A characteristic of American culture that has become almost a tradition is to respect the self-made man — the man who has risen to the top through his own efforts, usually beginning by working with his hands. While the leader in business or industry or the college professor occupies a higher social position and commands greater respect in the community than the common laborer or even the skilled factory worker, he may take pains to point out that his father started life in America as farmer or laborer of some sort.

       This attitude toward manual(体力的) labor is now still seen in many aspects of American life. One is invited to dinner at a home that is not only comfortably but even luxuriously (豪华地) furnished and in which there is every evidence of the fact that the family has been able to afford foreign travel, expensive hobbies, and college education for the children; yet the hostess probably will cook the dinner herself, will serve it herself and will wash dishes afterward; furthermore the dinner will not consist merely of something quickly and easily got from contents of various cans and a cake or a pie bought at the nearby bakery. On the contrary, the hostess usually takes pride in careful preparation of special dishes. A professional man may talk about washing the car, digging in his flowerbeds, painting the house. His wife may even help with these things, just as he often helps her with the dishwashing. The son who is away at college may wait on table and wash dishes for his living, or during the summer he may work with a construction gang on a highway in order to pay for his education.

What can we infer from Paragraph 1?

In America, people tend to have a high opinion of the self-made man.

In America, people can always rise to the top through their own efforts.

In America, college professors win great respect from common workers.

In America, people feel painful to mention their fathers as labors.

Why does the hostess mentioned in the passage cook dinner herself?

Because servants in America are hard to get.

Because she takes pride in what she can do herself.

Because she can hardly afford servants.

Because it is easy to prepare a meal with canned food.

What does the underlined phrase “wait on table” in the second paragraph mean?

A. Work in a furniture shop.         B. Keep accounts for a bar.

C. Wait to lay the table.             D. Serve customers in a restaurant.

What is the passage mainly about?

A respectable self-made family.

American attitude toward manual labor.

Characteristics of American culture

The development of manual labor.

You Mi, a lovely and confident 17-year-old student, is the first Chinese high school student to appear on the cover of the popular young adults’ fashion magazine Seventeen.
“You is IN,” said Wang Lihua,Editor-in-Chief of Seventeen. “She is active and mature (成熟) because of her knowledge on everything from academic studies,to books on art,to movies. We find she’s the very style we’re looking for to represent young people’s attitudes.”
You also impressed Wang with her fluent English when they first met last year. As the hostess of an English broadcasting program at the High School Affiliated to Renmin University(人大附中), You is always praised for speaking English almost like a native speaker. “I’ve built up my English by watching thousands of English DVDs since I was 10,” she explained.
But for You,watching isn’t enough. Last year,while in Senior 1, she met a talented (有才能的) boy who showed self-made DV movies at the English Corner in her school.
“I thought it was so cool and I knew that I should start making my own films,” she said. So she wrote a campus (校园) story, persuaded schoolmates to star in it and then began shooting a 30-minute DV movie,all in English. “I played one of the leading roles,actually I was everything in my film. I worked on it every day during the holidays,” she recalled. The movie finally became a big hit on campus,earning You a strong reputation(名气) as a DV movie director.
But this is not the only field she wants to master. Though a science student, You likes art, literature and fashion design very much.
“There are people who can be artists,there are people who edit books, and there are people who become film producers. But I just hope to mix all the things up!” she said. “There is an old saying I believe:Chances favor only the prepared mind.”
【小题1】You Mi was chosen to be a cover of Seventeen, mainly because she _____.

A.is beautifulB.she is lovely and full of confidence
C.is active and matureD.has rich knowledge
【小题2】You Mi’s fluent English is based on _____.
A.her chance to host an English broadcasting program
B.the influence of her parents
C.her deep interest in it
D.her making DV movie
【小题3】The author mentioned a talented boy to show _____.
A.the great influence he had on You Mi
B.he was admired by his schoolmates
C.the young can do things as well as the adults do
D.DV movies are popular at school
【小题4】In the 30-minute DV movie,You Mi didn’t act as a(n) _____.
A.directorB.musicianC.actress D.film-maker
【小题5】We can learn from the passage that _____.
A.You Mi hopes to be a mixed talent.
B.the success of a 30-minute DV movie surprised You Mi.
C.You Mi dreams of becoming a scientist.
D.You Mi doesn’t like to study during holidays.

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