Question

“I will never marry，” the future Elizabeth I declared at the age of eight, and, to the terror of her people, the Great Queen kept her word.

For four centuries, historians have guessed why Elizabeth never married. In her own day, her decision to remain single was considered absurd and dangerous. A queen needed a husband to make political decisions for her and to organize and lead her military campaigns. More important, she needed male heirs to avoid a civil war after her death.

There was no shortage of suitors for the Queen, both English courtiers (朝臣) and foreign princes, and it was confidently expected for the best part of 30 years that Elizabeth would eventually marry one of them. Indeed , although she insisted that she preferred the single state, she kept these suitors in a state of permanent expectation. This was a deliberate policy on the Queen's part, since by keeping foreign princes in hope, sometimes for a decade, she kept them friendly when they might otherwise have made war on her kingdom.

There were, indeed, good political reasons for her avoiding marriage. The disastrous union of her sister Mary I to Philip II of Spain had had an unwelcome foreign influence upon English politics. The English were generally prejudiced against the Queen taking a foreign husband, particularly a Catholic one. Yet if she married an English, jealousy might lead to the separation of the court.

There were other, deeper reasons for Elizabeth's unwillingness to marry, chief of which, I believe, was her fear of losing her autonomy as Queen. In the 16th century, a queen was regarded as holding supreme dominion(统治权)over the state, while a husband was thought to hold supreme dominion over his wife. Elizabeth knew that marriage and motherhood would bring some harm to her power.

She once pointed out that marriage seemed too uncertain a state for her. She had seen several unions in her immediate family break down, including that of her own parents.

Some writers, based on very fragile evidence, have argued that Elizabeth was frightened or incapable of the sex act, but it is more likely that she feared childbirth. Two of her stepmothers, her grandmother and several acquaintances had died in child bed.

Elizabeth's father, Henry VIII, had had her mother, Anne Boleyn, killed; her stepmother Catherine Howard later suffered the same fate. When Elizabeth was 14 she was all but attracted by Admiral Thomas Seymour, who also went to the prison within a year. Witnessing these terrible events at an early age, it has been argued, may have put Elizabeth off marriage.

Elizabeth had to decide her priorities. Marriage or being single? Elizabeth was far too intelligent.The choice she made was courageous and revolutionary, and, in the long run, the right one for England.

1.To the suitors including English courtiers and foreign princes，Elizabeth ________.

A．held back the truth

B．gave a definite answer “no”

C．kept them expecting deliberately

D．said she preferred the single state

2.If Elizabeth had married a foreign prince, there might have been ________.

A．prejudice against her

B．separation of the court

C．jealousy among English courtiers

D．a negative impact on English politics

3.Which of the following implications is right according to the passage?

A．Queen Elizabeth was not a Catholic.

B．Some foreign princes made war on Britain.

C．Catherine Howard was killed by Anne Boleyn.

D．Admiral Thomas Seymour was killed by Henry VIII.

4.What is the attitude of the author towards Queen Elizabeth never marrying in her life?

A．Pitiful. B．Approving. C．Negative. D．Neutral.

 

Answer 1

1.C

2.D

3.A

4.B

【解析】

试题分析：伊丽莎白一世八岁时发誓终身不嫁，她竟然做到了。这是为什么呢？

1.C细节理解题。由第三段最后一句话“This was a deliberate policy on the Queen's part, since by keeping foreign princes in hope, sometimes for a decade, she kept them friendly when they might otherwise have made war on her kingdom.”可知她更喜欢单身，故选C项。

2.D 推理判断题。由第四、五和六段可知，如果她结婚可能对英国政治产生负面影响,故选D项。

3.A 推理判断题。由第四段第三句话“The English were generally prejudiced against the Queen taking a foreign husband, particularly a Catholic one.”可推知，the Queen找了一位外国夫君遭到人们发对，尤其是该人还是天主教徒，所以the Queen应该不是天主教徒，故选A项。

4.B 推理判断题。由最后一段最后两句话“Elizabeth was far too intelligent.The choice she made was courageous and revolutionary, and, in the long run, the right one for England.”可知，作者认为伊丽莎白一世没有结婚是明智的选择，故选B项。

考点：人物类阅读。