No country in the world has more daily newspapers than the USA. There are almost 2,000 of them, as compared with 180 in Japan, 164 in Argentina and 111 in Britain. The quality of some American papers is extremely high and their views are quoted all over the world. Famous dailies like the Washington Post or the New York Times have a powerful influence all over the country. However, they are not national newspapers in the sense that The Times is in Britain or Le Monde is in France, since each American city has its own daily newspaper. The best of these present detailed description of national and international news, but many tend to limit themselves to state or city news.

　Like the press in most other countries, American newspapers range from the “sensational” which feature crime and gossip(闲谈), to the “serious”, which focus on factual news and the analysis of world events. But with few exceptions, American newspapers try to entertain as well as give information, for they have to compete with the attraction of television.

 Just as American newspapers satisfy all tastes, so do they also try to attract readers of all political parties. A few newspapers support extremist(极端主义的) groups on the far right and on the far left, but most daily newspapers try to attract middle-of-the-road Americans who are moderate(中立的). Many of these papers print columns by well-known journalists of different political and social views, in order to present a balanced picture.

As in other countries, American newspapers can be either responsible or irresponsible, but it is generally accepted that the American press serves its country well and that it has more than once courageously exposed political scandals(丑闻) or crimes, for instance, the Watergate Affair(水门事件). The Newspapers drew the attention of the public to the horrors of the Vietnam War.

There are fewer national newspapers in          .

　　A. Britain than in the USA.    B. France than in Britain

　　C. the USA than in Britain or France

　　D. France than in the USA or Britain

Most American newspapers try hard to entertain their readers because

                   .　　

       A. they have to keep up a good relation with them

　　B. they have to compete with television

　　C. they have to write about crime and gossip

　　D. they have to give factual news in an interesting way

Many American newspapers attract readers of different political preference by          .

　　A. supporting extremist groups from time to time

　　B. inviting middle-of-the-road Americans to write articles for them

　　C. avoiding carrying articles about extremists

　　D. printing articles representing different political viewpoints

The passage is mainly about             .

　　A. the characteristics of American newspapers

　　B. the development of American newspapers

　　C. the functions of American newspapers

　　D. the advantages and disadvantages of American newspapers

The current political _____ of our country is favorable for foreign investments.

　　A. climate    B. weather    C. state    D. occasion

Political parties often differ in their views on various _____ concerning their own countries.

　　A. ways    B. measures    C. issues    D. patterns

Today, we complete our story about the influential English writer William Shakespeare. He wrote plays and poems during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, which remain very popular today.

During earlier times, people would probably have learned several ancient Roman and Greek plays. It was not unusual for writers to produce more current versions of these works. For example, in Shakespeare’s play “The Comedy of Errors”, Shakespeare borrowed certain details from the ancient Roman writer Plautus. For his play “Macbeth”, Shakespeare most likely used a work on Scottish history by Raphael Holinshed for information. Shakespeare might have borrowed from other writers, but the intensity（强度）of his imagination and language made the plays his own. While many plays by other writers of his time have been forgotten, Shakespeare and his art live on.

Shakespeare was also influenced by the world around him. He described the sights and sounds of London in his plays. His works include observations about political struggles, the fear of diseases, and the popular language of the city’s tradesmen. Shakespeare’s knowledge of the English countryside is also clear. His works include descriptions of deep forests, local flowers, and the ancient popular traditions of rural people.

It would be impossible to list all of the ways in which Shakespeare’s works have influenced the world culture. But the first and greatest example would be his great influence on the English language. During his time, the English language was changing. Many new words from other languages were being added. Shakespeare used his sharp mind and poetic inventiveness to create hundreds of new words and rework old ones. For example, he created the noun forms of “critic”, “mountaineer” and “eyeball”. Many common expressions in English come from his plays, including “pomp and circumstance（装腔作势）” from “Othello”, “full circle（绕圈子地）” from “King Lear”, etc. The list of cultural creations influenced by Shakespeare is almost endless. From paintings to television to music and dance, Shakespeare was well represented. Shakespeare’s plays have been translated into every major language in the world.

Shakespeare became a well­known writer during a golden age of theater. His years of hard work paid off.

1. From the passage, we can see that ________.

A. Shakespeare was hard­working when he was a student

B. many of Shakespeare’s works were influenced by earlier writings

C. the experience of living in London had no effect on Shakespeare’s works

D. Shakespeare became rich later because of the popularity of his works

2. Why could Shakespeare’s works survive his time?

A. Because there were so few people writing plays in his time.

B. Because he produced too many works that nobody else could do.

C. Because his works were rich in imagination and language.

D. Because he was a rich and influential person of his time.

3.Shakespeare’s greatest influence should be on 　　　　.

A. paintings      B. television

C. the English language           D. music and dance

4.The passage is mainly about 　　　　.

A. an introduction to Shakespeare’s life and his works

B. the main features and styles of Shakespeare’s plays

C. Shakespeare’s greatest influence on the world culture.

D. how culture influenced Shakespeare and he influenced culture.