The name “cowboy” conjures up many different images from movies, songs and TV. These imagined cowboys range from white-hat-wearing heroes to gun-shooting hooligans(流氓).But, cowboys are actually real people from US history.?

When the US Civil War ended, many soldiers had no place to call home. So, they began to drift to the country's rural West. Ranchers(农场主) hired these men to take care of the cattle and work around the ranch. When the ranch owner wanted to sell the cattle, the cowboys would round up the herd from the open prairie(牧场) and drive the cattle miles to the market.?

With the invention of barbed wire(铁丝网),the cowboy era(1865-1890) began to come to an end. But people in the East had always been curious about their lifestyle. Many country/western songs during this time tried to capture the true cowboy spirit. Newspapers published cowboy tales in serial form and adventure novels followed. The bigger the fiction, the better the sales. These novels often portrayed cowboys as cruel and violent men. Cowboys carried the bad reputation for many years afterwards.

When movies began to be popular in the 1920s,the cowboy image changed again. Now, a cowboy became the great white knight(骑士) that loved his horse more than the beautiful ladies he rescued. As the cowboy of the “Old West” spent more time with his horse than the ladies, this era's image was not entirely false.

Then, in the 50s,Hollywood began producing so-called “spaghetti westerns(意大利西部片)”.They earned the nickname because Italian companies financed the films and TV shows. This started the decade's “Cowboy Craze”.While this didn't last long, it made modern country/western music, fashion and dance extremely popular.?

In recent years, with the help of musicians, radio stations and bars, cowboy nostalgia(怀旧情绪) has returned. Even though his image is still changing—somewhere between ballad singing country boy and bar?room fighter—there's one thing for sure, you can't keep the cowboy down.?

During “the cowboy era” mentioned in the story, _______.?

A. the cowboy often came to the rescue of ladies in newspaper tales?

B. the distant Wild West appealed to people in the East?

C. cowboys were shown as cruel and violent men on the silver screen?

D. country music started the cowboy craze which swept the whole country

By saying “you can't keep the cowboy down”,the writer means that _______.

A. cowboys are real people in history   B. cowboys still fascinate people?

C. you can't make cowboys unhappy     D. you can't grasp the cowboy spirit?

Which of the following statements would the writer agree to?

A. The cowboy has been presented in different lights in different eras.?

B. Cowboys are gun-shooting hooligans, without doubt.?

C. Cowboys have always been a passing phenomenon.?

D. Cowboys enjoy Italian foods, for example, spaghetti.

The name “cowboy” conjures up many different images from movies, songs and TV. These imagined cowboys range from white-hat-wearing heroes to gun-shooting hooligans(流氓).But, cowboys are actually real people from US history.?

When the US Civil War ended, many soldiers had no place to call home. So, they began to drift to the country's rural West. Ranchers(农场主) hired these men to take care of the cattle and work around the ranch. When the ranch owner wanted to sell the cattle, the cowboys would round up the herd from the open prairie(牧场) and drive the cattle miles to the market.?

With the invention of barbed wire(铁丝网),the cowboy era(1865-1890) began to come to an end. But people in the East had always been curious about their lifestyle. Many country/western songs during this time tried to capture the true cowboy spirit. Newspapers published cowboy tales in serial form and adventure novels followed. The bigger the fiction, the better the sales. These novels often portrayed cowboys as cruel and violent men. Cowboys carried the bad reputation for many years afterwards.

When movies began to be popular in the 1920s,the cowboy image changed again. Now, a cowboy became the great white knight(骑士) that loved his horse more than the beautiful ladies he rescued. As the cowboy of the “Old West” spent more time with his horse than the ladies, this era's image was not entirely false.

Then, in the 50s,Hollywood began producing so-called “spaghetti westerns(意大利西部片)”.They earned the nickname because Italian companies financed the films and TV shows. This started the decade's “Cowboy Craze”.While this didn't last long, it made modern country/western music, fashion and dance extremely popular.?

In recent years, with the help of musicians, radio stations and bars, cowboy nostalgia(怀旧情绪) has returned. Even though his image is still changing—somewhere between ballad singing country boy and bar?room fighter—there's one thing for sure, you can't keep the cowboy down.?

The purpose of this story is to _______.

A. introduce cowboy movies and novels?

B. introduce various productions associated with cowboys?

C. show the cowboy's everlasting charm ?

D. inform us about the cowboy's spirit?

Before they became cowboys, they _______.

A. served in the army    B. worked as bar-room fighters?

C. owned ranches      D. were adventurous explorers?

During “the cowboy era” mentioned in the story, _______.?

A. the cowboy often came to the rescue of ladies in newspaper tales?

B. the distant Wild West appealed to people in the East?

C. cowboys were shown as cruel and violent men on the silver screen?

D. country music started the cowboy craze which swept the whole country

By saying “you can't keep the cowboy down”,the writer means that _______.

