Question

    When Benjamin Cherkasky was in eighth grade, he quit the swim team. It wasn't because he lacked the passion; he just couldn't accept failures in matches. "I'm not Michael Phelps. Why am I even on the team?" he said. "My perfectionism prompted very high expectations, and that caused real suffering," he said.

Cherkasky is not alone in feeling that perfectionism can cause anxiety. So many millennials (千禧一代）suffer from the problems of being a perfectionist that psychologists are issuing warnings and schools are emphasizing the need to accept failure.

Jessica Pryor, a leading psychologist, said every generation is a sponge (海绵）for the messages it receives. "Millennials, more than any other generation in American society, are receiving clear messages about achieving," she said. "But there's an absence of the message that trying your hardest is still OK."

In college, Cherkasky found himself surrounded by so many intelligent people that he felt he should have been achieving a higher level than he was. "It makes you feel kind of crazy." he said. This type of thinking can lead people to putting in less effort, which as they fall behind, can create more anxiety. "It makes people feel kind of isolated." And that Cherkasky added, "can cause students to distance themselves from their school".

The American Psychological Association also found out that recent generations of college students have reported higher levels of perfectionism than earlier generations.

Researchers noted that social media adds pressure, along with the drive to earn money and achieve career goals. Perfectionists often create even higher goals, which can lead to a higher risk of failure.

1.What does the underlined word "prompted" in paragraph 1 mean?

A.Led to. B.Met with. C.Resulted from. D.went against.

2.According to Jessica Pryor, Millennials         .

A.are unwilling to work hard.

B.desire nothing but to succeed.

C.should learn to deal with pressure.

D.need the message that failure is acceptable when trying their best.

3.Cherkasky's experience in college is mentioned to show         .

A.the problems of college education

B.the bad influence of fellow students

C.the harmful effects of being a perfectionist

D.the pressure most college students experience

4.What is the writer's purpose in writing the text?

A.To share some experiences of a college student.

B.To show the reasons for becoming a perfectionist.

C.To present the findings of a research on college life.

D.To raise public concern over a problem of millennials.

Answer

1.A

2.D

3.C

4.D

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章讲述了，千禧一代是完美主义者会有各种问题，引起读者思考。

1.

词义猜测题。由第一段中的“It wasn't because he lacked the passion; he just couldn't accept failures in matches.”（不是因为他缺乏激情，他只是不能接受比赛中的失败。）和“"My perfectionism prompted very high expectations, and that caused real suffering," he said.”（他说，“我的完美主义引发了很高的期望，这导致了真正的痛苦。”）可知Benjamin Cherkasky的完美主义导致他期望很高，使他无法接受失败，prompted在此处意为“导致”。故选A项。

2.

推理判断题。由第二段中的“So many millennials (千禧一代）suffer from the problems of being a perfectionist that psychologists are issuing warnings and schools are emphasizing the need to accept failure.”（如此多的千禧一代饱受完美主义者的困扰，心理学家们纷纷发出警告，学校也在强调接受失败的必要性。）和“"Millennials, more than any other generation in American society, are receiving clear messages about achieving," she said. "But there's an absence of the message that trying your hardest is still OK."”（她说：“千禧一代，比美国社会的任何一代人，都在收到关于实现目标的明确信息。但没有传达出这样的信息：尽最大努力还是可以的。”）可推断出Jessica Pryor认为，千禧一代需要接受的信息是：当他们尽最大努力时，失败也是可接受的。故选D项。

3.

推理判断题。由第四段中的“This type of thinking can lead people to putting in less effort, which as they fall behind, can create more anxiety. "It makes people feel kind of isolated." And that Cherkasky added, "can cause students to distance themselves from their school".”（这种思维方式会导致人们投入更少的精力，而当他们落后时，会产生更多的焦虑。Cherkasky补充道：“这会让人觉得自己被孤立了，这会让学生远离学校。”）可推断出Jessica Pryor提及在大学的经历是为了表明做一个完美主义者的有害影响。故选C项。

4.

推理判断题。第一二段讲“作为千禧一代成员的Benjamin Cherkasky，因为完美主义而产生的困扰，引发出学校要强调接受失败的必要性”，第三四段讲“Jessica Pryor对千禧一代作为完美主义者的消极影响的研究发现”，第五六段讲“千禧一代作为完美主义者的比例高于前几代，会制定更高的目标，失败风险也更大”，全文讲述千禧一代作为完美主义者的问题，目的在于引起公众对千禧一代问题的关注。故选D项。