标题: 2012年中山大学博士入学考试考博英语阅读理解及答案第二篇 [打印本页] 作者: 嘎嘣脆 时间: 2012-5-4 23:11 标题: 2012年中山大学博士入学考试考博英语阅读理解及答案第二篇 American no longer expect public figures, whether in speech or in writing, to command the English language with skill and gift. Nor do they aspire to such command themselves. In his latest book, Doing Our Own Thing. The Degradation of language and Music and why we should like, care, John McWhorter, a linguist and controversialist of mixed liberal and conservative views, sees the triumph of 1960s counter-culture as responsible for the decline of formal English.
Blaming the permissive 1960s is nothing new, but this is not yet another criticism against the decline in education. Mr.McWhorter’s academic speciality is language history and change, and he sees gradual disappearance of “whom” ,for example, to be natural and no more regranttable than the loss of the case-endings of Old English
But the cult of the authentic and the personal, “doing our own thing”, has spelt the death of formal speech, writing, poetry and music. While even the modestly educated sought an elevated tone when they put pen to paper before the 1960s, even the most well regarded writing since then has sought to capture spoken English on the page. Equally, in poetry, the highly personal, performative genre is the only form that could claim real liveliness. In both oral and written English, talking is triumphing over speaking, spontaneity over craft.
Illustrated with an entertaining array of examples from both high and low culture, the trend that Mr. McWhorter documents is unmistakable. But it is less clear, to take the question of his subtitle, why we should, like care. As a linguist, he acknowledges that all varieties of human language, including non-standard ones like Black English, can be powerfully expressive-there exists no language or dialect in the world that cannot convey complex ideas .He is not arguing, as many do, that we can no longer think straight because we do not talk proper.
Russians have a deep love for their own language and carry large chunks of memorized poetry in their heads, while Italian politicians tend to elaborate speech that would seem old-fashioned to most English-speakers. Mr. McWhorter acknowledges that formal language is not strictly necessary, and proposes no radical education reforms-he is really grieving over the loss of something beautiful more than useful. We now take our English “on paper plates instead of china”. A shame, perhaps, but probably an inevitable one.
1. According to Mc Whorter, the decline of formal English
[A]. is inevitable in radical education reforms.
[B]. is but all too natural in language development.
[C]. has caused the controversy over the counter-culture.
[D]. brought about changes in public attitudes in the 1960s.
2. The word “talking” (Linge6, paragraph3) denotes
[A]. modesty.
[B]. personality.
[C]. liveliness.
[D]. informality.
3. To which of the following statements would Mc Whorter most likely agree?
[A]. Logical thinking is not necessarily related to the way we talk.
[B]. Black English can be more expressive than standard English.
[C]. Non-standard varieties of human language are just as entertaining.
[D]. Of all the varieties, standard English Can best convey complex ideas.
4. The description of Russians' love of memorizing poetry shows the author's
[A]. interest in their language.
[B]. appreciation of their efforts.
[C]. admiration for their memory.
[D]. contempt for their old-fashionedness.
5. According to the last paragraph, “paper plates” is to “china” as
[A]. “temporary” is to “permanent”.
[B]. “radical” is to “conservative”.
[C]. “functional” is to “artistic”.
[D]. “humble” is to “noble”
难句解析：
①In his latest book, Doing Our Own Thing. The Degradation of language and Music and why we should like, care, John McWhorter, a linguist and controversialist of mixed liberal and conservative views, sees the triumph of 1960s counter-culture as responsible for the decline of formal English.
