1、2011 年 12 月大学英语四级Section B Passage One Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage. Boys schools are the perfect place to teach young men to express their emotions and involve them in activities such as art, dance and music. Far from the traditional image of a culture of aggressive masculi
2、nity (阳刚), the absence of girls gives boys the chance to develop without pressure to conform to a stereotype. a US study says. Boys at single-sex schools were said to be more likely to get involved in cultural and artistic activities that helped develop their emotional expressiveness, rather than fe
3、eling they had to conform to the “boy code“ of hiding their emotions to be a “real man“. The findings of the study so against received wisdom that boys do better when taught alongside girls. Tony Little, headmaster of Eton, warned that boys were being faded by the British education system because it
4、 had become too focused on girls. He criticized teachers for failing to recognize that boys are actually more emotional than girls. The research argued that boys often perform badly in mixed schools because they become discouraged when their female peers do better earlier in speaking and reading ski
5、lls. But in single-sex schools teachers can tailor lessons to boys learning style, letting them move around the classroom and getting them to compete in teams to prevent boredom, wrote the studys author, Abigail James, of the University of Virginia. Teachers could encourage boys to enjoy reading and
6、 writing with “boy-focused“ approaches such as themes and characters that appeal to them. Because boys generally have more acute vision learn best through touch, and are physically more active, they need to be given “hands-on“ lessons where they are allowed to walk around. “Boys in mixed schools vie
7、w classical music as feminine (女性的) and prefer the modem genre (类型) in which violence and sexism are major themes, “James wrote. Single-sex education also made it less likely that boys would feel they had to conform to a stereotype that men should be “masterful and in charge“ in relationships. “In m
8、ixed schools boys feel compelled to act like men before they understand themselves well enough to know what that means, “ the study reported. 注意:此部分试题请在答题卡 2 上作答。 57. The author believes that a single-sex school would _. A) force boys to hide their emotions to be “real men“ B) help to cultivate masc
9、uline aggressiveness in boys C) encourage boys to express their emotions more freely D) naturally reinforce in boys the traditional image of a man 58. It is commonly believed that in a mixed school boys _. A) Perform relatively better C) behave more responsibly B) grow up more healthily D) receive a
10、 better education 59. What does Tony Little say about the British education system? A) It fails more boys than girls academically. B) It focuses more on mixed school education. C) It fails to give boys the attention they need. D) It places more pressure on boys than on girls. 60. According to Abigai
11、l James, one of the advantages of single-sex schools is _. A) teaching can be tailored to suit the characteristics of boys B) boys can focus on their lessons without being distracted C) boys can choose to learn whatever they are interested in D) teaching can be designed to promote boys team spirit 6
