Poverty exists because our society is an unequal one, and there are plenty of political pressures to keep it that way. Any attempt to redistribute wealth and income in the United States will be opposed by powerful middle and upper class interests. People can be relatively rich only if others are relatively poor, and since power is concentrated in the hands of the rich, public policies will continue to reflect their interests rather than those of the poor.

　　As Herbert Gans has pointed out, poverty is actually functional form from the point of view of the non-poor. Poverty ensures that ‘dirty’ work gets done. If there were no poor people to clean floors and empty dustbins, these jobs would have to be rewarded with high incomes before anyone would touch them. Poverty creates jobs for many of the non-poor, such as police officers, welfare workers, and government officials. Poverty makes life easier for the rich by providing them with cooks, gardeners and other workers to perform basic work while their employers enjoy more pleasurable activities. Poverty provides a market for low-level goods and services, such as day-old bread, rundown automobiles. Poverty legitimizes (make legal) middle-class values. To the middle class, the fate of the poor---who are supposed to lack honesty, and a taste of hard work---only confirms the desirability of qualities the poor are thought to lack. Poverty also provides a group that can be made to absorb the costs of change. For example, the poor bear the pressure of unemployment and it’s their homes, not those of the wealthy, that are destroyed when a route has to be found for a new highway. It cannot be said that the wealthy keep the poor in poverty. It is just that poverty is an outcome of the American economic system, which the poor are politically powerless to influence or change.

1. The best title is ________________________.

2. Poverty exists in American society because ____________.

3.The poor take on ‘dirty work’ ___________________.   

4. The author thinks that _____________________.

Poverty exists because our society is an unequal one, and there are plenty of political pressures to keep it that way. Any attempt to redistribute wealth and income in the United States will be opposed by powerful middle and upper class interests. People can be relatively rich only if others are relatively poor, and since power is concentrated in the hands of the rich, public policies will continue to reflect their interests rather than those of the poor.
　　As Herbert Gans has pointed out, poverty is actually functional form from the point of view of the non-poor. Poverty ensures that ‘dirty’ work gets done. If there were no poor people to clean floors and empty dustbins, these jobs would have to be rewarded with high incomes before anyone would touch them. Poverty creates jobs for many of the non-poor, such as police officers, welfare workers, and government officials. Poverty makes life easier for the rich by providing them with cooks, gardeners and other workers to perform basic work while their employers enjoy more pleasurable activities. Poverty provides a market for low-level goods and services, such as day-old bread, rundown automobiles. Poverty legitimizes (make legal) middle-class values. To the middle class, the fate of the poor---who are supposed to lack honesty, and a taste of hard work---only confirms the desirability of qualities the poor are thought to lack. Poverty also provides a group that can be made to absorb the costs of change. For example, the poor bear the pressure of unemployment and it’s their homes, not those of the wealthy, that are destroyed when a route has to be found for a new highway. It cannot be said that the wealthy keep the poor in poverty. It is just that poverty is an outcome of the American economic system, which the poor are politically powerless to influence or change.
【小题1】 The best title is ________________________.

Work gets done ____ when people do it together, and the rewards are higher too.

A. easily　　　　　 B. very easy　　　　　 C. more easily　　　 D. easier

There are about fifteen hundred languages in the world.

But ___1___ a few of them are very ___2___. English is one of these. Many, many people use it, not only in England and the U. S. A, but in other parts of the world. About 200, 000, 000 speak it as their own language. It is difficult to say how many people are learning it as a ___3___ language. Many millions are ___4___ to do so.

Is it easy or difficult to learn English? Different people may have different ___5___. Have you ever ___6___ the ads of this kind in the newspapers or magazines?

“Learn English in six month, or your ___7___ back ...” “Easy and funny? Our records and tapes ___8___ you master your English in a month. ___9___ the first day your ___10___ will be excellent. Just send ...” Of course, it never ___11___ quite like this.

The only language that seems easy to learn is the mother tongue. We should ___12___ that we all learned our own language well when we were ___13___. If we could learn English in the same way, it would not seem so difficult. ___14___ what a small child does. He listens to what people say. He tries what he hears. When he is using the language, talking in it, and ___15___ in it all the time, just imagine how much ___16___ that gets!

