Part Ⅳ Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth)(25 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, there is a short passage with 5 questions or incomplete statements. Read the passage carefully. Then answer the questions or complete the statements in the fewest possible words on Answer Sheet 2.
Questions 47 to 51 are based on the following passage.
Robert Spring, a 19th century forger, was so good at his profession that he was able to make his living for 15 years by selling false signatures of famous Americans. Spring was born in England in 1813 and arrived in Philadelphia in 1858 to open a bookstore. At first he prospered by selling his small but genuine collection of early U.S. autographs. Discovering his ability at copying handwriting, he began imitating signatures of George Washington and Ben Franklin and writing them on the title pages of old books. To lessen the chance of detection, he sent his forgeries to England and Canada for sale and circulation. Forgers have a hard time selling their products. A forger can’t approach a respectable buyer but must deal with people who don’t have much knowledge in the field. Forgers have many ways to make their work look real. For example, they buy old books to use aged paper of the title page, and they can treat paper and ink with chemical. In Spring’s time, right after the Civil War, Britain was still fond of the southern states, so Spring invented a respectable maiden lady known as Miss Fanny Jackson, the only daughter of General “Stonewall” Jackson. For several years Miss Fanny’s financial problems forced her to sell a great number of letters and manuscripts belonging to her famous father. Spring had to work very hard to satisfy the demand. All this activity did not prevent Spring from dying in poverty, leaving sharp-eyed experts the difficult task of separating his forgeries from the originals.
47. What was in a great demand in Britain after the Civil War?
48. What was Robert Spring’s profession during the years in Philadelphia?
49. A forger must sell his work to people who don’t have much knowledge in the field instead of .
50. Who was Miss Fanny Jackson?
51. Spring made it difficult for sharp-eyed experts to separate his forgeries from .
Section B
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statement. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C), and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.
Passage One
Questions 52 to 56 are based on the following passage.
A gripping, fast-paced tale of adventure, The Call of the Wild focuses on Buck, a sheepdog stolen from a California farm and transported to the arctic. Buck’s struggle to survive on the arctic trail demonstrates the uncertain nature of life in the wild. Although it is an engaging animal story, the reader cannot help but draw parallels between Buck’s experience and that of humans. The book suggests that environment shapes character, and emphasizes that primitive character—often hidden beneath a layer of civilization—is never lost to the individual. Providing a fascinating glimpse of a way of life that has almost disappeared, the novel suggests that creatures survive best when they adapt to the natural world, rather than trying to impose changes on their environment.
The story begins in 1897, at the start of the Gold Rush. The discovery of gold in the Klondike—a region in northwestern Canada—prompted thousands of gold seekers to head for the far north, all of them desperately in need of dogs to pull sleds across the harsh arctic trails. Buck, a large dog who has enjoyed a leisurely life on a California farm, is stolen and shipped to the Yukon. Buck learns to survive in this cruel environment; he begins to discover the primitive knowledge of his ancestors, and in time he responds to the call of the wild. Because the book focuses upon Buck’s experience, the human characters are of secondary importance. Buck is a magnificent dog, part shepherd and part St. Bernard. His superior strength enables him to adapt readily to the northern climate and the harsh demands of his labors. But he possesses one additional quality—imagination. Buck fights with his head as well as his strength. Adaptability is a dominant theme in this novel. In order to survive in the arctic, Buck must learn “the law of club and fang(牙齿)”. Buck is first taught this law by the club wielding sled drivers, who show him that the strongest individuals are the ones who rule. Buck also learns this primitive law from the other team dogs, such as Dave, Solleks, and the vicious team leader, Spitz. From them, Buck learns that he must either bite or be bitten, master or be mastered.
52. About this novel, which of the following statement is NOT true?
A) The novel focused upon the experiences of a dog named Buck.
B) The main theme was to tell its readers the life in the arctic wild.
C) The book stressed the influences of environment on character.
D) Creatures have to adapt to the changes on environment to survive.
53. We can draw from the passage that the “primitive character” within Buck refers to .
A) Buck’s adaptability to the cruel wild life
B) the learning of the law of club and fang
C) Buck’s ability to fight with head and claw
D) becoming the strongest individual to rule
54. The story was set primarily in .
A) Klondike in CanadaB) a farm in California
C) the YukonD) the wild in California
55. Buck learned to survive in the arctic by .
A) its primitive characterB) becoming the strongest
C) the law of club and fangD) adapt itself to the cold arctic
56. According to the passage, which of the following statement is true?
A) The Call of the Wild is about the relationship between men and dogs in the arctic.
B) The Call of the Wild is a story about the wild west during the Gold Rush.
C) Buck learned “the law of club and fang” by defeating its enemies.
D) Buck managed to survive and became a leader.
