Everyone knows that the Frenchmen are romantic, the Italians are fashionable and the Germans are serious. Are these just stereotypes or is there really such a thing as national character? And if there is, can it affect how a nation succeed or fail?
At least one group of people is certain that it can. A recent survey of the top 500 entrepreneurs in the UK found that 70% felt that their efforts were not appreciated by the British public. Britain is hostile to success, they said. It has a culture of jealousy. As a result, the survey said, entrepreneurs were “unloved, unwanted and misunderstood.” Jealousy is sometimes known as the “green – eyed monster” and the UK is its home.
Scientists at Warwich University in the UK recently tested this idea. They gathered a group of people together and gave each an imaginary amount of money. Some were given a little, others a great deal. Those given a little were given the chance to destroy the large amount of money given to others – but at the cost of losing their own. Two thirds of the people tested agreed to do this.
This seems to prove that the entrepreneurs were right to complain. But there is also conflicting evidence. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development recently reported that the UK is now the world’s fourth largest economy. That is not bad for people who are supposed to hate success. People in the UK also work longer hours than anyone else in Europe. So the British people are not lazy, either.
“It is not really success that the British dislike,” says Carey Cooper, a professor of management at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. “It’s people using their success in a way that seems proud or unfair or which separates them from their roots.”
Perhaps it is the entrepreneurs who are the problem. They set out to do things in their way. They work long hours. By their own efforts they become millionaires. But instead of being happy they complain that nobody loves them. It hardly seems worth following their example. If they were more friendly, people would like them more. And more people want to be like them.
1.Most entrepreneurs surveyed believe that .
A．the British people hate success
B．the British people are hardworking
C．love of success is Britain’s national character
D．they are considered as “green – eyed monsters”
2.What does the result of the Warwich University’s test show.
A．Two thirds of the people tested didn’t love money.
B．Most people would rather fail than see others succeed.
C．An imaginary amount of money does not attract people.
D．Most people are willing to enjoy success with others.
3.The writer of the passage seems to suggest that .
A．jealousy is Britain’s national character
B．British entrepreneurs are not fairly treated
C．the scientists at Warwich University did a successful test
D．the entrepreneurs in the UK do not behave properly
4.The best title for this article can be .
A．Be More Modest and We Will Love You More
B．Proud Entrepreneurs
C．The Frenchmen are Romantic While The British are Hostile
D．Only Pains but No Gains
“You are going abroad and will live there? Oh, wonderful! You are so lucky.”
Perhaps your family and friends said similar things to you when you left home. But is it true all the time? Is your life in the new country always wonderful and exciting?
Specialists say that it isn’t that easy to get used to life in a new culture. “Culture shock” (冲击) is the term specialists use when talking about the feelings that people have in a new environment. “There are three stages of culture shock,” say the specialists. In the first stage, the newcomers like their new environment. Then, when the fresh experience dies, they begin to hate the city, the country, the people, and everything else. In the last stage, the newcomers adapt to their surroundings and finally enjoy their life there.
Culture shock arises from many obvious factors. The weather may be unpleasant. The customs may be different. The public service systems such as the telephone, post office, or transportation may be difficult to work out. Even the simplest things become headaches. Still worse, the language may be difficult.
Who feels culture shock? Everyone does in this way or that. But culture shock surprises most people. Very often the people having the worst culture shock are those who never had any difficulties in their home countries and were successful in their community. Coming to a new country, these people find they do not have the same established positions. They find themselves without a role, almost without an identity. They have to build a new selfimage.
Culture shock leads to a feeling of disorientation (迷惘). This feeling may be homesickness. When homesick, people feel like staying inside all the time. They want to protect themselves from the strange environment, and create and escape inside their room for a sense of security. This escape does solve the problem of culture shock for the short term, but it does nothing to make the person familiar with the culture. Getting to know the new environment and gaining experience are the long term solutions to the problem of culture shock.
1.When people move to a new country, they ________.
A．find their new life always wonderful and exciting.
B．dislike the new surroundings from the beginning.
C．quickly get accustomed to the new culture there.
D．will get used to the new life with certain difficulty.
2.Based on the passage, which of the following results from culture shock?
A．weather conditions and customs
B．public service and transportation
C．feeling homesick and disoriented
D．language communication issues
3.According to the passage, the more successful you are at home, ________.
