閱讀試題
For any Englishman,there can never be any discussion as to who is the world's greatest dramatist(劇作家).Only one name can possibly suggest itself to him:that of William Shakespeare Every Englishman has some knowledge,however slight,of the work of our greatest writer.All of US use words,phrases and quotations from Shakespeare's writings that have become part of the common property of the English-speaking people.Most of the time we are probably unaware of the source of the words we used,rather like the old lady who was taken to see a performance of Hamlet and complained that it was full of well—known proverbs and quotations.
Shakespeare,more perhaps than any other writer,makes full use of the great resources of the English language.Most of US use about five thousand words in our normal use of English;Shakespeare in his works used about twenty-five thousand.
There is probably no better way for a foreigner to appreciate the richness and variety of the English language than by studying the various ways in which Shakespeare used it.Such a study is well worth the effort(it is not,of course,recommended to beginners)even though some aspects of English usage,and the meaning of many words,have changed since Shakespeare's day.
1.English people ______
A.have never discussed who is the world's greatest dramatist
B.never discuss any issue concerning the world's greatest dramatist
C.are sure who is the world's greatest dramatist
D.do not care who is the world's greatest poet and dramatist
2.Every Englishman knows ______
A.more or less about Shakespeare
B.Shakespeare,but only slightly
C.all Shakespeare's writings
D.only the name of the greatest English writer
3.Which of the following is true?
A.We use all the words,phrases and quotations from Shakespeare's writings.
B.Shakespeare's writings have become the property of those who are learning to speak English.
C.It is likely to be true that people often do not know the origins of the words they use
D All the words people use are taken from the writings of Shakespeare
4.What does the word “proverb” mean?
A.Familiar sayings
B.Shakespeare's plays.
C.Complaints.
D.Actors and actresses.
5.Why is it worthwhile to study the various ways in which Shakespeare used English?
A.English words have changed a lot since Shakespeare's time.
B.By doing SO one can be fully aware of the richness of the English language
C.English words are now being used in the same way as in Shakespeare's time
D.Beginners may have difficulty learning some aspects of English usage
閱讀答案
1.C
2.A
3.C
4.A
5.B
參考譯文
當(dāng)提及誰(shuí)是世界上最偉大的劇作家,對(duì)于每個(gè)英國(guó)人來說,答案都毫無(wú)疑義。只有一個(gè)名字值得這個(gè)稱號(hào)——莎士比亞。對(duì)于我們這個(gè)最偉大的劇作家,每個(gè)英國(guó)人都有些了解,即使很少。從莎翁的劇作中我們拿來使用的單詞,習(xí)語(yǔ)和引用,已經(jīng)變成了英語(yǔ)使用者的通用詞庫(kù)中的一部分。很多時(shí)候我們可能不知道自己使用的詞語(yǔ)的來源,就好像一個(gè)去看過哈姆雷特的老嫗回來之后抱怨劇中充滿了大家都知道的諺語(yǔ)和引用語(yǔ)。
莎翁與其它作者相比,更充分的利用了英語(yǔ)語(yǔ)言這一資源。大多數(shù)的人日常使用不過5000英語(yǔ)詞匯而已,但是莎翁在他的作品中使用了2萬(wàn)5千左右的詞匯。
對(duì)于一個(gè)外國(guó)人來說,研讀莎翁對(duì)英語(yǔ)豐富多彩的使用方法是欣賞英語(yǔ)豐富性和多樣性最好的手段。雖說從莎翁的年代至今,一些英語(yǔ)的用法,許多單詞的意義發(fā)生了變化,但是對(duì)莎翁作品的研究是十分有意義的。
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