Question

The art of reading fiction is largely a matter of inferring meanings. To infer means to understand facts which are not directly stated---only suggested. Inference is one of the commonest ways of knowing things: a child holds his knee and cries; this action implies his feeling; an observer infers that the child is hurt. To infer accurately in everyday life requires caution in observing; to infer skillfully in fiction requires caution in reading; both require disciplined imagination.

The short-story reader can expect to find certain basic elements in any story. For example, all stories involve a person or persons, in a particular setting, faced with a demand for a response. The response called for may be a physical action, such as defeating an adversary(对手) or escaping from a danger; or it may be a mental action, such as adjusting to others or within oneself. In either case, the short story is a description in two ways: first, it shows the motives for a given human action; second, it makes a point about the general human situation. Such descriptions, however, rather than being stated directly, usually are implied by the elements of the story.

When the reader of a story understands all the facts and their interrelationships, he is ready to infer the significance of the story as a whole---its comment on the human situation. This comment, or theme, is the seed from which the story grew. It is also the idea by which all the separate elements of the story are governed, while these in turn further shape and modify the theme. In addition to action, character, and setting, these elements include structure, mood, tone, and point of view.

Fiction reading requires an awareness of all the ways in which a story communicates. It also requires attention to detail. What the author provides is a network of points which serve as clues to his meaning. He invites the reader to develop the meaning by inference, actually to create much of the story himself and so make it part of his own experience.

1.According to the author, "infer" means ________ .

A. knowing facts beyond the statement

B. looking for more evidences for the statement  

C. finding out a different meaning from the statement

D. adding some facts to the statement 

2.What is inferring in fiction based on?

A. Readers’ guessing.

B. The basic elements of the story.

C.  The setting of the story.

D. The interrelationships between people in the story.

3.What is the implied meaning of the last sentence?

A. Inferring can really help the reader develop imagination and enrich himself. 

B. Inferring can help the reader write a story of his own.  

C. The reader should look for an experience described in the story he reads.

D. The experience described in the story will leave a great impact on its reader.

4.What is the main idea of this passage?

A. Inferring is an art of writing.   

B. Inferring is a need in fiction writing.

C. Inferring is the basic skill in reading fiction.

D. Inferring is common in reading.

 

Answer 1

1.A

2.B

3.A

4.C

【解析】

试题分析：本文叙述了读小说的艺术在于读者的推理，文中讲述了什么是推理，推理就是在描述的事实之外，你推测出来的内容，但是推理是基于这篇小说的事实，不是凭空想象的，最后指出推理能帮助读者发展他们的想象空间来丰富充实自己。

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考点：考查科普类短文阅读。