Question

Gallows humor（黑色幽默）seem like a mistake, or at least in poor taste. But psychologists say that gallows humor can be an important way to relieve stress. “Humor makes you feel in control and it can give you that feeling that everything is okay even when it's not,” says James M. Jones, a psychology professor at the University of Delaware.

Psychologists say that just because you're laughing doesn't mean you’re wasting time. Occasional teasing among colleagues, particularly if it revolves around things associated with the job, can boost creativity, departmental cohesiveness（凝聚力）and performance.

“There are a lot of stressors out there,” says Ed Dunkelblau, a psychologist with the Institute for Emotionally Intelligent Learning in Chicago. “But gallows humor is a way of making difficult things a little less difficult.”

This is true as long as the humor is used for the right purpose. The main point of it should be inspiring people --- not laughing at them. “Anything that would lift morale（士气）in terms of the company would be good humor,” says Thierry Guedj, a professor of business and psychology at Boston University. “Before you say or do anything, think about, ‘How is this helping my employees’ morale?’”

You want to give your employees and co-workers a sense of belonging, so don’t make observations that are aggressive. Most obviously, Dr Guedj says, don’t make comments about people’s physical appearance, or faith. If you have any doubt, it's appropriate, don't go through with it.

Or you can take aim at the one person you know won't be offended（冒犯）:Yourself. “If there's going to be a joke or story, it should be you,” Mr. Dunkelblau says. For example, if you're a marketing manager reviewing a failed campaign that you led, begin with a line like, “The guy who gave permission to this deal might just be looking for work next week.”

“People with the ability to laugh at themselves can give other people permission to laugh at themselves too,” Mr. Jones says. “And if you can laugh at yourself, you feel better about yourself.”

1.According to the text, gallows humor has the following functions EXCEPT ________.

A. improving performance

B. reducing pressure

C. leading to a big mistake

D. making people more creative

2.What is Ed Dunkelblau’s attitude towards gallows humor?

A. Negative.          B. Positive.         C. Uncertain.          D. Neutral.

3.Which of the following would Dr. Guedj most probably agree with?

A. Gallows humor allows people to laugh at others.

B. Gallows humor is the basic source of morale.

C. Anything that may lift morale can be called gallows humor.  

D. Gallows humor may sometimes be used for the wrong purpose.

4.When people use gallows humor, they should ________.

A. show a sense of belonging

B. observe who is aggressive

C. try to avoid irritating others

D. doubt about the result of humors

5.What can we infer from the text?

A. Laughing at ourselves can help relieve the stress of others.

B. People tend to laugh at others rather than themselves.

C. People who laugh at themselves are hard to be friends with.

D. People can’t avoid offending others with gallows humor.

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.D

4.C

5.A

【解析】

试题分析：文章讲述了黑色幽默的作用，是释放压力的一种重要方式，适当的幽默可以增加团队的凝聚力，也可以减少困难，鼓舞士气。同时也讲述了要适当的使用，如果方式和场合不正确可能会引起负面作用。

1.C细节判断题。psychologists say that gallows humor can be an important way to relieve stress boost creativity, departmental cohesiveness（凝聚力）and performance.心理学家说黑色幽默是释放压力的重要方式，也能够促进创造力，各部门的凝聚力和他们的执行力，故答案C不属于黑色幽默的功能。

2.B综合理解题。第一自然段讲述了黑色幽默是减少压力的作用，可以让你感觉到不好的事情也都一切顺利了；第二自然段讲述了黑色幽默可以激发人的创造力，凝聚力和执行力等；第三自然段说明可以使困难减少等说明作者对黑色幽默是肯定的。故答案应为B。

3.D细节推理题。You want to give your employees and co-workers a sense of belonging, so don’t make observations that are aggressive. Most obviously, Dr Guedj says, don’t make comments about people’s physical appearance, or faith.本句的意思是：你要给你的员工和同事一种归属感，对人的外貌和失败不要作评价等，因此是在说明黑色幽默要注意目的性和场合。故答案应为D.

4.C细节理解题。you can take aim at the one person you know won't be offended（冒犯）句意为不要对任何人有所冒犯，也就是说在黑色幽默时，不要刺激任何人。故答案应为C。

5.A 细节理解题。People with the ability to laugh at themselves can give other people permission to laugh at themselves too, 与if you can laugh at yourself, you feel better about yourself.”意思为：能够自嘲的人也可以让其它的人嘲笑他们自己，如果你能够嘲笑自己，就就对自己感觉良好。因此自嘲也能够减少他人的压力。

考点:社会现象类文章的阅读理解。