Arthur Miller(1915-2005)is universally recognized as one of the greatest dramatists of the 20th century．Miller's father had moved to the USA from Austria Hungary．Drawn like so many other by the “Great American Dream” However, he experienced severe financial hardship when his family business was ruined in the Great Depression of the earlv l930s．
Milles's most famous play, Death of a SaIesman, 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 double 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 sucess．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 revews, 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．
Millerl died of hear 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．
The quality of the books was of great concern to the Richters．Rather than sign up online, they went to Dollywood for a look-see．“We didn’t want to give the children rubbish, ” says Linda．The books-reviewed each year by teachers, literacy specialists and Dollywood board members-included classics such as Ezra Jack Keats’s The Snowy Day and newer books like Anna Dewdney’s Llama Llama series．
Satisfied, the couple set up the Richter Family Foundation and got to work．Since 2004, they have shipped more than 12, 200 books to preschoolers in their in their area．Megan Williams, a mother of four, is more than appreciative：“This program introduces us to books I’ve never heard of．”
The Richters spend about ＄400 a month sending books to 200 children．“Some people sit there and wait to die,” says Tim．“Others get as busy as they can in the time they have left．”
(1)
What led Tim to think seriously about the meaning of life?
[ ]
A．
His health problem．
B．
His love for teaching
C．
The influence of his wife
D．
The news from the Web
(2)
What did Tim want to do after learning about Imagination Library?
[ ]
A．
Give out brochures．
B．
Do something similar．
C．
Write books for children
D．
Retire from being a teacher．
(3)
According to the text, Dollly Parton is ________．
[ ]
A．
a well-known surgeon
B．
a mother of a four-year-old
C．
a singer born in Tennessee
D．
a computer programmer
(4)
Why did the Richters go to Dollywood?
[ ]
A．
To avoid signing up online．
B．
To meet Dollywood board members．
C．
To make sure the books were the newest．
D．
To see if the books were of good quality．
(5)
What can we learn from Tim’s words in the last paragraph?
Edward Estlin Cummings was a poet well-known for how he wrote his poems He wrote his poems with capital(大写的)letters in the words．For example, the title of one of his poems is “The little horse is newlY” The “Y” is a capital letter．He also used “i” instead of “I” to refer to himself in the poems．
Edward was born on October14, 1894 in Cambridge, Massachusetts．Edward’s father was also named Edward．Young Edward’s mother was named Rebecca．She loved to spend time with her children．She also taught Edward Jr how to write poems．Edward’s sister was born 1896 and her name was Elizabeth．Edward’s father was the first professor of Sociology at Harvard University．He later became the minister of one of Boston’s respected churches．He was the one who taught his son to use his hands as well as his mind．Edward Jr used his hands to paint abstract art．
E．E．Cummings was a very smart boy．Edward was 12 when he became a freshman in high school．He loved circuses, ballets, music and amusement parks．
Edward graduated from Harvard in 1916．During World War I, he joined the army and was sent to France where he drove an ambulance．He and his friend from Harvard were arrested because people thought they were German spies．They were kept in one room where they slept, ate, talked and tried to deal with their fears and boredom．Edward wrote his first book, published in 1922, called The Enormous Room, based on his wartime experiences．
E．E．Cummings was a poet that made his own rules in poetry．He was one of the most popular poets of the 20th century．
(1)
Which is a special feature of E．E．Cummings’ poems?
[ ]
A．
Their titles are all written with capital letters．
B．
A special capital letter is used in them to refer to the writer．
C．
He used “Y” to refer to “you”．
D．
He used letters in a special way in them
(2)
What’s the second paragraph mainly about?
[ ]
A．
Edward’s schooling
B．
Edward’s parents
C．
Edward’s family
D．
Edward’s childhood．
(3)
E．E．Cummings was arrested in the war because ________．
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