Question

I live in the land of Disney, Hollywood. You may think people in such an attractive and exciting, fun-filled place are happier than others. If so, you have some mistaken ideas about the nature of happiness.

Many intelligent people still consider happiness equal to fun. The truth is that fun and happiness have little or nothing in common. Fun is what we experience during an act. Happiness is what we experience after an act. It is a deeper, more lasting emotion.

Going to an amusement park or ball game, watching a movie or television, are fun activities that help us relax, temporarily forget our problems and maybe even laugh. But they do not bring happiness, because their positive effects end when the fun ends.

I have often thought that if Hollywood stars have a role to play, it is to teach us that happiness has nothing to do with fun. These rich, beautiful people have constant access to glamorous parties, fancy cars, expensive homes, everything that brings “happiness”. But in memoir after memoir, famous people expose the unhappiness hidden beneath all their fun — depression, alcoholism, drug addiction, broken marriages, troubled children and extreme loneliness.

Ask an unmarried man why he refuses to get married even though he finds dating to be less and less satisfying. If he’s honest, he will tell you that he is afraid of making a commitment. For commitment is in fact quite painful. The single life is filled with fun, adventure and excitement. Marriage has such moments, but they are not its most distinguishing features.

Similarly, couples that choose not to have children are deciding in favor of painless fun over painful happiness. They can dine out whenever they want and sleep as late as they want. Couples with babies are lucky to get a whole night’s sleep or a three-day vacation. I don’t know any parent who would choose the word fun to describe raising children.

The way people stick to the belief that a fun-filled, pain-free life equals happiness actually reduces their chances of ever achieving real happiness. If fun and pleasure are equal to happiness, then pain must be equal to unhappiness. As a result, they fear the pain unavoidably brought by such things as marriage, raising children, professional achievement, religious commitment and self-improvement.

But, in fact, the opposite is true. More times than not, things that lead to happiness involve some pain. The very efforts are the source of true happiness. Understanding and accepting that true happiness has nothing to do with fun is one of the most liberating realizations we can ever come to.

1.According to the writer, an important role Hollywood stars have to play is to ________.

A. give audience enough fun

B. write memoirs to introduce their lives

C. show unhappiness behind fun

D. tell people what happiness is

2.In the writer’s opinion, marriage ________.

A. means the end of fun

B. leads to less sleep

C. leads to raising children

D. means responsibility

3.Many people fail to enjoy real happiness because ________.

A. they don’t have religious beliefs

B. they get married and have children

C. they believe fun is equal to happiness

D. they can’t free themselves from commitment

4.If one understands the nature of happiness, he will ________.

A. try to be a responsible person

B. enjoy life by spending all his wealth

C. stop seeking fun from daily life

D. keep himself with his family

Answer

1.D

2.D

3.C

4.A

【解析】

试题分析：文章主要通过对比幸福与乐趣，探讨幸福的本质是什么。

1.D 细节理解题。依据文章第四段中的“I have often thought that if Hollywood stars have a role to play, it is to teach us that happiness has nothing to do with fun”可知，明星扮演的角色主要是告知人们幸福的真谛是什么，故D项正确。

2.D 推理判断题。依据文章第五段的大意尤其是“If he’s honest, he will tell you that he is afraid of making a commitment”可知，婚姻意味着责任与担当，故D项正确。

3.3】C 细节理解题。依据文章第七段中的“The way people stick to the belief that a fun-filled, pain-free life equals happiness actually reduces their chances of ever achieving real happiness.”可知，人们之所以没有感到真正的幸福是因为他们把幸福等于快乐，故C项正确。

4.4】A 推理判断题。依据文章最后一段的大意以及作者的写作意图可知，幸福与快乐不是一个层次概念，真正理解了幸福的本质才懂得付出与收获，也就是去做一位富有责任心的人，故选A正确。

【名师点拨】

总结归纳题 此类题主要是针对某一段大意主旨的概括或整个文章的总结概括，通常以判断作者的写作目的，概括文章的主旨大意或者是概括文章的标题等形式出现。该类题目需要对文章既要有部分的理解更需要有整体的把握，通常文章第一段和最后一段的首尾呼应是解题的突破口；此外，文章段落的第一句也是解题的关键。5.4】A 总结归纳题 依据文章最后一段的大意以及作者的写作意图可知幸福与快乐不是一个层次概念，真正理解了幸福的本质才懂得付出与收获，也就是去做一位富有责任心的人，故选A正确。

考点：考查生活哲理类文章阅读