Reading Comprehension (55 points)

　　In this section you will find after each of the passages a number of questions or unfinished statements about the passage, each with 4 (A, B, C and D) choices to complete the statement. You must choose the one which you think fits best. Then blacken the corresponding letter as required on your Machine-scoring ANSWER SHEET. The time for this section is 75 minutes.

　　Phyllis Wheatley is regarded as America's first black poet. She was born in Senegal, Africa, about 1753 and brought to America aboard a slave ship at about the age of seven. John and Susannah Wheatley bought her for three pounds at a slave auction in Boston in 1761 to be a personal servant of Mrs. Wheatley. The family had three other slaves, and all were treated with respect. Phyllis was soon accepted as one of the family, which included being raised and educated with the Wheatley's twin 15-year-old children, Mary and Nathaniel. At that time, most females, even from better families, could not read and write, but Mary was probably one of the best educated young women in Boston. Mary wanted to become a teacher, and in fact, it was Mary who decided to take charge of Phyllis's education. Phyllis soon displayed her remarkable talents. At the age of twelve she was reading the Greek and Latin classics and passages from the Bible. And eventually. Mrs. Wheatley decided Phyllis should become a Christian.

　　At the age of thirteen Phyllis wrote her first poem. She became a Boston sensation after she wrote a poem on the death of the evangelical preacher George Whitfield in 1770. It became common practice in Boston to have "Mrs. Wheatley's Phyllis" read poetry in polite society. Mary married in 1771, and Phyllis later moved to the country because of poor health, as a teacher and caretaker to a farmer's three children. Mary had tried to interest publishers in Phyllis's poems but once they heard she was a Negro they weren't interested.

　　Then in 1773 Phyllis went with Nathaniel, who was now a businessman, to London. It was thought that a sea voyage might improve her health. Thirty-nine of her poems were published in London as Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral. It was the first book published by a black American. In 1775 Phyllis wrote a poem extolling the accomplishments of George Washington and sent it to him. He responded by praising her talents and inviting her to visit his headquarters. After both of her benefactors died in 1777, and Mary died in 1778, Phyllis was freed as a slave. She married in 1778, moved away from Boston, and had three children. But after the unhappy marriage, she moved back to Boston, and died in poverty at the age of thirty.

　　51. What does the passage mainly discuss?

　　A. Slavery and the treatment of the black people in America.

　　B. The Wheatley family, including their slaves.

　　C. The life of America's first black poet.

　　D. The achievements of Phyllis Wheatley.

　　52. The underlined word "respect" in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ______.

　　A. consideration B. disregard

　　C. punishment D. behavior

　　53. According to the passage, how many slaves did the Wheatley's have?

　　A. One. B. Two.

　　C. Three. D. Four.

　　54. According to the passage, an unusual feature of Mary was that she ______.

　　A. was not much older than Phyllis

　　B. wanted to become a teacher

　　C. was comparatively well educated

　　D. decided to take charge of Phyllis's education

　　55. The underlined word "eventually" in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ______.

　　A. ultimately B. slowly

　　C. reluctantly D. gradually

　　56. Which of the following is NOT true about Phyllis in the early 1770s?

　　A. She wrote her first poem when in her teens.

　　B. She married in 1771.

　　C. She became a teacher.

　　D. She was able to get her poems published.

　　57. The underlined word "they" in Paragraph 2 refers to ______

　　A. publishers B. poems

　　C. children D. black people

　　58. It can be inferred that Phyllis's trip to England with Nathaniel in 1773 ______

　　A. did not improve her health

　　B. was for business reasons

　　C. led to books of her poems being available in America

　　D. led to the publication of her poems because the English were more interested in religious and moral subjects

　　59. The word "extolling" is closest in meaning to ______

　　A. welcoming B. stating

　　C. bemoaning D. praising

　　60. Which of the following conclusions about Phyllis is supported by the passage?

　　A. She would have been more recognized as a poet if she had not been black.

　　B. She would have written poetry if she had stayed in Africa.

　　C. She went unrecognized as a poet during her lifetime.

　　D. She only wrote religious poetry.

　　51.C[分析] 豐旨題型。

　　本文首先談及她是美國第一個黑人詩人，后描寫了她出生在非洲，被販賣黑奴的船只帶到美國，被John and Susannah Wheatley買去，與其他黑奴一樣在這家受到尊重，跟從John and Susannah Wheatley的女兒Mary受教育……：十三歲寫出她的第一首詩……;后結(jié)婚生子，最終三十歲時窮困而死：因此選項C是答案。

　　52.A[分析] 詞義題型。

　　從第一段可以看出她雖被賣為奴隸，卻受到良好的對待，甚至不久就被當作是家庭的一員(Phyllis was soon accepted as one of the family)，因此respect在此應為consideration體貼，照顧;選項A正確。其余幾個選項全是反義。

　　53.D[分析] 細節(jié)題型。

　　見第一段第四句：The family had three other slaves…她也是被頭為奴隸的，……因此這家有4個奴隸;選項D為答案。

　　54.C[分析] 細節(jié)題型。

　　盡管選項B、C、D都與文章內(nèi)容相符，但本題問的是Mary本身擁有的與眾不同的特點，所以選項C為答案。

　　55.A[分析] 詞義題型。

　　eventually最后，終于，文章提到Mrs.Wheatley一家將她買為奴隸，卻撫養(yǎng)教育她，最終Mrs.Wheatley決定讓她成為一個基督徒。選項B.緩慢地; C.不情愿地：D.逐漸地，均不符合題意;因此只有選項A是答案。

　　56.B[分析] 細節(jié)題型。

　　選項A在第二段第一句中提及;選項C在第二段倒數(shù)第二句中提及，選項 D在第三段第三句中提及：只有選項B是錯誤的：因此B為答案。

　　57.A[分析] 細節(jié)題型。

　　此句意為：Mary試圖使出版商對Phyllis的詩感興趣，但一旦他們聽說Phyllis是個黑人時，就興趣索然。因此此處的they指的應是選項A。

　　58.A[分析] 推斷題型。

　　由第三段第二句(It was thought that a sea voyage might improve her health.)可知這只是人們的希望，并不見得能實現(xiàn);因此選項A為答案。

　　59.D[分析] 詞義題型。

　　根據(jù)上下文，她寫詩“extolling”華盛頓的成就并將詩送給他。因此，extolling應為“贊美”之意，選項D正確。

　　60.A[分析] 主旨題型。

　　根據(jù)全文得知：她才華橫溢，十二歲時即能看希臘、羅馬名著和圣經(jīng)，十三歲時寫出第一首詩……;但當出版商們得知她是黑人就對她不感興趣了……。因此我們可總結(jié)出：如果她不是黑人，她會得到更多的認可。選項A正確。