老托文章PASSAGE 2040.docx

1、老托文章PASSAGE 2040PASSAGE 20(25) In seventeenth-century colonial North America, all day-to-day cooking was done in the fireplace. Generally large, fireplaces were planned for cooking as well as for warmth. Those in the Northeast were usually four or five feet high, and in the South, they were often hi

2、gh enough for a person to walk into. A heavy timber called the mantel tree was used as a lintel to support the stonework above the fireplace opening. This timber might be scorched occasionally, but it was far enough in front of the rising column of heat to be safe from catching fire. Two ledges were

3、 built across from each other on the inside of the chimney. On these rested the ends of a lug pole from which pots were suspended when cooking. Wood from a freshly cut tree was used for the lug pole, so it would resist heat, but it had to be replaced frequently because it dried out and charred, and

4、was thus weakened. Sometimes the pole broke and the dinner fell into the fire. When iron became easier to obtain, it was used instead of wood for lug poles, and later fireplaces had pivoting metal rods to hang pots from. Beside the fireplace and built as part of it was the oven. It was made like a s

5、mall, secondary fireplace with a flue leading into the main chimney to draw out smoke. Sometimes the door of the oven faced the room, but most ovens were built with the opening facing into the fireplace. On baking days (usually once or twice a week) a roaring fire of oven wood, consisting of brown m

6、aple sticks, was maintained in the oven until its walls were extremely hot. The embers were later removed, bread dough was put into the oven, and the oven was sealed shut until the bread was fully baked. Not all baking was done in a big oven, however. Also used was an iron bake kettle, which looked

7、like a stewpot on legs and which had an iron lid. This is said to have worked well when it was placed in the fireplace, surrounded by glowing wood embers, with more embers piled on its lid. 1. Which of the following aspects of domestic life in colonial North America does the passage mainly discuss?(

8、A) methods of baking bread(B) fireplace cooking(C) the use of iron kettles in a typical kitchen(D) the types of wood used in preparing meals2. The author mentions the fireplaces built in the South to illustrate(A) how the materials used were similar to the materials used in northeastern fireplaces(B

9、) that they served diverse functions(C) that they were usually larger than northeastern fireplaces(D) how they were safer than northeastern fireplaces3. The word scorched in line 6 is closest in meaning to(A) burned(B) cut(C) enlarged(D) bent4. The word it in line 6 refers to(A) the stonework(B) the

10、 fireplace opening(C) the mantel tree(D) the rising column of heat5. According to the passage , how was food usually cooked in a pot in the seventeenth century?(A) By placing the pot directly into the fire(B) By putting the pot in the oven(C) By filling the pot with hot water(D) By hanging the pot o

11、n a pole over the fire6. The word obtain in line 12 is closest in meaning to(A) maintain(B) reinforce(C) manufacture(D) acquire7. Which of the following is mentioned in paragraph 2 as a disadvantage of using a wooden lug pole?(A) It was made of wood not readily available.(B) It was difficult to move

12、 or rotate.(C) It occasionally broke.(D) It became too hot to touch.8. It can be inferred from paragraph 3 that, compared to other firewood, oven wood produced(A) less smoke(B) more heat(C) fewer embers(D) lower flames9. According to paragraph 3, all of the following were true of a colonial oven EXC

13、EPT:(A) It was used to heat the kitchen every day.(B) It was built as part of the main fireplace.(C) The smoke it generated went out through the main chimney.(D) It was heated with maple sticks.10. According to the passage , which of the following was an advantage of a bake kettle?(A) It did not tak

14、e up a lot of space in the fireplace.(B) It did not need to be tightly closed.(C) It could be used in addition to or instead of the oven.(D) It could be used to cook several foods at one time.PASSAGE 21 The sculptural legacy that the new United States inherited from its colonial predecessors was far

15、 from a rich one, and in fact, in 1776 sculpture as an art form was still in the hands of artisans and craftspeople. Stone carvers engraved their motifs of skulls and crossbones and other religious icons of death into the gray slabs that we still see standing today in old burial grounds. Some skille

16、d craftspeople made intricately carved wooden ornamentations for furniture or architectural decorations, while others caved wooden shop signs and ships figureheads. Although they often achieved expression and formal excellence in their generally primitive style, they remained artisans skilled in the

