Question

    The store was closing for the night. Young Alfred Higgins, the shop assistant, was ready to go home. Mr. Carr stared at him and said, “Hold on, Alfred. Maybe you’d be good enough to take the things out of your pockets and leave them here before you go.” Alfred’s face got red. After a few seconds, he took out what he had stolen. Mr. Carr said, “Maybe I should call your mother and let her know I’m going to have to put you in prison.”

Alfred thought his mother would come rushing in, eyes burning with anger. But, to his surprise, she arrived wearing a smile. “Hello, I’m Alfred’s mother. Is he in trouble?” she said. Mr. Carr was surprised, too. He had expected Alfred’s mother to come in nervously, shaking with fear, asking with wet eyes for a pardon for her son. But no, she was calm, quiet and pleasant and was making Mr. Carr feel guilty. Soon Mr. Carr was shaking his head in agreement with what she was saying. “You are right” he said, “Sometimes, a little good advice is the best thing for a boy at certain times in his life, and it often takes the youth long time to get sense into their heads.” And he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins’s hand.

Back home, without even looking at Alfred, the mother said, “You are a bad luck. It is one thing after another, always has been. Why do you stand there so stupidly? Go to bed. “In his bedroom, Alfred just took pride in his mother’s strength. He felt he must tell her how great she was. As he got to the kitchen, he was shocked by what he saw. His mother was lifting the tea cup, her hand shook, and her face became a frightened, broken one. It was no longer cool, bright as he saw earlier in the store. With her lips moving nervously, she looked so old.

Alfred watched his mother and he wanted to cry. He realized all the troubles he brought to his mother. It seemed that this was the first time he had ever really seen his mother, especially shaking hands and the deep lines of worry in her gray face. He knew his youth coming to an end.

1.Mr. Carr felt guilty because ________.

A.he mistook Alfred as the real thief

B.he thought he was over-excited

C.he had called the police before Alfred could explain Higgins probably said to Mr. Carr

D.Alfred’s mother appeared polite and gentle

2.Mrs. Higgins probably said “________” to Mr. Carr.

A.As you know, he is just a kid.

B.You know, it takes time for a youth to truly grow.

C.How can you treat my son like that!

D.If he is in jail, it won’t do you any good, either.

3.The phrase “his mother’s strength” refers to Mrs. Higgins’s ________.

A.trust to her son Alfred B.attitude (态度) towards laws

C.calmness and communicating skills D.greatness as a woman

4.Which of the following is TRUE ?

A.Alfred’s mother cared for his future but never made him know of it.

B.Alfred would never recognize his mistakes.

C.Alfred’s mother felt nervous about getting old.

D.Alfred was unlucky to be caught by the police.

5.After the incident, young Alfred would probably ________.

A.learn to protect his mother B.be more proud of his mother

C.learn to live an independent life D.change his attitudes to future

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.C

4.A

5.D

【解析】

这篇文章主要讲述了作为商店助手的Alfred在准备回家时被Mr. Carr发现偷拿了东西。通知了Alfred的母亲，Alfred的母亲出现了。没有紧张与慌乱，Alfred的母亲用自己的冷静与真挚的言语赢得了Mr.Carr的尊重与同意，也没有再追究Alfred的行为。回到家中的Alfred，也第一次意识到母亲了衰老和自己的过失。母爱无私，伟大，不求回报，鬓角银发都是操劳所致，我们更应该趁自己的父母未老，努力成为父母的骄傲。

1.细节理解题，由“He had expected Alfred’s mother to come in nervously, shaking with fear, asking with wet eyes for a pardon for her son. But no, she was calm, quiet and pleasant and was making Mr. Carr feel guilty! 他原以为阿尔弗雷德的母亲会紧张不安地走进来，吓得浑身发抖，泪流满面地请求原谅她的儿子。但事实并非如此，她沉着、安静、和蔼可亲，这让卡尔先生感到内疚！”可知阿尔弗雷德的母亲显得彬彬有礼、温文尔雅，让他感到内疚。故选D。

2.细节推断题，由“Sometimes, a little good advice is the best thing for a boy at certain times in his life, and it often takes the youth long time to get sense into their heads有时候，对一个男孩来说，在他一生中的某些时候，一个小小的忠告是最好的事情，而年轻人往往需要很长时间才能领悟到这一点”，可知年轻人需要时间才能真正成长，故选B。

3.细节推断题，由前文和“Alfred just took pride in his mother’s strength. He felt he must tell her how great she was”可知，作者对他妈妈的冷静和沟通技巧很骄傲。故选C。

4.推理判断题，结合全文可知Alfred的母亲十分关心Alfred的未来，也从未让他知晓，选项A正确。B选项与文章不符，文章最后一自然段“He realized all the troubles he brought to his mother”表明已经认识到自己的错误。文章在倒数第二自然段从Alfred的视角表明的他母亲的衰老，却没有体现出Alfred的母亲对自己的衰老表示担心，故C选项错误。D选项与文章不符，Alfred没有被警察抓住。故选A。

5.细节理解题，由“You are a bad luck. It is one thing after another, always has been”和最后一段Alfred的感受以及“He knew his youth coming to an end”可知，他会改变对未来的态度。故答案选D。