12、1. Which of the following is characteristic of boys according to Abigail James report? A) They enjoy being in charge. C) They have sharper vision. B) They conform to stereotypes. D) They are violent and sexist. Passage Two Questions 62 to 66 are based on the following passage. Its an annual argument
13、. Do we or do we not go on holiday? My partner says no because the boiler could go, or the roof fall off and we have no savings to save us. I say you only live once and we work hard and whats the point if you cant go on holiday. The joy of a recession means no argument next year - we just wont go. S
14、ince money is known to be one of the things most likely to bring a relationship to its knees, we should be grateful. For many families the recession means more than not booking a holiday A YouGov poll of 2, 000 people found 22% said they were arguing more with their partners because of concerns abou
15、t money. Whats less clear is whether divorce and separation rates rise in a recession financial pressures mean couples argue more but make splitting up less affordable. A recent research shows arguments about money were especially damaging to couples. Disputes were characterized by intense verbal (言
16、语上的) aggression, tended to be repeated and not resolved and made men, more than women, extremely angry. Kim Stephenson, an occupational psychologist, believes money is such a big deal because of what it symbolizes, which may be different things to men and women. “People can say the same things about
17、 money but have different ideas of what its for.“ he explains. “Theyll say its to save to spend, for security, for freedom, to show someone you love them.“ He says men are more likely to see money as a way of buying status and of showing their parents that theyve achieved something. “The biggest pro
18、blem is that couples assume each other know whats going on with their finances, but they dont. There seems to be more of a taboo (禁忌) about talking about money than about death. But you both need to know what youre doing, whos paying what into the joint account and how much you keep separately. In a
19、 healthy relationship, you dont have to agree about money, but you have to talk about it.“ 注意:此部分试题请在答题卡 2 上作答: 62. What does the author say about vacationing? A) People enjoy it all the more during a recession. B) Few people can afford it without working hard. C) It makes all the hard work worthwhi
20、le. D) It is the chief cause of family disputes. 63. What does the author mean by saying “money is known . to bring a relationship to its knees“(Line 1, Para. 2)? A) Money is considered to be the root of all evils. B) Some people sacrifice their dignity for money. C) Few people can resist the tempta
21、tion of money. D) Disputes over money may rain a relationship. 64. The YouGov poll of 2, 000 people indicates that in a recession _. A) conflicts between couples tend to rise B) it is more expensive for couples to split up C) couples show more concern for each other D) divorce and separation rates i
22、ncrease 65. What does Kim Stephenson believe? A) Money is often a symbol of a persons status. B) Money means a great deal to both and women. C) Men and women spend money on different things. D) Men and women view money in different ways. 66. The author suggests at the end of the passage that couples
