第四部分：閱讀理解（第31~45題，每題3分，共45分）

下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道題。請根據短文內容，為每題確定1個最佳選項。

第一篇

18、

第四部分：閱讀理解(第31～45題，每題3分，共45分)

下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道題。請根據短文內容，為每題確定1個最佳選項。

第一篇

The Changing Middle Class

The United States perceives itself to be a middle-class nation. However，middle class is not a real designation，nor does it carry privileges(特權). It is more of a perception，which probably was as true as it ever could be right after World War II. The economy was growing，more and more people owned their own homes，workers had solid contracts with the companies that employed them，and nearly everyone who wanted a higher education could have one. Successful people enjoyed upward social mobility. They may have started out poor，but they could become rich. Successful people also found that they had greater geographic mobility. In other words，they found themselves moving to and living in a variety of places.

The middle class collectively holds several values and principles. One strong value is the need to earn enough money to feel that one can determine one’s own economic fate. In addition, middle-class morality(道德觀) embraces principles of individual responsibility, importance of family, obligations to others，and believing in something outside oneself.

But in the 1990s those in the middle class found that there was a price for success. A U. S. News & World Report survey in 1994 indicated that 75 percent of Americans believed that middle class families could no longer make ends meet . Both spouses（配偶） now worked, as did some of the children,long commutes（通勤） became routine, the need for child care put strains on the family, and public schools were not as good as they once were. Members of the middle class were no longer financing their lifestyles through earnings but were using credit to stay afloat（透支）. The understanding of just what middle class meant was changing.

31. This passage gives information about____  _  .

A. an individual

B. a social and economic group

C. a political organization

D. a government department

32. In the years after World War II, the middle class were____  _  .

A. overburdened and in debt

B. hard working and doubtful

C. happy and full of hope

D. young and upset

33. One important middle-class value is that____  _  .

A. people should always have fun

B. children should believe in themselves

C. debt is nothing to worry about

D. they should earn enough to finance their lifestyles

34. In the second paragraph, the word "collectively”means____  _  .

A. commonly

B. hesitatingly

C. unknowingly

D. weakly

35. The 1994 survey showed most Americans thought the middle class____  _.

A. took pleasure in raising children

B. had a regular journey to work

C. could not earn enough money to maintain their lifestyles

D. could easily maintain their lifestyles

本題分數（15）

第4部分：閱讀理解

31  B  本篇講的是美國中產階級的變化，中產階級毫無疑問是一個社會人群，不是某一個個人，更不會是政治組織或者政府部門。

32  C  這道題的答題依據在第一段。第二次世界大戰給美國經濟的發展帶來了巨大的生機，經濟的繁榮造就了一個社會階層——中產階級，從第4行開始一直到本段的結束都是對當時中產階級這個特定社會人群的具體描述，從中不難得出happy and full of hope這個結論。

33  D  中產階級一些主要的價值觀和原則可以在第二段里找到．其中之一就是要賺足夠的錢以決定自己的經濟命運，這和選項中所說的they should earn enough to finance their lifestyles（賺足夠的錢來維持自己的生活方式）實際上是一個意思。

34  A  這個詞是從形容詞collective派生而來的。原意是“集體的”，和“個人的”相對。在這里則是指中產階級的成員所共有的，而不是個別人具有的價值觀和原則，所以和commonly同義。

35  C  文章的最后一段談的是20世紀末期美國中產階級的變化，幾乎每一句話講到的變化都是負面的，即變得越來越糟糕。“Could not make ends meet”這個成語的意思是“收不抵支、入不敷出”，中產階級已無法通過自己的收入來維持自己的生活方式，而只能用信用卡來透支( Members of the middle class were no longer financing their lifestyles through earnings but were using credit to stay afloat)。

（責任編輯：vstara）

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