So it is ___17___ to say that learning English is easy, because a good command of English ___18___ upon a lot of practice. And practice needs great effort and ___19___ much time. Good teachers, records, tapes, books, and dictionaries will ___20___. But they cannot do the student’s work for him.

1. A. not 　　　　　 B. quite　 　　　　 C. only 　　　　　　 D. very

2. A. difficult 　　　 B. important　 　　 C. necessary 　　 D. easy

3. A. native 　　　 B. foreign 　　　　 C. useful　 　　　　 D. mother

4. A. learning　 　　　 B. enjoying 　　 C. trying　 　　　　 D. liking

5. A. questions　　　 B. problems　 　　 C. ideas 　　　　 D. answers

6. A. found　 　　　 B. watched 　　　　 C. noticed 　　　　 D. known

7. A. knowledge 　 B. time 　　　　 C. money 　　　　 D. English

8. A. make 　　　 B. help 　　　　 C. let　 　　　　　　 D. allow

9. A. From 　　　 B. On　 　　　　　　 C. Since 　　　　 D. After

10. A. spelling 　　　 B. grammar 　　 C. English 　　　　 D. pronunciation

11. A. happened 　 B. know 　　　　 C. seemed　 　　　　 D. felt

12. A. know　 　　　 B. remember 　　 C. understand　 　　 D. think

13. A. students 　　　 B. children 　　　　 C. babies　 　　　　 D. grown-ups

14. A. Imagine　 　　　 B. Mind 　　　　 C. Do 　　　　　　 D. Think of

15. A. using 　　　 B. thinking 　　 C. trying　 　　　　 D. practicing

16. A. time　 　　　 B. money　 　　　　 C. language 　　　　 D. practice

17. A. hard　 　　　 B. easy 　　　　 C. funny 　　　　 D. silly

18. A. depends　 　　　 B. tries　 　　　　 C. has　 　　　　　　 D. takes

19. A. uses　 　　　 B. takes　 　　　　 C. gets 　　　　　　 D. costs

20. A. do 　　　　　 B. work 　　　　 C. help 　　　　　　 D. master

Poverty exists because our society is an unequal one, and there are plenty of political pressures to keep it that way. Any attempt to redistribute wealth and income in the United States will be opposed by powerful middle and upper class interests. People can be relatively rich only if others are relatively poor, and since power is concentrated in the hands of the rich, public policies will continue to reflect their interests rather than those of the poor.

　　As Herbert Gans has pointed out, poverty is actually functional form from the point of view of the non-poor. Poverty ensures that ‘dirty’ work gets done. If there were no poor people to clean floors and empty dustbins, these jobs would have to be rewarded with high incomes before anyone would touch them. Poverty creates jobs for many of the non-poor, such as police officers, welfare workers, and government officials. Poverty makes life easier for the rich by providing them with cooks, gardeners and other workers to perform basic work while their employers enjoy more pleasurable activities. Poverty provides a market for low-level goods and services, such as day-old bread, rundown automobiles. Poverty legitimizes (make legal) middle-class values. To the middle class, the fate of the poor---who are supposed to lack honesty, and a taste of hard work---only confirms the desirability of qualities the poor are thought to lack. Poverty also provides a group that can be made to absorb the costs of change. For example, the poor bear the pressure of unemployment and it’s their homes, not those of the wealthy, that are destroyed when a route has to be found for a new highway. It cannot be said that the wealthy keep the poor in poverty. It is just that poverty is an outcome of the American economic system, which the poor are politically powerless to influence or change.

The best title is ________________________.

A. Functions of Poverty                 B. Political Power in Poverty 

C. The Fate of the Poor                 D. An Unequal Society

Poverty exists in American society because ____________.

  A. the wealthy work hard and are glad to keep it　　

B. the majority of the non-poor are totally indifferent (not paying much attention) to it　

C. the rich are politically powerful while the poor are politically powerless　

D. the poor like the jobs that they’re supplied by the wealthy.

The poor take on ‘dirty work’ ___________________.   

A. under political pressure                 B. for the high pay offered

C. as they are reasonably paid              D. though ill-paid

The author thinks that _____________________.

  A. the poor lack such desirable qualities as honesty　　

B. the poor are not supposed to work hard　　

C. the poor are willing to bear the costs of change     D. none of the above