The writing of Shakespeare are today little read by young people in Britain．His young readership is limited to those who choose to study literature at university．

Shakespeare’s work, together with most other classics, is seen as remote, and written in a 400-year- old version of English that is about as inviting as toothache．

Still, in British schools, it is necessary to study the poet, and when something is made compulsory, usually the result is boredom, resentment（憎恨） or both．

This was my experience of the classics at school．But when I reached my late teenage years, I had a change of heart．Like every other young person since the dawn of time, the world confused me．I wanted answers, so I turned to books to find them．

I went on to take a PhD in literature and have taught it in Britain and China．I have never regretted it．There is something in literature that people want, even if they don’t read books．You see this in the popularity of TV and movie adaptations of great works, the recent film version of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice being a case in point．These popular adaptations may help increase people’s interest in the classics．

Reading a simplified Romeo and Juliet may perhaps lead to a reading of Shakespeare’s actual plays．If that is the case, then I welcome the trend．But do not make the mistake of thinking that it is the same thing．Shakespeare is a poet．His greatness is in his language．Reading someone else’s rewriting of his works is like peeling a banana, throwing away the fruit, and eating the skin．Take on the original．It really is worth the effort．

1．Which of the following is true according to the passage?

     A．The language used in classics is no longer in use today．

     B．British students usually find compulsory reading dull．

  C．Only those studying literature read Shakespeare’s works．

  D．For British people, Shakespeare’s works are no longer classics．

2．According to the passage, the writer _____ ．

    A．has liked literary classics since an early age

    B．was forced to read the classics for a PhD

    C．turned to literature to seek answers in his teens

    D．thinks only people who read books like literature

3．The underlined phrase “a case in point” in Paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to “_____”．

    A．a great hit                               B．a good example

    C．a movie adaptation                        D．a popular phenomenon

4．What does the writer intend to tell us in the last paragraph?

    A．The fruit of a banana is more useful than its skin．

    B．The rewriting trend does more harm than good．

    C．Readers should try to read the original versions．

    D．Readers need to learn the language in the classics．

A 17-year-old boy, caught sending text messages in class, was recently sent to the vice principal's office at Millwood High School in Halifax, Nova Scotia．The vice principal, Steve Gallagher, told the boy he needed to focus on the teacher, not his cellphone．The boy listened politely and nodded, and that's when Mr．Gallagher noticed the student’s fingers moving on his lap．He was texting while being scolded for texting．“It was a subconscious act,” says Mr．Gallagher, who took the phone away．“Young people today are connected socially from the moment they open their eyes in the morning until they close their eyes at night．It’s compulsive．”

A study this year by psychology students at Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Ga．, found that the more time young people spend on Facebook, the more likely they are to have lower grades and weaker study habits．Heavy Facebook users show signs of being more sociable, but they are also more likely to be anxious, hostile or depressed．（ Doctors, meanwhile, are now blaming addictions to “night texting” for disturbing the sleep patterns of teens．）

Almost a quarter of today’s teens check Facebook more than 10 times a day, according to a 2009 survey by Common Sense Media, a nonprofit group that monitors media’s impact on families．Will these young people get rid of this habit once they enter the work force, or will employers come to see texting and “social-network checking” as accepted parts of the workday?

Think back．When today’s older workers were in their 20s, they might have taken a break on the job to call friends and make after-work plans．In those earlier eras, companies discouraged non-business-related calls, and someone who made personal calls all day risked being fired．It was impossible to imagine the constant back-and-forth texting that defines interactions among young people today．

Educators are also being asked by parents, students and educational strategists to reconsider their rules．“In past generations, students got in trouble for passing notes in class．Now students are adept（熟练的） at texting with their phones still in their pockets,” says 40-year-old Mr．Gallagher, the vice principal, “and they’re able to communicate with someone one floor down and three rows over．Students are just fundamentally different today．They will take suspensions rather than give up their phones．”

1．The underlined word “a subconscious act” refers to an act __________．

A．on purpose                                        B．without realization

C．in secret                                            D．with care

2．Young people addicted to the use of Facebook _________．

A．are good at dealing with the social relationships and concentrate on their study

B．have high spirits and positive attitudes towards their life and work

C．have been influenced mentally in the aspects of behaviors and habits

D．are always in bad mood and have poor performance in every aspect

3．Through the situation of today’s older workers in their 20s, it can be inferred that __   _．

A．the employers will accept young people’s sending text messages

B．a cellphone is a must for today’s older workers instead of young people

C．the employers prefer older workers to young people

D．the employers will find it hard to control the interaction among young people

4．Mr. Gallagher reminds us that the students in the past and those today _________．

A．like to break rules and have the same means of sending messages

B．are always the big problem for the educators and their parents

C．like sending text messages but those today do it in a more secret and skillful way

D．cannot live without a cellphone

5．What’s the best title of the passage?

