Question

Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any “secrets” to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama’s “back to school” speech. Here is an excerpt(摘录) from his speech.

I know that sometimes, you get the sense that you can be rich and successful without any hard work—that your ticket to success is through pop music or basketball or being a TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.

But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. Not all the homework will seem rather important to your life right this minute. And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try.

That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures (the opposite of success). JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was turned down 12 times before it finally came out. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots (投篮) during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures beat(打败) you—you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time.

No one’s born being good at things. You become good at things through hard work.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to tell when you don’t know something, and to learn something new.

And even when you’re struggling(奋斗), even when you’re discouraged (泄气), and you feel other people have given up on you—don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

1.Why does Barack Obama mention (提到) JK Rowling and Michael Jordan in the third paragraph?

A. To compare these two famous persons.

B. To explain that the more failures he has, the more successful he is.

C. If you want to be successful, you should fail first.

D. To show that failure is the mother of success.

2.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. No one can be successful without working hard.

B. Failure can be good if you treat it in a right way.

C. Those who believe in themselves shouldn’t ask others for help.

D. One should try his best to make his dream come true.

3.Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined sentence?

A. One shouldn’t ask questions because it is a sign of strength.

B. One should believe in himself though he will face much difficulty.

C. One doesn’t have to work hard when he has failed several times.

D. One doesn’t have to ask for help because it is a sign of weakness.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.B

【解析】

试题分析：这篇短文主要谈论的是成功的秘诀，引用了奥巴马的演讲词进行了论证，名人们的成功是在失败的基础上，通过反复的努力，最终走向成功的。在努力的过程中，要相信自己，不要放弃，不要泄气，遇到问题，也要向别人寻求帮助。

1.D综合理解题。本文在奥巴马的演讲词中提到两个人名，主要强调他们是由于多次的失败，最终走向的成功，表示的含义是失败是成功之母。故选D。

2.C细节理解题。根据Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to tell when you don’t know something, and to learn something new. 可知向别人寻求帮助不是缺点的符号，而是力量的符号，它表示了你所拥有的勇气。所以相信自己的人遇到问题也要向别人寻求帮助，故选C。

3.B句子翻译题。本题画线的句子所表示的含义：在你奋斗的过程中，遇到问题不要泄气，即使别人不相信你，你也要相信自己，表示的含义也就是一个人要应该相信自己。故选B。

考点：考查故事类阅读。