A．the fewer difficulties you will meet with abroad
B．the more problems you may have to face abroad
C．the greater success you are likely to make abroad
D．the less homesick you will eventually feel abroad
4.Which of the following statements is correct according to the passage?
A．Cultural shock affects and surprises those who live in a new culture.
B．A new culture makes everything difficult except the simplest things.
C．Since culture shock is painful, we can never get over it completely.
D．Escaping by staying inside does solve the problem of culture shock.
Do you like Sun Wukong? He is one of the most popular novel(小说) characters in Chinese history. Both young children and adults love him so much. In our mind, he is a great hero in the Chinese novel Journey to the West(《西游记》).
In the novel, Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie and Sha Seng beat demons(妖魔) and protect Tang Seng when they travel to the Western Paradise(西天). Sun Wukong was born from a stone. He can change himself into a tree, a bird, or and animal. With one somersault(筋斗), he can travel 108,000li.
Sun Wukong is clever, brave and always makes fun magic tricks. Chinese people love him very much.
Sun Wukong is also popular in other countries. Many western children love him and learn kung fu because of him. To them, he is a super hero, just like Superman and Spiderman.
1.Where was Sun Wukong born?
A. From a tree
B. From a book.
C. From the Western Paradise.
D. From a stone.
2. Which is TRUE from the passage?
A. Only young children love Sun Wukong.
B. Both young children and adults love Sun Wukong.
C. Sun Wukong is popular only in China.
D. In western countries, children don't know Sun Wukong.
3. What's the main idea of the passage?
A. It's about a hero, Sun Wukong.
B. It's about a novel, Journey to the West.
C. It's about Superman and Spiderman.
D. It's about some popular heroes in western countries.
选词填空
What do you think life will be like in the future? I don't think we will have to do some boring housework at home 1. robots can help us. For example, they will help us cook. And the food that they make will be 2. and more delicious. We will 3.________ in love with such food. Then we will spend more time 4. books. 5.________ can make sound. We will6. need to listen to them.
A new kind of clothes will be made(制造). They will be 7. in winter and cool in summer. We can fly freely in space like an astronaut to any planet8. this kind of clothes. 9. will probably become very common transportation.
Scientists are 10. science develop(发展) faster and faster. They predict that our life will be better and better. I believe the prediction(预测) will come true soon.
完形填空
Last summer holiday, some students from China spent an unforgettable holiday in different countries. Here is what they said about their ______
Liu Na, a middle school student, spent her holiday in Thailand. She worked as an elephant helper. She ______ two weeks in the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai. She said the founder（创始人）of the park had saved 28 elephants______ the last ten years. The elephants are now able to live ______ in the Nature Park. Some foreign students like me come to feed them, take them for a bath in the river and play with them. With our ______ ,the elephants don’t do hard work every day. We’re so proud of that.
Wang Jiao, ______ college student from China, stayed in America for a year. “I taught Chinese in a Confucius Institute(孔子学院) in New York. Nowadays, people all over the world are becoming more and more ______ in Chinese language and Chinese culture. So are the Americans. ______ a Chinese, I am happy to tell students what I know about China and Chinese culture. We made dumplings, ______ songs of Zhou Jielun and did Taiji together. That was a great experience both for me and for my ______ students.
Zhang Liang, a postgraduate(研究生) studying in a famous Medical University, ______ in Africa for several months. When he first got there, he was______to see many people die just because they had no money to see a doctor. Then he ______ to help them out. “When you see children with happy and healthy ______ , you will forget your problems!”
If you want to have a meaningful life in other______ , if you want to help the rest of the world, why not give yourself a chance and have a try?
1.A. programs B. differences C. holidays D. discussions
2.A. cost B. paid C. spent D. took
3.A. in B. at C. on D. to
4.A. lonely B. freely C. politely D. quickly
5.A. way B. luck C. help D. age
6.A. other B. the other C. another D. others
7.A. important B. interested C. popular D. beautiful
8.A. As B. unless C. if D. Though
9.A. wrote B. hoped C. put D. sang
10.A. Chinese B. Japanese C. Australian D. American
11.A. moved B. played C. grew D. worked
12.A. bored B. sad C. excited D. angry
13.A. asked B. disliked C. happened D. decided
14.A. legs B. hands C. eyes D. faces
15.A. houses B. countries C. rooms D. cities
—______ yogurt do we need to make fruit salad?
— Let me think. We need only one cup.
A. How much
B. How many
C. How often
D. How long
