When The Grapes of Wrath (愤怒) was published on March 14, 1939, it created a national sensation (轰动) for its description of the destructive effects of the Great Depression (大萧条) of the 1930s. By the end of April, it was selling 2,500 copies a day — a remarkable number considering the hard economic times. In May, the novel was a number-one best-seller, selling at a rate of 10,000 copies a week. By the end of 1939, close to a half million copies had been sold.

　 John Steinbeck was shocked by the tremendous response to his novel. Almost overnight, he found himself involved in a great national debate over the migrant labor problem. Many people were shocked by the poverty and hopelessness of the story, and others denied that such circumstances could happen in America. Even people who had never read a book before bought a copy of The Grapes of Wrath. At $2.75 per copy, it was affordable and quickly sold out.

　 However it was banned and burned in Buffalo, New York; East Saint Louis, Illinois; and Kern County, California, where much of the novel is set. In fact, the novel remains one of the most frequently banned books in the United States. The book was criticized sharply in Congress by Representative Lyle Boren of Oklahoma, who called the novel’s description of migrant living conditions a lie. Charges were made that “obscenity” (淫秽) had been included in the book in large part to sell more copies. Eventually, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt stepped in to praise the book and defend Steinbeck against his critics. In 1940, the novel won the Pulitzer Prize.

　 The popularity of the novel has endured. It is estimated that it has sold fifteen million copies since its publication. For almost sixty years, Steinbeck’s novel has been a classic in American literature; it has been translated into several languages, including French, German, and Japanese. The Grapes of Wrath has also been a necessary part of the school curriculum in America since the end of World War II.

41. What does the underlined word “tremendous” probably mean?

　 A. good　　　　　 B. terrible　　　　 C. dull　　　 　　　　　 D. great

42. Representative Lyle Boren of Oklahoma was 　　　　.

　 A. a crazy supporter of The Grapes of Wrath　　

B. among the group against John Steinbeck

　 C. sympathetic to the migrant living conditions　

D. criticized by the first lazy of that time

43. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a reason why The Grapes of Wrath sold well?

　 A. It well describes people’s life during that time.　

B. The debate over it arose more readers’ interest.

　 C. Readers were attracted by the obscenity in it.　　

D. It was not expensive so people could afford it.

44.　 Which of the following is TRUE about The Grapes of Wrath?

A. It is about the migrant workers in America during 1940s.

B. The story mainly happened on California’s grape farms.

C. Its description of the poor and hopeless life was a lie.

D. It remains a banned book in some places of the USA.

45. What can best prove the literature value of The Grapes of Wrath?

　 A. It survives the time and remains a classic.

　 B. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt praised it.

　 C. It has won many important prizes in America.

　 D. It was a number-one best-seller after its publication.

During times of trouble, Franklin Delano Roosevelt spoke from a small room without a fireplace in the White House basement to millions of Americans. In his calm and conversational manner, he reassured（使......恢复信心）the nation in the depths of the Great Depression（大萧条）and through a World War.

Saul Bellow described his own experience of listening to President Roosevelt, hold the nation together, using only a radio and the power of his personality.

"I can recall walking eastward on the Chicago Midway... drivers had pulled over, parking bumper（保险杠） to bumper, and turned on their radios to hear Roosevelt. They had rolled down the windows and opened the car doors. Everywhere the same voice, its odd Eastern accent, which in anyone else would have angered Midwesterners. You could follow without missing a single word as you walked by. You felt you had joined to these unknown drivers, men and women..."

The nation needed the assurance of those Fireside Chats, the first of which was delivered on March 12, 1933. Between a quarter and a third of the work force was unemployed. Every bank in America had been closed for at least eight days. It's hard for us to imagine. It was the hardest time of the Great Depression.

The "Fireside" was symbolic（象征性的）; most of the chats came from a small room in the White House basement. Frances Perkins, Roosevelt's Secretary of Labor, described the change that would come over him just before the broadcasts: "His face would smile and light up as though he were actually sitting on the front porch（门廊）or in the parlor with them. People felt this, and came to respect and love him."

In that first radio visit, Roosevelt began by explaining how the banking system worked : "When you put money in a bank, the bank does not place the money into a safe-deposit vault（金库房）. It invests （投资）your money in many different forms." He went on to announce that the banks would reopen the next day.

71. The main purpose of the article is to ________ .

A. give examples of the power of radio broadcasting

B. make people examine their attitudes toward money

C. suggest that Roosevelt was America's greatest president

D. show how Roosevelt reassured American during hard times

72. According to the article, the Fireside Chats raised the hopes of Americans because President Roosevelt ________ .

A. spoke to them in a friendly and confident tone

B. explained to them how to invest their money

C. was open about his own fears for the country

D. used humor to draw their attention away from their problems

73. The name "Fireside Chats" was probably intended to ________ .

A. demand listeners to protect resources

B. encourage spirited discussion among listeners

C. request people to desire for hope and reassurance

D. persuade Americans to talk with their families

74. Saul Bellow's description of his own experience of listening to President Roosevelt shows ________ .

A. how popular and encouraging Roosevelt's Fireside Chats were

B. how easily Roosevelt's Fireside Chats could be understood

C. what great interest general public took in national affairs

D. what a hard life Americans had in Great Depression

During times of trouble, Franklin Delano Roosevelt spoke from a small room without a fireplace in the White House basement to millions of Americans. In his calm and conversational manner, he reassured（使......恢复信心）the nation in the depths of the Great Depression（大萧条）and through a World War.

