Jimmy was so nervous not a single word         down in the dictation.

Jimmy was a twenty-year-old man. His father was a teacher and taught physics in a middle school and his mother worked in a shop. They lived a happy life until his parents died one night when suddenly an earthquake broke out. Luckily his sister took him to see their aunt in the city and they did not stay at home. Everything was destroyed in the earthquake and the two children got into trouble. Thanks to their aunt who was not rich enough, they grew up but they lived a hard life. His sister was so sad that she became a nun(修女). After he finished middle school, he was introduced to and owner of a hotel and began to work there.
One day the young man fell to ground while he was cleaning a window on the second floor. One of his legs was broken and he had to be in hospital. He said to the nurse, “I’m a poor man, madam. Arrange a third-class ward(病房) for me, please.”
“Can’t anybody help you?”
“No, madam,” answered Jimmy. “I have only a sister. She’s a nun and she’s poor, too.”
“I don’t think so,” the nurse said angrily. “Nuns usually marry God. And God is the richest in the world, you know!”
“Well, then,” Jimmy said with a smile. “Please arrange a first-class ward for me and post the bill to my brother-in-law.”
1.  Jimmy’s parents died           .
A. in an accident   B. in a war   C. in an earthquake   D. from a disease
2.  Jimmy and his sister escaped from the earthquake because          .
A. they played outside        B. they were in a safe place
C. their parents saved them    D. the aunt saved them
3.  The sister and brother lived a hard life because         .
A. they lost all                    B. they were too young
C. they were hurt in the earthquake    D. they had to look after themselves
4.  Which of the following is TRUE?
A. The nurse would arrange a third-class ward for Jimmy.
B. Jimmy’s sister became a nun because of her illness.
C. The nurse would post Jimmy’s bill to God.
D. Jimmy had a rich brother-in-law.

For many writers, writing stories or plays is a part-time job: to support themselves they take on other jobs, such as teaching. It is one sign of August Wilson’s success that for many years he has been able to make a living only by writing plays.
Wilson was born in Pittsburgh and dropped out of school in the ninth grade. He was a good reader, however, and continued his education by reading library books, learning about black nationalist movements of the time, and closely observing(观察) the lives of the poor people.
In the late 1960’s Wilson set up a theater company called Black Horizons and began to think of ways to describe African-American life on the stage. He had the idea of a cycle of plays, each of which was set in a different decade(十年) of the 20^th century, showing how African-American life has developed.
The first successful play of this series was Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom about black musicians in Chicago in the 1920s, who are not accepted by white society. Other plays in the series include Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, about blacks in the 1910s who had moved north to Pittsburgh in search of a new identity; Fences, which focuses on a father–son conflict(冲突) in the1950s; and The Piano Lesson, about a 1930s family that was uncertain about whether to sell the family’s treasure. For the last two of these plays Wilson was awarded Pulitzer Prizes.
Wilson has written eight plays in his cycle, the most recent being King Hedley the Second, a play set in the 1980s. His plays are enjoyed by both the blacks and the whites and engage anyone who is interested in African-American experience.
【小题1】Wilson won Pulitzer Prizes for ________.

For many writers, writing stories or plays is a part-time job: to support themselves they take on other jobs, such as teaching. It is one sign of August Wilson’s success that for many years he has been able to make a living only by writing plays.

Wilson was born in Pittsburgh and dropped out of school in the ninth grade. He was a good reader, however, and continued his education by reading library books, learning about black nationalist movements of the time, and closely observing(观察) the lives of the poor people.

In the late 1960’s Wilson set up a theater company called Black Horizons and began to think of ways to describe African-American life on the stage. He had the idea of a cycle of plays, each of which was set in a different decade(十年) of the 20^th century, showing how African-American life has developed.

The first successful play of this series was Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom about black musicians in Chicago in the 1920s, who are not accepted by white society. Other plays in the series include Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, about blacks in the 1910s who had moved north to Pittsburgh in search of a new identity; Fences, which focuses on a father–son conflict(冲突) in the1950s; and The Piano Lesson, about a 1930s family that was uncertain about whether to sell the family’s treasure. For the last two of these plays Wilson was awarded Pulitzer Prizes.

Wilson has written eight plays in his cycle, the most recent being King Hedley the Second, a play set in the 1980s. His plays are enjoyed by both the blacks and the whites and engage anyone who is interested in African-American experience.

1.Wilson won Pulitzer Prizes for ________.

A．The Piano Lesson & Fences

B． Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom & Fences

C．The Piano Lesson & King Hedley the Second

D．King Hedley the Second & Joe Turner’s Come and Gone

2. It is possible that in his series of the 20^th –century plays, Wilson plans to write ________.

A．no more          B．two more          C．three more        D．four more

3.The underlined word “engage” in the last paragraph means ________.

A．award            B．benefit           C．please            D．attract

4.What’s the passage mainly about?

A．The life of August Wilson.                 B．The growth of August Wilson.

C．A cycle of plays of August Wilson.           D．August Wilson’s theater company.