Three Boys and a Dad
Brad closed the door slowly as Sue left home to visit her mother. Expecting a whole day to relax, he was thinking whether to read the newspaper or watch his favourite TV talk show on his first day off in months. “This will be like a walk in the park,” he’d told his wife. “I’ll look after the kids, and you can go visit your mom.”
Things started well, but just after eight o’clock, his three little “good kids”—Mike, Randy, and Alex—came down the stairs in their night clothes and shouted “breakfast, daddy.” When food had not appeared within thirty seconds, Randy began using his spoon on Alex’s head as if it were a drum. Alex started to shout loudly in time to the beat(节拍). Mike chanted “Where’s my toast, where’s my toast” in the background. Brad realized his newspaper would have to wait for a few seconds.
Life became worse after breakfast. Mike wore Randy’s underwear on his head. Randy locked himself in the bathroom, while Alex shouted again because he was going to wet his pants. Nobody could find clean socks, although they were before their very eyes. Someone named “Not Me” had spilled a whole glass of orange juice into the basket of clean clothes. Brad knew the talk show had already started.
By ten o’clock, things were out of control. Alex was wondering why the fish in the jar refused his bread and butter. Mike was trying to show off his talent by decorating the kitchen wall with his colour pencils. Randy, thankfully, appeared to be reading quietly in the family room,but closer examination showed that he was eating apple jam straight from the bottle with his hands. Brad Realized that the talk show was over and reading would be impossible.
At exactly 11:17, Brad called the daycare centre (日托所).“I suddenly have to go into work and my wife’s away. Can I bring the boys over in a few minutes?” The answer was obviously “yes” because Brad was smiling.
【小题1】When his wife left home, Brad expected to ______            .

A.go out for a walk in the park.
B.watch TV talk show with his children.
C.enjoy his first day off work.
D.read the newspaper to his children.
【小题2】Which of the following did Randy do?
A.Drawing on the wall.B.Eating apple jam.
C.Feeding the fish.D.Reading in a room.
【小题3】Why did Brad ask the daycare centre for help?
A.Because he wanted to clean up his house.
B.Because he suddenly had to go to his office.
C.Because he found it hard to manage his boys home.
D.Because he had to take his wife back.
【小题4】This text is developed______       
A.by space.B.by comparison.C.by process.D.by time.

Regarded as one of the English language’s most gifted poets, John Keats wrote poetry that concentrated on imagery, human nature, and philosophy. Although Keats didn’t receive much formal literary education, his own studies and passion brought him much success. Additionally, his own life situation influenced his poetry greatly.

    Growing up as a young boy in London in a lower middle-class family, the young John didn’t attend a private school, but went to a public one. His teachers and his family’s friends regarded him as an optimistic boy who favored playing and fighting much more than minding his studies. After his father’s death in the early 1800s, followed by his mother’s passing due to tuberculosis (肺结核), he began viewing life differently. He wanted to escape the world and did so by reading anything he could get his hands on.

    At around the age of 16, the teenage John Keats began studying under a surgeon so that he too might become a doctor. However, his literary appetite had taken too much of his fancy, especially with his addiction to the poetry of Ehmund Spenser. He was able to have his first full poem published in the Examiner in 1816, entitled O Solitude! If I Must With Thee Dwell. Within two months in 1817, Keats had written an entire volume of poetry, but was sharply criticized by a magazine. However, the negative response didn’t stop his pursuit of rhythm (韵律).

    John Keats’ next work was Endymion, which was published in May 1818. The story involves a shepherd who falls in love with the moon goddess and leads him on an adventure of one boy’s hope to overcome the limitations of being human. Following Engymion, however, he tried something more narrative-based and wrote Isabella. During this time, John Keats began seeing his limitations in poetry due to his own limit in life experiences. He would have to have the “knowledge” associated with his poems. His next work was Hyperion that would attempt to combine all that he learned. However, a bout (发作) with tuberculosis while visiting Italy would keep him from his work and eventually take his life in 1821.

1.John Keats’ attitude towards life changed because of _________.

A. his early education from school           B. the deaths of his parents

C. Edmund Spenser’s poetry                D. the criticism of a magazine

2.What is the common thing between John Keats and his mother?

A. They read many books.

B. They had a bad childhood

C. They died of the same disease.

D. They showed strong interest in poetry

3.What do we know from the passage?

A. Keats received little education at school.

B. Keats once had a chance of becoming a doctor.

C. In 1816 Keats spent two months writing a poem.

D. Endymion was about a real love story.

4.While pursuing his dream of becoming a poet at first, John Keats was __________.

A. determined    B. experienced    C. knowledgeable    D. impatient

5.What can we infer from the passage?

A. Keats’ family must have been very poor when he was young.

B. Edmund Spenser was the greatest poet in Keats’ time.

C. It is likely that Keats rewrote his poem Isabella.

D. The poem Hyperion wasn’t completed by Keats.

 

    When a close friend dies, it often forces you to consider your own death. The more you have in common with the friend, the more his death will make you wonder about your own. Sometimes you will naturally say to yourself, "It could just as easily have been me." Such a death has a way of reminding us how fragile life is, and it may cause you to reassess(重新评价) the direction of your own life.

Jack's story is a good example. A successful businessman making a lot of money, Jack didn't spend as much time with his family as he wanted. His job required him to work long hours. But three years ago one of his best friends, a man who worked in the same office, had a heart attack. He died while celebrating his daughter's eighteenth birthday in a restaurant. He was only fifty years old.

Not long after his friend's death, Jack started to have a chest pain. Finally he had a good physical check-up. He received a clean bill of health. But the chest pain continued. He kept thinking of the death of his friend. Jack thought about how much his friend missed in life and he saw how hard it was for his friend's family to manage after he passed away.

Jack realized that he didn't want to end up his life that way. He talked his feelings over with his wife and children, and decided to change his way of life. The family moved to a small town where he started a simple life. Now he is running a small art gallery(画廊). He is relaxed, and says he has never been so happy in his life, and he has got no more chest pain.

63. Your close friend's death is __________________ to you.

A. a warning           B. common            C. a direction of life     D. an example

64. The underlined sentence in the third paragraph means "________________".

A. The doctor didn't write a word on his bill

B. The doctor didn't want Jack to pay for the bill

C. The doctor didn't find anything wrong with him

D. The doctor didn't want to treat his pain

65. His friend's death made Jack ________________.

A. lose much interest in life

B. realize that he missed the friend very much

C. doubt his way of life

D. ill for some time

66. While living in the small town Jack ________________.

A. earns less money    B. gets more time  K^S*5U.C#O%

C. has a happier life    D. does all these mentioned above

 

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