Question

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A,B,C,D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂上.

When Charles Stratton was five, he stopped growing. His mother took him to see the famous showman, P. T. Barnum. Mr. Barnum thought a small person would be the perfect addition to his show. He hired Charles' parents along with him, and they traveled the world together.

He gave the two-foot-tall Charles a name, General Tom Thumb. He taught Tom how to sing, dance, act and tell jokes. When he felt Tom was ready to perform on stage, he made up ads. To stir up great interest, he said that Tom was eleven years old and had come from England.

During the show, Tom fought battles pretendedly with tall people. He also danced upon a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall. Tom's act was very popular and brought in a lot of money. By the time Tom was an adult, he had grown very rich. He had become a billionaire at the age of twenty five.

Fortunately for Tom, Mr. Barnum added more little people to his show, and Tom became lucky in love as well. One of the little people was Lavinia Warren, a schoolteacher. Tom was able to win her love, and they married.

The ceremony and reception were the talk of the town. They were attended by many rich and famous people and by about 2000 guests. Crowds filled the streets of New York to have a look at their tiny wedding marriage. The couple even met with President Abraham Lincoln on their honeymoon just before going to live in Tom's house in Connecticut.

Their wedding, which took place during the Civil War, provided a welcome escape from the sad problems of war. Not willing to let this bit of sunshine fade, communities throughout the country sponsored "Tom Thumb" weddings. In these weddings, small boys and girls, all dressed up, went through marriage ceremony for fun.

1.The underlined words "talk of the town" means________.

A. it was in the newspaper

B. it was the most popular topic

C. people spread bad rumors about it

D. it was discussed in a city meeting

2.Which one of the following statements is true according to the text?

A. Charles mother took him to see the famous showman because he stopped growing.

B. Tom had to fight with others during the show.

C. Tom’s wedding ceremony helped people cheer up in a dark time.

D. Tom and his mother came from England.

3.What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A. Weddings always make people feel full of sunshine.

B. People are always disappointed during war time.

C. Entertainment can serve an important purpose.

D. People should be married when they are small children.

Answer

1.B

2.D

3.C

【解析】

试题分析：文章讲述了五岁就停止了生长的Charles Stratton斯特拉顿查尔斯，因他母亲带他去看了一场表演而加入了Barnum.巴纳姆的团队，并在此找到了人生的另一半以及他的人生价值。

1.

2.

3.

【名师点睛】

故事类阅读解答技巧

故事类阅读概念：

这类文章一般描述的是某一件具体事情的发生发展或结局，有人物、时间、地点和事件。命题往往从故事的情节、人物或事件的之间的关系、作者的态度及意图、故事前因和后果的推测等方面着手，考查学生对细节的辨认能力以及推理判断能力。

故事类阅读应试技巧：

1、抓住文章的6个要素：

阅读时要学会从事情本身的发展去理解故事情节而不要只看事件在文中出现的先后顺序。因此，无论是顺叙还是倒叙，阅读此类文章时，必须要找到它结构中的5个W（when, where, who, why, what）和1个H（how），不过不是每篇都会完整地交待六个要素。毫无疑问，寻出这些元素是能够正确快速解题的一个先决条件。

2、注意作者的议论和抒情：

高考英语阅读理解故事类文章常伴随着作者思想情感的流露和表达，因此议论和抒情往往夹杂其中。行文时或按事情发生发展的先后时间进行或按事情发生发展的地点来转换，也可能按事情发展的阶段来布局。在引出话题，讲完一件事情后，作者往往会表达个人感悟或提出建议等。这些体现作者观点或思想的语句在阅读时可以划线，它们往往体现文章中心或者写作意图，属于必考点，所以要仔细体会。

3、结合前两点归纳文章中心，把握作者态度：

故事类文章是通过记叙一件事来表达中心思想的，它是文章的灵魂。归纳文章中心思想时，尤其要分析文章的结尾，因为很多文章卒章显志，用简短的议论、抒情揭示文章中心；文章中议论抒情的句子往往与中心密切相关；也有的文章需要在结合概括各段大意的基础上归纳中心。另外，叙述一件事必有其目的，或阐明某一观点，或赞美某种品德，或抨击某种陋习，这就要求我们在阅读时，通过对细节（第1点中的六要素）的理解，把握作者的态度。

4、有章有据进行解题判断：

分析文章，归纳主题，属于分析、概括、综合的表述能力的考查。切忌脱离文章，架空分析，一定让分析在文章中有依据。例如第23题，是一道主旨大意题，但是只是关注最后一段的中心思想，因此可根据最后一段中Not willing to let this bit of sunshine fade不愿意让这点阳光褪色。以及最后一句在婚礼上，大人小孩都盛装出席去欢聚。婚礼是一件重大的事情，但是同样是一件让人愉快的事情。故选C。

考点：考查故事类短文阅读。