Saul Bellow described his own experience of listening to President Roosevelt, hold the nation together, using only a radio and the power of his personality.

"I can recall walking eastward on the Chicago Midway... drivers had pulled over, parking bumper（保险杠） to bumper, and turned on their radios to hear Roosevelt. They had rolled down the windows and opened the car doors. Everywhere the same voice, its odd Eastern accent, which in anyone else would have angered Midwesterners. You could follow without missing a single word as you walked by. You felt you had joined to these unknown drivers, men and women..."

The nation needed the assurance of those Fireside Chats, the first of which was delivered on March 12, 1933. Between a quarter and a third of the work force was unemployed. Every bank in America had been closed for at least eight days. It's hard for us to imagine. It was the hardest time of the Great Depression.

The "Fireside" was symbolic（象征性的）; most of the chats came from a small room in the White House basement. Frances Perkins, Roosevelt's Secretary of Labor, described the change that would come over him just before the broadcasts: "His face would smile and light up as though he were actually sitting on the front porch（门廊）or in the parlor with them. People felt this, and came to respect and love him."

In that first radio visit, Roosevelt began by explaining how the banking system worked : "When you put money in a bank, the bank does not place the money into a safe-deposit vault（金库房）. It invests （投资）your money in many different forms." He went on to announce that the banks would reopen the next day.

71. The main purpose of the article is to ________ .

A. give examples of the power of radio broadcasting

B. make people examine their attitudes toward money

C. suggest that Roosevelt was America's greatest president

D. show how Roosevelt reassured American during hard times

72. According to the article, the Fireside Chats raised the hopes of Americans because President Roosevelt ________ .

A. spoke to them in a friendly and confident tone

B. explained to them how to invest their money

C. was open about his own fears for the country

D. used humor to draw their attention away from their problems

73. The name "Fireside Chats" was probably intended to ________ .

A. demand listeners to protect resources

B. encourage spirited discussion among listeners

C. request people to desire for hope and reassurance

D. persuade Americans to talk with their families

74. Saul Bellow's description of his own experience of listening to President Roosevelt shows ________ .

A. how popular and encouraging Roosevelt's Fireside Chats were

B. how easily Roosevelt's Fireside Chats could be understood

C. what great interest general public took in national affairs

D. what a hard life Americans had in Great Depression

Nearly twenty years has passed, I still remember my favourite professor, James Sehwartz. And almost all his students are his friends, and almost all his students know his life story.
When James was a teenager, his father1him to a fur (毛皮)factory where he worked . This was during the Great Depression(大萧条). The2was to get James a job.
He entered the factory, and immediately felt as if the walls had closed in around him. The room was dark and hot, the windows covered with dust, and the3were packed tightly together, running like trains. The fur hairs were flying,4the air thicker, and the workers, sewing the pieces of fur together, were bent over their needles5the boss marched up and down the rows, shouting and forcing them to go faster. James could hardly6. He stood next to his father, frozen with fear, hoping the boss wouldn’t7at him, either.
During lunch break, his father took James to the boss and pushed him in front of him,8if there was any work for his son. But unfortunately, the answer was “no”, because at that time no one would9 it up once he takes a job.
However, for James, it was a blessing(福气) . He hated the place. He made a(an)10that he would never do any work that brought11to someone else, and that he would never allow himself to12money from others who would lose their jobs for him.
“What will you do?” his mother , Eva , would ask him.
“I don’t know,” he would say. He ruled out(排除)law, because he didn’t like13, and he ruled out medicine , because he couldn’t take the14of blood.
15 , my best professor became a teacher, he thought it was the job not to hurt anybody.

1. 1.
   1. A.
      sent
   2. B.
      took
   3. C.
      carried
   4. D.
      admitted
2. 2.
   1. A.
      situation
   2. B.
      condition
   3. C.
      aim
   4. D.
      way
3. 3.
   1. A.
      goods
   2. B.
      workers
   3. C.
      machines
   4. D.
      vehicles
4. 4.
   1. A.
      making
   2. B.
      sending
   3. C.
      taking
   4. D.
      breaking
5. 5.
   1. A.
      as
   2. B.
      after
   3. C.
      if
   4. D.
      though
6. 6.
   1. A.
      breathe
   2. B.
      see
   3. C.
      walk
   4. D.
      hear
7. 7.
   1. A.
      attack
   2. B.
      laugh
   3. C.
      rush
   4. D.
      shout
8. 8.
   1. A.
      doubting
   2. B.
      questioning
   3. C.
      asking
   4. D.
      begging
9. 9.
   1. A.
      pick
   2. B.
      give
   3. C.
      come
   4. D.
      turn
10. 10.
    1. A.
       request
    2. B.
       promise
    3. C.
       plan
    4. D.
       arrangement
11. 11.
    1. A.
       harm
    2. B.
       injury
    3. C.
       damage
    4. D.
       convenience
12. 12.
    1. A.
       pay
    2. B.
       save
    3. C.
       earn
    4. D.
       let
13. 13.
    1. A.
       police
    2. B.
       lawyers
    3. C.
       doctors
    4. D.
       government
14. 14.
    1. A.
       sight
    2. B.
       feel
    3. C.
       sense
    4. D.
       scenery
15. 15.
    1. A.
       Generally
    2. B.
       Possibly
    3. C.
       Eventually
    4. D.
       Basically