A．Teenagers and Cellphones                B．Teenagers’ Texting Addiction

C．Employers and Teenagers                D．Teenagers’ Education

A religious person will have a different thought from one who is not．And a Democrat usually doesn’t view issues the same way as a Republican．

Take the shoes for example．It has the same principle．Some like custom shoes for personalization．But some don’t．Someone will buy a shoes printer only for one desired image．That all depends on different conceptions．So when you have a negative thought about yourself, don’t consider it a fact until you also reflect on the opposite view．And if the alternative is more positive, accept that to be your truth．

An anorexic （厌食症患者） looks in the mirror and thinks she’s fat．As a result she starves herself and rids her body of vital nutrition．But society thinks she’s too skinny．Unless she can change her perception, she’ll never agree with society．And she’ll never get better．What are you seeing in you that is preventing you from realizing how beautiful you are? Or how smart you are? Or how lovable? If you take the positive view, that is how other people will see you too．

More often than not the critical statements that damage your self-esteem come from your own mind．Now you know how you can silence them．A bad comment is usually not about you; it’s about something that is going on with the commenter．Don’t believe anything that is said to you that isn’t in your best interest．And don’t waste any time or brainpower on anyone who doesn’t think you are amazing．

It’s what you think that creates how you feel．Design your own custom shoes, despite other one’s critical eyes．If you like it, it will be the top one．If someone tells you you’re fat, or stupid or otherwise unappealing, the only person you should think badly about is them!

1．What is the passage mainly about?

      A．Try to be different．                            B．Different beliefs make different views．

       C．You are actually amazing．                   D．Trust what people say to you．

2．Which of the following sentences contains a metaphor （暗喻）?

       A．A Democrat usually doesn’t view issues the same way as a Republican．

       B．Some like custom shoes for personalization．

       C．An anorexic looks in the mirror and thinks she is fat．

       D．Design your own custom shoes, despite others’ critical eyes．

3．The reason why the writer wrote this passage is to         ．

       A．confuse people as how to think

       B．help people learn how to do self – reflection

       C．tell people different ways of thinking

       D．show he is smarter than most of the people

阅读下面短文，根据以下提示：1）汉语提示，2）首字母提示，3）语境提示，在每个空格内填入一个适当的英语单词，并将该词完整地写在右边相对应的横线上。所填单词要求意义准确，拼写正确。

What would you do if you failed? Many people may choose to give  ______ ．       1．____

However, the surest way to success is to keep your direction                                  and s             2．____

to your goal．On your way to success, you must keep your direction．It is just like a lamp,

g          you in darkness and                                                                                 3．____

helping you ______（克服）difficulties on your way．Otherwise, you                         4．___

will easily get lost or hesitate to go        （向前）．Direction means                 5．____

objective, you can get nowhere        an aim in life．You can                       6．__  

try to write your aim on paper and make some p       to achieve                        7．____

it．In this way, you will know _______ to arrange your time and to                              8．___

spend time properly．And you should have a    （信念）that you                              9．____

are sure to succeed as l       as you keep your direction．                                        10．__

They chatted ____ coffee about their experience as volunteers during the charity.

A．over         B．on           C．to           D．with

—Did you watch the football match last night?

—Yes, that’s a most close one, and eventually neither could defeat ____.

A．both        B．the other            C．another         D．each

The price of the flat now is ____ that last year.

A．as twice high as                                   B．twice more expensive than

C．as high as twice                                   D．twice the amount of

So far no life has been found outside the earth, but while some scientists are actively searching for living things in outer space, others firmly believe there ____ ．

A．mustn’t be            B．may not be          C．can’t be           D．won’t be

Such great achievements ____ so far that many friends abroad can hardly believe that.

A．has China made                                          B．China has made   

C．does China make                                        D．are made in China

As is known to us all, the opening ceremony of the Shanghai World Expo, ____ theme is “Better City, Better Life”, will begin on May 1^st, 2010.

A．which           B．its         C．that         D．whose