Question

Arthur  Miller(1915-2005)is universally  recognized  as one of the greatest dramatists  of the 20^th  century.  Miller` s father  had  moved to the USA from  Austria Hungary,drawn like so many others by the“ Great American  Dream”. However, he experienced severe financial hardship when his family business was ruined in the Great Depression of the  early l930s.

  Millers' s most famous play, Death of a Salesman , is a powerful attack on the American system ,with its aggressive way of doing business and its insistence on money and social status as indicators of worth. In Willy Loman , the hero of the play, we see a man who has got into trouble with his worth. Willy is “burnt out” and in the cruel world of business there is no room for sentiment : if he can't do the work, then he is no good to his employer, the Wagner Company, and he must go. Willy is painfully aware of this, and at loss as to what to do with his lack of success. He refuses to face the fact that he has failed and kills himself in the end.

    When it was first staged in 1949 ,the  play was greeted with enthusiastic reviews ,and it won the Tony Award for Best Play, the New York Drama Critics` Circle Award, and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It was the first play to win all three of these major awards.

   Miller  died  of heart failure at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut ,on the evening of February 10,2005,the 56th anniversary  of the first performance of Death of a Salesman on Broadway.

 D. focuses on the skills in doing business

58. What can we learn about Willy Loman?

      A. He treats his employer badly.    

 B. He runs the Wagner Company.     

C. He is a victim of the American system.

      D. He is regarded as a hero by his colleagues.

59. After it was first staged, Death of a Salesman

      A. achieved huge success                    

B. won the first Tony Award

      C. was warmly welcomed by salesmen          

D. was severely attacked by dramatists

60. What is the text mainly about?

      A. Arthur Miller and his family.                

B. The awards Arthur Miller won.

      C. The hardship Arthur Miller experienced.    

D. Arthur Miller and his best-known play.

Answer 1

【解析】：56-60:BACAD

 【语篇解读】本文是讲述了阿瑟.密勒的生平经历及他的代表作Death of a Salesman的内容及评价。

36.        B。细节题。从第一段第二句话可知米勒的父亲已经从奥地利迁往美国，是和许多其他人一样受“伟大的美国梦”的驱使。

37.        A。细节推断题。从第二段第一句话可知米勒写《推销员之死》的目的是对美国制度的攻击，因为美国商业制度的侵犯性和坚持将金钱和社会地位作为价值的显示。A 指出了, 暴露了美国商业世界的残酷。下文也提到了，in the cruel world of business。

38.        C.推理判断题。从上文介绍情节中得知Willy Loman是戏剧中一个角色，而这个角色最终因为在这个制度中屡遭失败自杀身亡，因此推断他是美国制度的受害者。

39.        A.细节推断题。从第三段得知一上映便赢得许多奖项，因此获得巨大成功。

40.        D。主旨大意题。A没有提及，BC都是片面的。