There are two types of people in the world.Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other comforts of life,one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy.This arises from the different ways in which they consider things,persons,events and the resulting effects upon their minds.

People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things:the pleasant parts of conversation,the well prepared dishes,the goodness of the wine and the fine weather.They enjoy all the cheerful things.Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things.Therefore,they are continually dissatisfied.By their remarks,they sour the pleasure of society,hurt many people,and make themselves disagreeable everywhere.If this turn of mind was founded in nature,such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied.The intention of criticizing and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation.It grows into a habit,unknown to its possessors.The habit may be strong,but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes.I hope this little warning may be of service to them,and help them change this habit.

Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination,it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck.Those people hurt many others; nobody loves them,and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect.This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments.If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune,nobody wishes them success.Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes.If they bring on themselves public objections,no one will defend or excuse them,and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings.They should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing,without worrying needlessly about themselves and others.If they do not,it will be good for others to avoid any contact with them.Otherwise,it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient,especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

1.People who are unhappy .

A. always consider things differently from others

B. always discover the unpleasant side of certain things

C. usually misunderstand what others think or say

D. usually are affected by the results of certain things

2.The underlined phrase “sour the pleasure of society” most nearly means “ ”.

A. make others unhappy

B. have a good taste with social life

C. tend to scold others openly

D. enjoy the pleasure of life

3.We can conclude from the passage that .

A. we should pity all such unhappy people

B. such unhappy people are dangerous to social life

C. people can get rid of the habit of unhappiness

D. unhappy people can not understand happy persons

I was telling my boy Sonny the story of the hare ( 兔子) and the tortoise ( 乌龟 ). At the end I said, “ Son, remember: Be slow and steady ( 镇定的), and that will win the race. Don’t you think there’s something to learn from the tortoise?”

Sonny opened his eyes wide, “ Do you mean next time when I’m entering for the 60-metre race I should wish that Billy, Tony and Sandy would all fall asleep halfway?”

I was shocked, “But the tortoise didn’t wish that the hare would fall asleep!”

“He must have wished that,” Sonny said, “Otherwise how could he be so foolish as to race with the hare? He knew very well the hare ran a hundred times faster than he himself did.”

“He didn’t have such a wish,” I insisted. “He won the race by perseverance ( 坚忍不拔的 ), by pushing on steadily.”

Sonny thought a while. “That’s a lie,” he said. “ He won it because he was lucky. If the hare hadn’t happened to fall asleep, the tortoise would never have won the race. He could be as steady as you like, or a hundred times steadier, but he’d never have won the race. That’s for sure.” I gave up. Today’s children are not like what we used to be.

1.The writer argued ( 辩论 )with his son because ______________.

A. he liked tortoises while his son liked hares

B. they disagreed about whether the tortoise was foolish

C. he tried to teach his son a moral ( 品德 )lesson but the son had totally different opinion

D. he liked the story of the hare and the tortoise while his son didn’t.

2.Sonny believed that the tortoise ______________.

A. won the race by his own hard working

B. took a risk ( 冒险 )by agreeing to run a race

C. was not given a fair chance in the race

D. in fact did win the race luckily

3.Billy, Tony and Sandy must be_______________.

A. boys who were unknown to Sonny’s father

B. boys who Sonny has run races with before

C. boys who Sonny has never raced with before

D. boys who Sonny did not expect to race with again

4.The writer thinks that his generation ( 一代人 )______________.

A. are cleverer than Sonny’s generation

B. have the same ideas about life as Sonny’s generation

C. are more hopeful than Sonny’s generation

D. have different ideas about life from Sonny’s generation

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