A. cowboys are real people in history   B. cowboys still fascinate people?

C. you can't make cowboys unhappy     D. you can't grasp the cowboy spirit?


二,完形填空(共15小题;每小题1.5分,满分22.5分)
阅读下面短文,掌握其大意,然后从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项。
Prince was a dog. My husband found him   21   at the corner of the street, shaking in the cold and   22 dead, so he rescued him and   23   him home. He gave him the name Prince. I soon liked this little dog;   24    , I was not satisfied with his name. "Prince" sounded too formal. It was more like the   25   of a German shepherd dog (牧羊犬). I tried to   26   a name more fitting, but I seemed to be stuck with (无法摆脱) "Prince". Before long Prince   27  some of his princely attributes (品性,品质) to our family. It started when our young son Luck was   28   in bed. Prince didn’t usually go upstairs where the boys’ rooms were. He usually   29   me wherever I went like glue, since I was the one who fed him, but on that __30___ day, when I went upstairs to check Luck’s fever, I found that Prince was __31____beside my sick boy. He didn’t leave Luck’s side until Luck began to feel better. The same thing happened repeatedly. Whenever anyone in our family was sick, Prince would be right by that person’s side __32___ it was his job to take care of them until they __33__ . It was incredible to see this little dog set aside his active nature to show his care for a sick family member. Our little Prince lived for nearly sixteen years. He remained___34___to our family the whole time. Even in his final days, when he was in pain,  I___35__he would sacrifice his life for any of us. By then I had realized that his name was proper after all —he truly was a Prince among dogs.
21. A. lying       B. running         C. walking      D. screaming
22. A. completely   B. suddenly       C. unfortunatelyD. nearly
23. A. made       B. supplied        C. arranged     D. brought
24. A. otherwise     B. instead              C. however     D. therefore
25. A. name       B. head         C. body      D. character
26. A. put up with  B. come up with     C. look up to  D. pay attention to
27. A. analyzed      B. described       C. created       D. showed
28. A. asleep      B. playing         C. sick       D. staying
29. A. served     B. grasped         C. searched     D. Followed
30. A. particular     B. warm         C. meaningful D. Relative
31. A. smiling     B. quarreling     C. fighting      D. resting
32. A. even though B. now that        C. as if       D. ever since
33. A. disagreed     B. returned        C. recovered   D. cheered
34. A. tender      B. common        C. loyal      D. sensitive
35. A. doubted          B. observed       C. noticed       D. knew

二,完形填空(共15小题;每小题1.5分,满分22.5分)

阅读下面短文,掌握其大意,然后从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项。

Prince was a dog. My husband found him   21   at the corner of the street, shaking in the cold and   22 dead, so he rescued him and   23   him home. He gave him the name Prince. I soon liked this little dog;   24    , I was not satisfied with his name. "Prince" sounded too formal. It was more like the   25   of a German shepherd dog (牧羊犬). I tried to   26   a name more fitting, but I seemed to be stuck with (无法摆脱) "Prince". Before long Prince   27  some of his princely attributes (品性,品质) to our family. It started when our young son Luck was   28   in bed. Prince didn’t usually go upstairs where the boys’ rooms were. He usually   29   me wherever I went like glue, since I was the one who fed him, but on that __30___ day, when I went upstairs to check Luck’s fever, I found that Prince was __31____beside my sick boy. He didn’t leave Luck’s side until Luck began to feel better. The same thing happened repeatedly. Whenever anyone in our family was sick, Prince would be right by that person’s side __32___ it was his job to take care of them until they __33__ . It was incredible to see this little dog set aside his active nature to show his care for a sick family member. Our little Prince lived for nearly sixteen years. He remained___34___to our family the whole time. Even in his final days, when he was in pain,  I___35__he would sacrifice his life for any of us. By then I had realized that his name was proper after all —he truly was a Prince among dogs.

21. A. lying       B. running         C. walking      D. screaming

22. A. completely   B. suddenly       C. unfortunatelyD. nearly

23. A. made       B. supplied        C. arranged     D. brought

24. A. otherwise     B. instead              C. however     D. therefore

25. A. name       B. head         C. body      D. character

26. A. put up with  B. come up with     C. look up to  D. pay attention to

27. A. analyzed      B. described       C. created       D. showed

28. A. asleep      B. playing         C. sick       D. staying

29. A. served     B. grasped         C. searched     D. Followed

30. A. particular     B. warm         C. meaningful D. Relative

31. A. smiling     B. quarreling     C. fighting      D. resting

32. A. even though B. now that        C. as if       D. ever since

33. A. disagreed     B. returned        C. recovered   D. cheered

34. A. tender      B. common        C. loyal      D. sensitive

35. A. doubted          B. observed       C. noticed       D. knew

 

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