Culture and Cuisine

The United States is known for jazz and blue jeans.But travel to Paris and ask your average French citizen about American cuisine (烹饪) and he’s likely to answer,“ McDonalds.” Ask the same thing of any American citizen on any American street and I’m afraid you’d get the same answer,or something close to it.

Hamburgers and hotdogs and fries are all fine,but with American malls and other outlets standardizing everything from clothing to food,the sad truth is that American cuisine is becoming more homogeneous―all the same―no matter where you live.True,many Americans are eating more varied foods these days,but these are largely the cuisines of immigrant groups,and they are quite likely to be affected by homogenization of American cuisine.

So what exactly is American cuisine? Well,to some extent it is a reflection of our melting pot culture,meaning that Europeans made huge contributions in the form of wheat,dairy products,pork,beef and poultry.But American cuisine also includes products that once were known only to the New World,including potatoes,corn,pumpkin,sweet potatoes,and peanuts.

The one region of the country where you still find all these things in daily use is the Deep South.The South lost the Civil War,but children of the southerners are winning the battle to preserve and advance their cooking traditions—and in this case one of the few cuisines can truly be called American,which is why we’re pleased to have Low Country cuisine in this issue of food creation.That’s right,grits and gravy are back in a big way in cities like Charleston and Savannah.Truth is,they never really left,but up until a decade ago Low Country cuisine was more common at home than in restaurants.

In fact,a large number of tourists now go to the lower Atlantic region in order to experience this extraordinary cuisine for themselves.Time will tell whether Low Country cuisine becomes popular in other regions of the country in the way that,say,Italian cuisine has,but it’s amazing and heartening to see one of our true cultural treasures enjoying renewed popularity in these increasingly homogeneous times.

1.According to the passage,American cuisine impresses people as being _______.

A.dull and changeless

B.rich and various

C.popular and delicious

D.disagreeable and unpleasant

2.It can be seen that the writer feels regretful that _______.

A.cuisines of other countries play a more important role in America

B.American cuisine has become increasingly lacking in variety

C.American cuisine tends to vary because of immigration

D.American cuisine is being changed by foreign cuisines

3.From the passage,we know that grits and gravy _______.

A.were cooked with new materials after the Civil War

B.are gaining popularity in the south of America

C.were more popular over ten years ago

D.are seldom served in restaurants

4.What’s the writer’s attitude towards the renewal of Low Country cuisine in America?

A.Concerned and cautious.

B.Hopeless and doubtful.

C.Positive and supportive.

D.Critical and disapproving.

A “talk show” is a show organized mainly around talk. Television talk shows have been around since the dawn of radio. Thus the start of talk shows’ golden age can be considered as 1948, even though television wasn’t common in American homes until the 1950s. From 1949 to 1973, nearly half of all daytime programming was talk.

Why are there so many talk shows? A talk show costs less than $100,000 per episode(一集) to produce whereas many of today’s TV series cost more than $1 million an episode. Thus , if successful, it can produce handsome profits . Still, it takes a lot of work . Since 1948, hundreds of talk shows have come and gone, with only a few having true staying power.

There are several types of talk shows , but while the styles might vary, the format(形式) is limited.

What we are most used to is the informal guest-host format, in which shows’hosts welcome famous people or other talk –worthy persons for an informal discussion.

The second most common format is the public issues show, in which hosts interview people in the news or experts in a given field. Shows that follow this format include both morning news programs and “issue” talk shows:

The Museum of Broadcast Communications’ Bernard M. Timberg notes two governing principles of all successful talk shows:

The host is everything :The host has a high degree of control over their show, from subject matter to comedic atmosphere . They are also the show’s brand and are responsible for it. The host can attract and refuse guests, organize their program and , in many cases, name a successor(继任者) when they retire.

Right here, right now: The second rule is that a talk show must be experienced in the present tense, whether it is broadcast live or taped in front of an audience earlier in the day. They should feel fresh, as if they are happening in the moment, even if the show is a 10-year –old rerun.

1.What is paragraph 1 mainly about?

A. How talk shows appeared? B. Why talk shows appeared?

C. When talk shows appeared? D. Where talk shows appeared?

2.What is an advantage of talk shows?

A. They are easy to make.

B. They are cheap to produce.

C. They come in varied formats.

D. They remain successful for a long time.

3.The two formats of talk shows differ in_____________.

A. the atmosphere they create

B. the time they are broadcast

C. whether they are sent out live

D. whether they invite famous guests

4.What is the key to talk shows’ success according to the second principle?

A. Dealing with the most popular issues.

B. Giving the audience an up-to-date feeling.

C. Inviting the audience to the place where the shows are made.

D. Running the shows several times to refresh the audience’s memory.

第一节:完形填空 (共20小题,每小题.1.5分, 满分30分)

阅读下面短文。从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

My father was a self-taught mandolin player. He was one of the best string ___ ___ players in our town. He could not ___ ___ music, but if he heard a tune a few times, he could play it.

Dad loved to play the mandolin for his ___ ___ for he knew we enjoyed singing, and hearing him play. He was always there, ___ ___ his time and efforts to see that his family had enough in their life. I had to grow into a man and have children of my own ____ ____I realized how much he had sacrificed.

I joined the United States Air _ _ in January of 1962. Whenever I would come home ___ ___ , I would ask Dad to play the mandolin. He could ___ __ _your soul with the tones that came out of that old mandolin. He seemed to shine when he was playing. You could see his _ ___ in his ability to play so well for his family.

In 1950, our family moved to Maryland. While working at Todd Steel, he was _ _ in an accident. On that particular day, Dad got the third index finger of his left hand ______ _ by the machine. He didn't lose enough of the finger __ __ it would stop him picking up anything, but it did _ his ability to play the mandolin. After the accident, When I came home and asked him to play, Dad would make ___ _ for why he couldn't play. For the family it didn't make any __70_ ___ that Dad couldn't play as well.

In August of 1993, my father was discovered with lung cancer. He chose not to receive treatments so that he could live out the rest of his life _ ___ dignity. About a week before his death, we asked Dad if he would play the mandolin for us. He made excuses but said "okay". He knew it would probably be the _ __ time he would play for us. He tuned up the old mandolin and played a few _ __ . When I looked around, there was not a _ eye in the family. We saw before us a quiet man with an inner strength. Dad would never play the mandolin for us again. Dad was doing something he had done all his life, _ _____. As sick as he was, he was still pleasing others. Dad sure could play that Mandolin!

1.A. equipment B. instrument C. musical D. musician

2.A. read B. see C. look at D. copy

3.A. audience B. employer C. family D. friends

4.A. employing B. devoting C. spending D. wasting

5.A. since B. when C. after D. before

6.A. Power B. Energy C. Force D. Strength

7.A. on duty B. on holiday C. on vacation D. on leave

8.A. feel B. touch C. contact D. keep

9.A. proud B. pride C. please D. praise

10.A. involved B. participated C. took part D. joined

11.A. cut in B. cut up C. cut off D. cut out

12.A. which B. that C. what D. where

13.A. destroy B. affect C. effect D. injure

14.A. uses B. preparations C. excuses D. impressions

15.A. difference B. sense C. comment D. decision

16.A. at B. on C. off D. in

17.A. first B. latest C. last D. longest

18.A. notes B. bills C. symbols D. signs

19.A. wet B. dry C. cried D. crying

20.A. sponsoring B. taking C. distributing D. giving

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