Robert Burns, the son of a hard-working and intelligent farmer, was the oldest of seven children. Although always hard pressed financially, their father encouraged his sons with their education. As a result, Burns not only read the Scottish poetry of Ramsay and the collections by Hailes and Herd, but also the works of Pope, Locke, and Shakespeare.

By 1781, Burns had tried his hand at several agricultural jobs without success. Although he had begun writing, and his poems were spread widely in manuscript (手稿), none were published until 1786, when Burns published Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect (1786), which was an immediate success. Later Burns brought out a second edition of his poems at Edinburgh in 1787, and for two winters he was socially active in the Scottish city. In 1788 he retired to a farm at Ellis land. By 1791 Burns had failed as a farmer, and he moved to Dumfries, where he held a position as a tax collector. He died of illness at 37.

Burns’s art is at its best in songs such as My Heart’s in the Highlands. Some of his songs, such as Auld Lang Syne and Comin’ thro’ the Rye, are among the most familiar and best-loved songs in the English language. But his talent was not limited to songs; two descriptive pieces, Tam o’ Shanter and The Jolly Beggars, are among his masterpieces.

Burns had a fine sense of humor, which was reflected in his satirical (讽刺的), descriptive, and playful poems. His great popularity with the Scots lay in his ability to describe the life of his fellow rural Scots. His use of dialect brought an energetic, much-needed freshness into English poetry.

1. What can we learn from the first paragraph?

A．Burn had a wealthy childhood.

B．Burns was best loved by his parents.

C．Burns’s father cared more about his kids’ education.

D．Burns wanted to be a poet when he grew up.

2.Robert was not officially accepted by readers until______.

A．1781             B．1786             C．1787             D．1791

3. Robert made his best achievement in art by writing _______.

A．songs            B．poems            C．stories            D．humors

4. What was Robert’s biggest contribution to English poetry?

A．His satirical style.                        B．His descriptiveness.

C．His fine sense of humor.                  D．His use of Scottish dialect.

5. We can conclude from the passage that Robert _______.

A．majored in agriculture when he was a student

B．earned a lot of money by publishing his poems

C．was a failure in managing farms but a success in art

D．showed much interest in collecting tax before he died

Robert Burns, the son of a hard-working and intelligent farmer, was the oldest of seven children. Although always hard pressed financially, their father encouraged his sons with their education. As a result, Burns not only read the Scottish poetry of Ramsay and the collections by Hailes and Herd, but also the works of Pope, Locke, and Shakespeare.
By 1781, Burns had tried his hand at several agricultural jobs without success. Although he had begun writing, and his poems were spread widely in manuscript (手稿), none were published until 1786, when Burns published Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect (1786), which was an immediate success. Later Burns brought out a second edition of his poems at Edinburgh in 1787, and for two winters he was socially active in the Scottish city. In 1788 he retired to a farm at Ellis land. By 1791 Burns had failed as a farmer, and he moved to Dumfries, where he held a position as a tax collector. He died of illness at 37.
Burns’s art is at its best in songs such as My Heart’s in the Highlands. Some of his songs, such as Auld Lang Syne and Comin’ thro’ the Rye, are among the most familiar and best-loved songs in the English language. But his talent was not limited to songs; two descriptive pieces, Tam o’ Shanter and The Jolly Beggars, are among his masterpieces.
Burns had a fine sense of humor, which was reflected in his satirical (讽刺的), descriptive, and playful poems. His great popularity with the Scots lay in his ability to describe the life of his fellow rural Scots. His use of dialect brought an energetic, much-needed freshness into English poetry.
【小题1】 What can we learn from the first paragraph?

World top-ranked badminton player Lin Dan said last Friday that he was a better player than Taufik Hidayat in the year of 2006 despite losing the Asian Games single title to the Indonesian Olympic champion.

“I have ranked No.1 in the world for two straight years and I think people can easily come to a conclusion on who is a better player for the whole year,” said Lin Dan, also known as Super Dan in the badminton world because of his marvelous performance in the sport.

Hidayat beat Lin 21-15, 22-20 to give Indonesia its second gold medal in Doha on December 9, retaining his Asian Games singles title and avenging(报仇) two losses to the badminton world champion.

Lin, 23, led China to the men’s team title after defeating Hidayat twice in three days, in the preliminary round and in the semifinals of the Asian Games.www.ks5u.com

In their third meeting, Lin came up against a better-prepared Hidayat than he had encountered previously.