17、 craft of carving and constituted a group distinct from what we normally think of as sculptors in todays use of the word. On the rare occasion when a fine piece of sculpture was desired, Americans turned to foreign sculptors, as in the 1770s when the cities of New York and Charleston, South Carolina

18、, commissioned the Englishman Joseph Wilton to make marble statues of William Pitt. Wilton also made a lead equestrian image of King George III that was created in New York in 1770 and torn down by zealous patriots six years later. A few marble memorials with carved busts, urns, or other decorations

19、 were produced in England and brought to the colonies to be set in the walls of churches as in Kings Chapel in Boston. But sculpture as a high art, practiced by artists who knew both the artistic theory of their Renaissance-Baroque-Rococo predecessors and the various technical procedures of modeling

20、, casting, and carving rich three-dimensional forms, was not known among Americans in 1776. Indeed, for many years thereafter, the United States had two groups from which to choose either the local craftspeople or the imported talent of European sculptors. The eighteenth century was not one in which

21、 powered sculptural conceptions were developed. Add to this the timidity with which unschooled artisans originally trained as stonemasons, carpenters, or cabinetmakers attacked the medium from which they sculpture made in the United States in the late eighteenth century. 1. What is the main idea of

22、the passage ?(A) There was great demand for the work of eighteenth-century artisans.(B) Skilled sculptors did not exist in the United States in the 1770s.(C) Many foreign sculptors worked in the United States after 1776.(D) American sculptors were hampered by a lack of tools and materials.2. The wor

23、d motifs in line 3 is closest in meaning to(A) tools(B) prints(C) signatures(D) designs3. The work of which of the following could be seen in burial grounds?(A) European sculptors(B) Carpenters(C) Stone carves(D) Cabinetmakers4. The word others in line 6 refers to(A) craftspeople(B) decorations(C) o

24、rnamentations(D) shop signs5. The word distinct in line 9 is closest in meaning to(A) separate(B) assembled(C) notable(D) inferior6. The word rare in line 11 is closest in meaning to(A) festive(B) infrequent(C) delightful(D) unexpected7. Why does the author mention Joseph Wilton in line 13?(A) He wa

25、s an English sculptor who did work in the United States.(B) He was well known for his wood carvings(C) He produced sculpture for churches.(D) He settled in the United States in 1776.8. What can be inferred about the importation of marble memorials from England?(A) Such sculpture was less expensive t

26、o produce locally than to import(B) Such sculpture was not available in the United States.(C) Such sculpture was as prestigious as those made locally.(D) The materials found abroad were superior.9. How did the work of American carvers in 1776 differ from that of contemporary sculptors?(A) It was les

27、s time-consuming(B) It was more dangerous.(C) It was more expensive.(D) It was less refined.PASSAGE 22 Throughout the nineteenth century and into the twentieth, citizens of the United States maintained a bias against big cities. Most lived on farms and in small towns and believed cities to be center

28、s of corruption, crime, poverty, and moral degradation. Their distrust was caused, in part, by a national ideology that proclaimed farming the greatest occupation and rural living superior to urban living. This attitude prevailed even as the number of urban dwellers increased and cities became an es

29、sential feature of the national landscape. Gradually, economic reality overcame ideology. Thousands abandoned the precarious life on the farm for more secure and better paying jobs in the city. But when these people migrated from the countryside, they carried their fears and suspicious with them. Th

30、ese new urbanities, already convinced that cities were overwhelmed with great problems, eagerly embraced the progressive reforms that promised to bring order out of the chaos of the city. One of many reforms came in the area of public utilities. Water and sewerage systems were usually operated by mu

31、nicipal governments, but the gas and electric networks were privately owned. Reformers feared that the privately owned utility companies would charge exorbitant rates for these essential services and deliver them only to people who could afford them. Some city and state governments responded by regu

32、lating the utility companies, but a number of cities began to supply these services themselves. Proponents of these reforms argued that public ownership and regulation would insure widespread access to these utilities and guarantee a fair price. While some reforms focused on government and public behavior, others looked at the cities as a whole. Civic leaders, convinced that physical environment influenced human behavior, argued that citi