Question

It all began with a stop at a red light.

Kevin Salwen was driving his 14-year-old daughter, Hannah, back from a sleepover in 2006 . While waiting at a traffic light, they saw a black Mercedes Coupe on one side and a homeless man begging for food on the other.

“Dad, if that man had a less nice car, that man there could have a meal.”Hannah protested. The light changed and they drove on, but Hannah was too young to be reasonable. She pestered （纠缠）her parents about inequity, insisting that she wanted to do something.

“What do you want to do?” her mom responded. “Sell our house?”

Warning! Never suggest a grand gesture to an idealistic teenager. Hannah seized upon the idea of selling the luxurious family home and donating half the proceeds to charity, while using the other half to buy a more modest replacement home.

Eventually, that’s what the family did. The project —crazy, impetuous（鲁莽的）and utterly inspiring — is written down in detail in a book by father and daughter scheduled to be published next month: “The Power of Half.” It’s a book that, frankly, I’d be nervous about leaving around where my own teenage kids might find it. An impressionable child reads this, and the next thing you know your whole family is out on the street.

At a time of enormous needs in Haiti and elsewhere, when so many Americans are trying to help Haitians by sending everything from text messages to shoes, the Salwens offer an example of a family that came together to make a difference — for themselves as much as the people they were trying to help. In a column a week ago, it described neurological evidence from brain scans that unselfishness lights up parts of the brain normally associated with more primary satisfaction. The Salwens’ experience confirms the selfish pleasures of selflessness.

Mr. Salwen and his wife, Joan, had always assumed that their kids would be better off in a bigger house. But after they downsized, there was much less space to retreat to, so the family members spent more time around each other. A smaller house unexpectedly turned out to be a more family-friendly house.

1.The best title for the passage should be “______”.

A. The Less, the Better

B. An Expected Satisfaction

C. Something We Can Live Without

D. Somewhat Crazy but Inspiring

2.What does the underlined word “inequity” most probably mean in Paragraph 3?

A. Unfairness. B. Satisfaction.

C. Personal attitude. D. Reasonable statement.

3.What does the underlined sentence “Never suggest a grand gesture to an idealistic teenager.” mean? ______

A. Never give a quick answer to an idealistic teenager.

B. Unless a child is realistic, never give an answer immediately.

C. Give an answer if the child is reasonable.

D. Don’t respond to a child's demands firmly without consideration.

4.What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A. The Salwens regretted selling their house.

B. The relationship between the family members of the Salwens is much closer.

C. Small houses can bring happiness.

D. The Salwens intend to buy another big house.

5.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A. Mercedes Coupe is only an ordinary car which is quite cheap.

B. Unselfishness has nothing to do with people’s primary satisfaction.

C. Hannah asked her parents to do something charitable and they sold their house.

D. The writer’s children asked him to sell their house.

 

Answer 1

1.D

2.A

3.D

4.B

5.C

【解析】

试题分析：“一半的力量”，用我们生活的部分来帮助他人，既有助于他人，或许从某种程度上会帮到自己。本文讲得是the Salwens在女儿的要求下，卖了房子，换了小的，剩下的钱，用来帮助有需要的人，而他们自己的家庭成员间的关系也更加亲密了。

1.D主旨大意题。通读全文可知，the Salwens卖了房子，换了小的，剩下的钱，用来帮助有需要的人，而他们自己的家庭成员间的关系也更加亲密了。正如文章第六段所说“The project —crazy, impetuous（鲁莽的）and utterly inspiring…”，他们的慈善活动很疯狂——给房子都卖了，但很鼓舞人心，给其他人树立了很好的榜样。故标题应选D.Somewhat Crazy but Inspiring.

2.A词义推测题。A. Unfairness.“不平等”; B. Satisfaction.“满意，满足”; C. Personal attitude. “个人态度”; D. Reasonable statement.“合理的说法”，该词指代上文他们所见的事情，而根据文章第二段“they saw a black Mercedes Coupe on one side and a homeless man begging for food on the other.”（他们看到一边是辆黑色的奔驰车，另一边是一个无家可归的人在乞讨食物。），这显然是种不平等，故该词正确答案为A.

3.D句意推测题。根据前后语境“… insisting that she wanted to do something.（汉娜坚持说她想（为此）做些事情。）What do you want to do?” her mom responded. “Sell our house?”（母亲说道“要把我们的房子卖了吗？”）Hannah seized upon the idea of selling the luxurious family home and donating half the proceeds to charity, while using the other half to buy a more modest replacement home.（汉娜就抓住这个主意不放了——把家里豪华的大房子卖掉，一半的钱捐给慈善事业，一半再买了简朴点的房子。）”，所以“Never suggest a grand gesture to an idealistic teenager.” 的句意应为：“不要给一个理想主意的孩子一个这么大方的建议。”，即不要不加思索地回应一个孩子的要求。故正确答案为D.

4.B推理判断题。根据文章最后一段中“ But after they downsized, there was much less space to retreat to, so the family members spent more time around each other. A smaller house unexpectedly turned out to be a more family-friendly house.”可推知，the Salwens家庭成员间更加亲密了。故正确答案为B.

5.C细节推理题。根据文章第六段中“Eventually, that’s what the family did. The project —crazy, impetuous（鲁莽的）and utterly inspiring — is written down in detail in a book by father and daughter scheduled to be published next month: ‘The Power of Half.’”可知汉娜让父母做慈善的事情，最终他们把房子给卖了。故该题正确答案为C.

考点：故事类文章的阅读