Hidayat was cheered on by the noisy support from dancing and flag-waving Indonesian fans, who had converted the badminton arena into a national celebration even before the two players stepped onto the court.

There’s been a lot of acrimony(言语的刻毒) between Hidayat and Lin, who this year won the single title in the world championships after former champion Hidayat crashed out in the quarterfinals.

In Doha, Hidayat was quoted as calling Lin “arrogant” before the event began, but the two stars played down the rift (a situation where two people dislike each other).

“It’s no problem, we’re close friends,” said Hidayat. “The media fabricated it.”

Lin said last Friday in Beijing that he and Hidayat remain friends despite all the rumors.

“There is no problem between Taufik and me although we don’t talk to each other very much,” said Lin. “Media tends to make up things in order to make their stories juicy.”

46. What does the underlined word “fabricated” mean?

A. made up                          B. reported                  

C. discovered                       D. found out

47. What is the relationship between the two players like?

A. They are only opponents.

B. Lin looks down upon Hidayat.

C. They both think they are friends.

D. The media has worsened the relationship between them.

48. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

A. Lin beat Hidayat in all the games of 2006.

        B. Lin won the single title in the world championships in 2006.

        C. Indonesian fans held a national celebration after the two players stepped onto the court.

         D. Hidayat beat Lin 21-15, 22-20 to give Indonesia its first gold medal in Doha on the ninth of December

49. This passage implies that ________.

A. Hidayat was in a better prepared condition than Lin in the Asian Games

B. Lin helped to win the men’s team title in the Asian Games of 2006

 C. Both of them are the best badminton players in the world

 D. Media tends to make up rumors

50. What is the best title for this passage?

A. Opponents Become Good Friends          

B. True Friendship

C. World Top-ranked Badminton Players     

D. Who Is a Better Player?

Robert Burns, the son of a hard-working and intelligent farmer, was the oldest of seven children. Although always hard pressed financially, their father encouraged his sons with their education. As a result, Burns not only read the Scottish poetry of Ramsay and the collections by Hailes and Herd, but also the works of Pope, Locke, and Shakespeare.
By 1781, Burns had tried his hand at several agricultural jobs without success. Although he had begun writing, and his poems were spread widely in manuscript (手稿), none were published until 1786, when Burns published Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect (1786), which was an immediate success. Later Burns brought out a second edition of his poems at Edinburgh in 1787, and for two winters he was socially active in the Scottish city. In 1788 he retired to a farm at Ellis land. By 1791 Burns had failed as a farmer, and he moved to Dumfries, where he held a position as a tax collector. He died of illness at 37.
Burns’s art is at its best in songs such as My Heart’s in the Highlands. Some of his songs, such as Auld Lang Syne and Comin’ thro’ the Rye, are among the most familiar and best-loved songs in the English language. But his talent was not limited to songs; two descriptive pieces, Tam o’ Shanter and The Jolly Beggars, are among his masterpieces.
Burns had a fine sense of humor, which was reflected in his satirical (讽刺的), descriptive, and playful poems. His great popularity with the Scots lay in his ability to describe the life of his fellow rural Scots. His use of dialect brought an energetic, much-needed freshness into English poetry

1. 1.

   What can we learn from the first paragraph?

   1. A.
      Burn had a wealthy childhood
   2. B.
      Burns was best loved by his parents
   3. C.
      Burns’s father cared more about his kids’ education
   4. D.
      Burns wanted to be a poet when he grew up
2. 2.

   Robert was not officially accepted by readers until______

   1. A.
      1781
   2. B.
      1786
   3. C.
      1787
   4. D.
      1791
3. 3.

   Robert made his best achievement in art by writing _______

   1. A.
      songs
   2. B.
      poems
   3. C.
      stories
   4. D.
      humors
4. 4.

   What was Robert’s biggest contribution to English poetry?

   1. A.
      His satirical style
   2. B.
      His descriptiveness
   3. C.
      His fine sense of humor
   4. D.
      His use of Scottish dialect
5. 5.

   We can conclude from the passage that Robert _______

   1. A.
      majored in agriculture when he was a student
   2. B.
      earned a lot of money by publishing his poems
   3. C.
      was a failure in managing farms but a success in art
   4. D.
      showed much interest in collecting tax before he died