Question

In the 1920s and 30s the airlines were just beginning. It was unusual for people to travel by air because it was expensive and dangerous. In those days, there were no flight attendants to look after the passengers(乘客). Young men ,or “stewards” helped the passengers onto the airplane and carried the passengers’ luggage(行李)but they did not provide food or drinks. But then in 1930,a woman called Ellen Church invented the “stewardess”.

Ellen Church was born in 1904 on a farm in Iowa. She was a different child. She didn’t want to work on a farm or marry a farmer —she wanted a more adventurous life. Ellen studied to be a nurse at the University of Minnesota and then got a job in a hospital. For the next few years she stayed at the hospital but also took flying lessons and got her pilot’s license.

Ellen was twenty-five years old when she first got in touch with Boeing Air Transport. She loved flying but she understood that airlines were a man’s world. Although women like Emelia Earheart were becoming famous, she realized it was impossible for a woman to have a career as a pilot .But she had another idea. Most people were frightened of flying because. flying was still an unreliable(不可靠的) way to travel. There were often delays(延误),many crashes and the bad weathers made many passengers sick. Ellen thought nurses could take care of passengers during flights and B.A.T. agreed.

The young woman from Iowa and seven other nurses became the first air stewardesses.

At first pilots were unhappy because they did not want stewardesses on airplanes, but passengers loved the stewardesses. In 1940 there were around 1000 of them working for different airlines. The early “stewardesses” had to be under twenty-five-year-old, single and slim. When a woman joined an airline, she had to promise not to get married or have children. It was a hard job and not well paid. They worked long hours and earned ＄1 an hour.

In the 1970s, stewardesses were unhappy in their job and airlines had to make some changes. Since the 1970s, “stewardesses” have been called flight attendants. They are well paid and work fewer hours than in the past.

1.The underlined word “adventurous” means _____________.

A. 奇怪的       B. 平淡的      C. 有趣的      D. 冒险的

2.The main reason for Boeing Air Transport offering Ellen the job was ________.

A. her flying experience                                          B. her university education

C. her nursing experience                             D. her life attitudes

3.According to the passage, in the 1940s a woman had to ________ if she wanted to be a stewardess.

A. be a nurse                                          B. be married                            C. be a mother                                          D. be young

4.The passage mainly talks about _______.

A. the background of early flying pilots                           

B. the experience of flying passengers

C. the history of early flight attendants                           

D. the development of airplanes

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.D

4.C

【解析】

试题分析：本文讲述的是空姐这种职业的由来及发展。艾伦向往一种冒险的生活，她为航空服务的发展做出了很大的贡献。

1.词义猜测题。根据上文She didn’t want to work on a farm or marry a farmer，可以推断出她想要一种更冒险的生活，故选D。

2.推理判断题。根据上文Most people were frightened of flying because flying was still an unreliable(不可靠的) way to travel. There were often delays(延误),many crashes and the bad weathers made many passengers sick. Ellen thought nurses could take care of passengers during flights 可以推断出她的护理经验是航空公司用她的主要原因，并且她本身是一个护士，故选C。

3.细节理解题。根据上文The early “stewardesses” had to be under twenty-five-year-old, single and slim. 中single 单身，可以推断出B、C 应排除，根据had to be under twenty-five-year-old可以判定选D。

4.主旨大意题。In the 1920s and 30s the airlines were just beginning. then in 1930,a woman called Ellen Church invented the “stewardess”.In 1940 there were around 1000 of them working for different airlines. Since the 1970s, “stewardesses” have been called flight attendants.从上面这些句子可以推断出，这篇文章主要是讨论空姐的历史的，故选C。

考点：历史类阅读。