据农时来决定的。现在虽然只有 3%

的家庭从事农业，但几乎所有的学校的校历安排似乎是让孩子们早早回家去挤

牛奶或是花上几个月时间去地里种庄稼.)

97. The author thinks that the current school calendar ____A____.

A. is still valid.

B. is out of date.

C. can not be revised.

D. can not be defended.

解析：B。从第三段可知，现有的校历是根据以前的情况制定的，已经不能适应

现在的情况了。

98. Why was Dr. Boy’s idea unpopular? ____D____

A. He argues for the role of school in solving social problems.

B. He supports the current school calendar.

C. He thinks that school year and family life should be considered

separately.

D. He strongly believes in the educational role of school.

解析：D。A 和 B 明显与文章不符。A 指的是大众的观点；B 选项Dr. Boy 是不

赞同现有的校历的。C 选项与文章相反，文中提到 ’s idea: “We have

a huge mismatch between the school calendar and realities of family

life, ”… “School, whether we like it or not, is educational. It

always has been. ” 意思是如今的校历安排与现实生活脱节，暗指应该把两者

结合起来。

99.“The long summers of forgetting take a toll ”in the last

paragraph but one means that ____C____.

A. long summer vacation slows down the progress of learning.

B. long summer vacation has been abandoned in Europe.

C. long summers result in less learning time.

D. long summers are a result of tradition.

解析：C。细看这句话： “learning takes time more learning takes more time, the long summer's forgetting take a toll. ” take a toll 意思是

造成损失或有不良的影响。这句话意思是： “学习要时间,更多学习要更多时间,

而长时间的暑假会影响(它),会对(它)造成不好影响”。

文中作者的观点是现有的校历学习的时间不够长，“Despite the complaints

and studies about our kids’ lack of learning, the United State still

has a shorter school year than any industrial nation. ” (虽然我们抱怨

和研究我们的孩子学习不够，然而在美国，上学时间仍然比其他任何工业国家

的都要短。)

100. The main purpose of the passage is ____C____

A. to describe how American children spend their summer.

B. to explain the needs of the modern working families.

C. to discuss the problems of the current school calendar.

D. to persuade parents to stay at home to look after their kids.

解析：C。整篇文章讨论的是现有的校历安排存在的问题。