Question

These days, it seems that almost all of us are too serious．My older daughter often says to me, “Daddy, you’ve got that serious look again．” Even those of us who are committed to non-seriousness are probably too serious．People are frustrated and anxious about almost everything -- being five minutes late, witnessing someone look at us wrong or say the wrong thing, paying bills, waiting in line, overcooking a meal, making an honest mistake -- you name it, and we all lose perspective（理性判断） over it．

The root of being anxious is our unwillingness to accept life as being different, in any way, from our expectation．Very simply, we want things to be a certain way but they’re not a certain way．Life is simply as it is．Perhaps Benjamin Franklin said it best: “Our limited perspective, our hopes and fears become our measure of life, and when circumstances don’t fit our ideas, they become our difficulties．” We spend our lives wanting things, people, and events to be just as we want them to be -- and when they’re not, we fight and we suffer．

The first step in recovering from over-seriousness is to admit that you have a problem．You have to want to change, to become more easygoing．You have to see that your own anxiety is largely of your own creation -- it’s made up of the way you have set up your life and the way you react to it．

The next step is to understand the link between your expectations and your frustration level．Whenever you expect something to be a certain way and it isn’t, you’re upset and you suffer．On the other hand, when you let go of your expectations, when you accept life as it is, you’re free．

A good exercise is to try to approach a single day without expectation．Don’t expect people to be friendly．When they’re not, you won’t be surprised or bothered; if they are, you’ll be delighted．Don’t expect your day to be problem-free．Instead, as problems come up, say to yourself, “Ah, another barrier to overcome．” As you approach your day in this manner you’ll notice how elegant life can be．Rather than fighting against life, you’ll be dancing with it．Pretty soon, with practice, you’ll lighten up your entire life．And when you lighten up, life is a lot more fun．

1.Why are people easily frustrated and anxious these days?

A．Because their children are disappointing．

B．Because they have to look serious in public．

C．Because life is becoming a greater burden．

D．Because people have lost sensible judgment．

2.According to Benjamin Franklin, what was the cause of over-seriousness?

A．The fact that people’s perspective, hopes and fears are limited．

B．The fact that people can’t change life itself．

C．The fact that things fail to meet people’s expectations．

D．The fact that circumstances turn out to be difficult．

3.In what pattern is this article developed?

A．Phenomenon, causes and solutions．

B．Problems, explanation and conclusion．

C．Examples, causes and arguments．

D．Phenomenon, analysis and conclusion．

4.What might be the best title for the passage?

A．People seem to be too serious

B．Life is simply as it is

C．Hopes can turn into difficulties

D．A good exercise removes over-seriousness

Answer 1

1.D

2.C

3.A

4.A

【解析】

试题分析：本文讲述现在的人们似乎都太过严肃，而这种严肃甚至是焦虑的根源就在于生活往往与人们的期望不符，提出了三条解决办法：承认自己有问题，理解期望和沮丧的关系，没有期望的过每一天。

1.．People are frustrated and anxious about almost everything……you name it, and we all lose perspective（理性判断） over it．人们几乎对每件事都感到很沮丧很焦虑……说起它，我们都失去了理性的判断，可知焦虑的原因就是失去了理性的判断，故选D

2.Our limited perspective, our hopes and fears become our measure of life, and when circumstances don’t fit our ideas, they become our difficulties．我们有限的视角，我们的希望以及恐惧变成了我们对生命衡量的标准，当情况不符合我们的想法时，他们就变成了我们的困难，可知他认为焦虑的起因就是事情不符合我们的期望，故选C

3.The first step …..第四段The next step….阐述了解决的办法，可知本文就是按照现象、原因、办法的模式进行的，故选A

4.These days, it seems that almost all of us are too serious．这些天，我们大多数似乎都太过严肃，之后本文就描述了现在人们容易焦虑的现状，产生焦虑的原因以及解决办法，都是围绕太过严肃展开，故最佳标题就是人们太过严肃了，故选A

考点：考查议论文阅读