Question

【题目】Arthur Miller( 1915 - 2005) is universally recognized as one of the greatest dramatists of the 20th century. Miller's father had moved to the USA from Austria-Hungary, drawn like so many others by “the Great American Dream". However, he experienced severe financial hardship when his family business was ruined in the Great Depression of the early 1930s.

Miller's most famous play, Death of a Salesman, is a powerful attack on the American system，with its aggressive way of doing business and its insistence on money and social status as indicators of worth. In Willy Loman, the hero of the play, we see a man who has got into trouble with this system. Willy is “ burnt out ” and in the cruel world of business there is no room for sentiment ： if he can't do the work，then he is no good to his employer，the Wagner Company, and he must go. Willy is painfully aware of this，and at a loss as to what to do with his lack of success. He refuses to face the fact that he has failed and kills himself in the end.

When it was first staged in 1949，the play was greeted with enthusiastic reviews, and it won the Tony Award for Best Play，the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award，and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It was the first play to win all three of these major awards.

Miller died of heart failure at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut , on the evening of February 10,2005 , the 56th anniversary of the first performance of Death of a Salesman on Broadway.

【1】Why did Arthur Miller's father move to the USA?

A. He suffered from severe hunger in his home country.

B. He was attracted by"the Great American Dream".

C. He hoped to make his son a dramatist.

D. His family business failed.

【2】The play Death of a Salesman __________.

A. exposes the cruelty of the American business world

B. discusses the ways to get promoted in a company

C. talks about the business career of Arthur Miller

D. focuses on the skills in doing business

【3】What can we learn about Willy Loman?

A. He treats his employer badly.

B. He runs the Wagner Company.

C. He is a victim of the American system.

D. He is regarded as a hero by his colleagues.

【4】After it was first staged, Death of a Salesman __________.

A. achieved huge success

B. won the first Tony Award

C. was warmly welcomed by salesmen

D. was severely attacked by dramatists

【5】What is the text mainly about?

A. Arthur Miller and his family.

B. The awards Arthur Miller won.

C. The hardship Arthur Miller experienced.

D. Arthur Miller and his best-known play.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】B

【2】A

【3】C

【4】A

【5】D

【解析】

【1】事实细节题。由第一段第二句Miller's father had moved to the USA from Austria-Hungary, drawn like so many others by“the Creat American Dream”. 可知，他父亲搬家的原因是drawn like so many others by "the Creat American Dream”，从而找到答案。

【2】推理判断题。根据第二段中“Death ofn Salesman. , is a powerful attack on the American system, with its aggressive way of doing business and its insistence on money and social status as indicators of worth. ”以及剧中主人公以自杀方式结束生命的悲惨遭遇，可推断出这部剧作揭露了美国商业界的残酷。

【3】推理判断题。通过第二段作者对剧中主人公Willy Loman的评价“. . . we see a man who has got into trouble with this system. Willy is'burnt out' and in the cruel world of business there is no room for sentiment. . . ”可以推断出Willy Loman是美国社会制度的牺牲品。

【4】推理判断题。由第三段内容，这是一部首次获得三项大奖的剧作，所以选项A正确。B不全面；C、D没有提及。

【5】主旨大意题。总览全文叙述的是Arthur Miller和他最著名的剧作Death of a Salesman, A、B、C三个选项都不能概括这一主旨。