题目内容
I still remember ______ this used to be a quiet village.
A. when B. how C. where D. what
A
请认真阅读下面短文,并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。
注意:每空一词。
Most people who travel from China to the US find that,despite having studied English for years,they have to “re—learn” it upon arriving.
Words that we learned in English classes are not pronounced the same way here.To truly be part of the “melting pot”,fluency(流利)in English is not enough.You need an accent to stand out.
When I first came to the US for graduate school,1 was a nervous foreigner.I felt so out of place that I wanted to hide everything about me that was “different”.To talk like an American became one of my goals.
During my first term as a teaching assistant(TA),my students complained(抱怨) they could not understand me.I learned later from a study that this complaint was common among US students with an international TA.It is called the “Oh, no!” syndrome (情绪、举动):“Oh,no! Not another international TA,and not that accent again!’’
So I imitated(模仿)the way native speakers talk and,over time,I made such good progress that American friends started to praise my English as having “almost no accent’’.I took this as a sign of my success.Ever since.people have often mistaken me for someone from many places:the Midwest,the West Coast,China,Japan,South Korea.Most frequently,people think I am from California.
Suddenly,conformity (一致) was no longer a praise:If I talk like an American,am I still Chinese? If I lose my Chinese accent,do I also lose my cultural identity? Am I denying(否认)my past by being absorbed into(沉浸于)a new culture?
Now I realize that a person’s accent is a permanent(永久的)record of their past cultural experience and it is a mark of one’s experience and exposure to different cultures.
As a fourth-year student in the US,I am no longer a nervous foreigner.My nervousness has been replaced by a desire to hold on to my cultural origins.Now I consciously(有意识地)add some Chinese “accent” when I speak.I do not wish to speak “perfect” English because I am proud of who I am.
My Feeling of Speaking English in America | |
Time | Supporting details |
At the (71) ______ | I have to relearn English (72) ______ arriving there, for my pronunciations of words are (73) ______ from native speakers. |
My students complained that I couldn’t make myself (74)______. | |
During my stay | I made great (75) ______ in spoken English by imitating the (76) ______ native speakers talk. |
People often (77) ______ me for someone from the Midwest,the West Coast,China, California and so on. | |
Now | I think it necessary to keep my (78) ______ origins. |
I often add some Chinese “accent” consciously when (79) ______ English because I am (80) ______ of being a Chinese. |