23、 should _. A) put their money together instead of keeping it separately B) make efforts to reach agreement on their family budgets C) discuss money matters to maintain a healthy relationship D) avoid arguing about money matters to remain romantic Section B 答案Passage One 【全文翻译】 欧洲南部的妇女在 10 和 11 世纪时享有
24、较高的社会地位,这并未获得广泛认识。作为一个妻子,女性 的地位受到其嫁妆的保护。诚然,嫁妆最初的目的是防止女性被抛弃;但是,它在当时家庭和社会现实生活 中起着更重要的作用。妻子的嫁妆使她有权获得其丈夫十分之一的财物。妻子有权利拒绝丈夫所做的任何 交易,但这不仅仅只是一项权利而已;文件表明她与丈夫一样平等地享有真正的决定权。文件没有表明丈夫 和妻子在法律地位上有任何差别。 妻子享有管理丈夫私人财产的权利,但是反之则不然。如果丈夫要越权侵犯她们的利益,女性们会时 刻准备着捍卫自己的利益,有时她们还会表现出一种坚强的斗争精神。Maria Vivas 就是一个典型的例子。 为了家庭的需要,她同意其丈夫
25、 Miro 出售一块属于她的土地,但是她坚持要求获得补偿。但是丈夫没有 给她提供补偿,于是她把丈夫拖到一个文书处,起草了一份合同,成功地把他丈夫的一块私人土地划归自 己。正如合同所写的,“ 为了和平 ”,这个不幸的丈夫不得不同意。要么借助嫁妆 ,要么通过发脾气,妻子 知道如何在家庭中为自己赢得强大的经济地位。 57. 【解析】C推断题。本文介绍了欧洲南部 10 和 11 世纪嫁妆对女性在婚姻中地位的重要性。虽然 嫁妆最初的目的是防止女性被抛弃,但实际上它的作用远远不止于此。它使妻子在婚姻中的地位与丈夫平 等,并保障了妻子的经济利益。女性在维护自己的利益上,是很坚定果敢的,Maria Vivas
26、 就是一个例子。 见第一段第三句,“Admittedly, the purpose of this was to protect her against the risk of desertion.。.”,虽 然在实际生活中嫁妆有更重要的作用,但最初它的作用只是为了防范女性被丈夫抛弃,所以 C 为正确答案。 58.【解析】D 细节题。根据本文 ,妻子在婚姻中的法律地位和丈夫是平等的。见第一段最后一句,“In no case do the documents indicate any degree of difference in the legal status of husband and
27、wife”文件中 并没有表明丈夫和妻子在法律地位上有任何的差别,也就是说他们的地位是平等的,所以 D 为正确答案。 59.【解析】B推断题。作者举 Maria Vivas 的事例,是为了说明妻子是能够捍卫自己的利益的。见第 二段第二句,“Women seemed perfectly prepared to defend their own inheritance.they showed a fine fighting spirit。 ”如果丈夫要侵占自己的利益,女性们就时刻准备着捍卫自己的利益,有时她们还表现出 很强的斗争精神。接下来作者就举了 Maria Vivas 的例子 ,说明女性是有能
28、力捍卫自己的利益的。所以 B 为 正确答案。 60.【解析】A 细节题。Maria Vivas 得到的一份作为补偿的土地 ,本来是属于 Miro 的个人财产。见 第二段第五句,“None being offered, she succeeded in. assigning her a piece of land from Miros personal inheritance”由此知 A 为正确答案。 61.【解析】D 推断题。作者对 Maria Vivas 所持的态度是客观的。作者客观地介绍了 Maria Vivas 的 事例,并没有表示出同情、不满或者是漠不关心,所以 A、B、C 都是错误答
29、案 .Passage Two 【全文翻译】 社会学家认为,有几种不同的方法可以使人成为某个社会群体公认的领导者。在家庭生活中,传统的 文化模式赋予父母一方或者双方领导的地位。在其他情况下,比如友谊团体,尽管没有正式的选举程序, 一个或更多的人会逐渐地成为领导。在比较大的群体中,领导者通常是通过正式的选举或招募的形式产生 的。 虽然通常认为领导具有人不同寻常的个人能力,数十年的研究未能找出可靠的证据来证明那些人是 “天生的领导者 ”。看起来似乎没有所有的领导都具有的固定的个人品格;相反,只要具有适合某个特别群体 所需要的品质,几乎任何人都可以成为其领导。 研究表明,通常不同的人会充当两种不同的领
30、导角色。指导型领导注重社会群体目标的实现。群体成 员期望指导型领导人 “把事情搞定”。 另一方面,表现型领导则强调社会群体成员的集体幸福。表现型领 导并不侧重于群体目标的实现,而是注重为群体成员提供情感支持,并尽力减少内部的紧张和纷争。 指导型领导与其他的群体成员之间的关系可能是相当次要的。他们可能会约束阻止实现群体目标的成 员的行为。表现型领导则与群体其他成员之间建立了一种更私人的或者相当重要的关系。当有人经历过困 难时,他们表示同情,并设法解决危及群体分裂的问题。正如这两种不同角色所表明的那样:表现型领导 一般会从群体成员那里获得更多的个人感情;而指导型领导,如果他们能成功地实现群体的目标
31、 ,可能会获 得更广泛的尊重。 【答案解析】 62.【解析】D 主旨题。本篇主要讨论不同的领导者(如 instrumental leaders 以及expressive leaders)在 不同的社会群体中所充当的角色和发挥的功能。所以 D 为正确答案。A、B、C 选项都不能正确概括本文主 旨。 63.【解析】C细节题。A 选项的招募(recruitment)和 B 选项选举程序(election process)都在第一段中作 为大群体的领导者产生的方式被明确提到。 D 选项也在第一段中作为家庭领导者的产生的方式被明确提到。 只有 C 选项没有作为产生领导者的一种方式在本文中被提及。 64.
32、【解析】A 推断题。A 选项意思是:某一特定群体的有效领导者 ,不一定就可以成为另一群体的 有效领导者。这正好与第二段的意思相吻合,即领导者没有一个固定的特点,只是符合了一个特定群体需 要的人就有可能成为该群体的领导者(It seems.virtually any person may be recognized as a leader if the person has qualities that meet the needs of that particular group)。B 选项和 C 选项的意思与本文无关。D 选 项意为:许多人想成为领导者,但却很少能拿出证据来证明他们具有这样的
33、资格。显然是对文章意思的曲 解。 65.【解析】B细节题。第二段中“.decades of research have failed to produce consistent evidence that there is any category of natural leaders”意思是说数十年来的研究并不能找出可靠证据来证明哪些人可以 成为“天生领导者”, 与 B 项意思一致。 66.【解析】D 细节题。第三、四段主要讲了两种类型的领导者的区别。其中instrumental leader 侧重 于群体目标的实现,而 expressive leader 相对于前者并不侧重于群体目标的实现,而是注重为群体成员提供 情感支持,并尽力减少内部纷争。(Expressive leaders are less concerned with the overall goals of the group than with providing emotional support to group members and attempting to minimize tension and conflict among them.)