该句子的主干是John McWhorte sees the triumph of 1960s counter-culture as responsible for the decline。主语前的介词短语in his latest book做状语，book后有一个较长的书名充当其同位语。主语和谓语之间为主语的同位语，对主语补充说明。
翻译：在他最近的书《做我们自己的事：语言和音乐的退化，以及为什么我们应该喜欢或在意?》中，这位学者认为60年代反文化运动的胜利要对正式英语的退化负责。
②As a linguist, he acknowledges that all varieties of human language, including non-standard ones like Black English, can be powerfully expressive-there exists no language or dialect in the world that cannot convey complex ideas
该句子的主干是he acknowledges that all varieties can be expressive，谓语acknowledges后面是that引导的宾语从句。从句中主谓之间插入了介词短语including non-standard ones like Black English。破折号后面分句对前面话语进行补充说明。
翻译：麦荷特认为各种各样的人类语言，包括像黑人语言这样的非标准语言，都具有强大的表达力――世上没有传达不了复杂思想的语言或方言。
试题解析：
第四篇文章的专业性比较强，讲的美国人由于随意性，所以英语的语言也变得相当随意的主旨，对很多对语言学不敏感的同学是很难的，因为专业性太强。这篇文章总体同样属于一个对比性的文章，关键词围绕正式用语非正式用语这里面的变化。开篇是在说什么导致英语的衰败，不是那么正式了。 中间的部分是在讲语言的变化是不可阻挡的。结尾继续讲俄国人对本国语言的最终是值得我们赞赏的。
36题[B] 难度0.319 区分度.0.287。
作者认为是不可避免的在语言的发展中，而A是讲教育改革不可避免。
37题[D] 难度0.441 区分度.0.308
原文反复出现的是语音的正式性和非正式性，所以这个题选D。
38题[A] 难度0.378 区分度.0.352
问的是人物的观点，所以要区分作者的观点，美国人语言是衰败指的并不是逻辑思维也是衰败的，所以选择A。
39题[B] 难度0.438 区分度.0.261
作者提到俄国人喜欢背诗，作者在文章是赞赏的语气，称赞他们努力维护本国的语言。
40题[C] 难度0.543 区分度.0.279
这个题也是一个类比题，他说咱们经常纸碟和瓷器之间的关联，纸盒子不漂亮可以盛饭，瓷器在大餐聚会时被使用，讲究美食性。所以答案选C，是一种功能性和美食性的关联性和关系性。
全文翻译：
美国人已不再期待公众人物在演讲或写作中能运用技巧和文采来驾驭英语，而公众人物自己也不渴望这样。语言学家麦荷特喜好争论，他的观点混杂着自由派与保守派的看法。在他最近的书《做我们自己的事：语言和音乐的退化，以及为什么我们应该喜欢或在意?》中，这位学者认为60年代反文化运动的胜利要对正式英语的退化负责。
责备放纵的六十年代不是什么新鲜事，但这次算不上是对教育衰落的又一场批判。麦荷特先生的学术专长在于语言史和语言演变。举例来说，他认为“whom”一词的逐渐消失是自然的，并不比古英语中词格尾缀的消失更让人惋惜。
然而，“做自己的事”这一对事务真实性和个人性的崇高信条，已经导致了正式演讲、写作、诗歌及音乐的消亡。在20世纪60年代以前，仅受过一般教育的人在下笔时都会寻求一种更高雅的强调;而那之后，即使是最受关注的文章也开始逮住口语就写在纸面上。同样的，对于诗歌来说，非常个性化和富有表现力的创作风格成为了能够表达真实生动含义的唯一形式。无论作为口语还是书面语的英语，随意言谈胜过雅致的言辞，自我发挥也压过了精心准备。
麦荷特显示先生从上层和下层文化中列举了一系列有趣的例子，从而说明他记录的这种趋势是确凿无误的。但就书中副标题中的疑问：为什么我们应该、喜欢或在意，答案却不够明确。作为语言学家，麦荷特认为各种各样的人类语言，包括像黑人语言这样的非标准语言，都具有强大的表达力――世上没有传达不了复杂思想的语言或方言。不像其他大多数人，麦荷特先生并不认为我们说话方式不再规范就会使我们不能够准确的思考。
俄罗斯人深爱自己的语言，并在脑海中存储了大量诗歌;而意大利的政客们往往精心准备演讲，即使这在大多数讲英语的人们眼里已经过时。麦荷特先生认为正式语言并非不可或缺，也没有提出要进行彻底的教育改革――他其实只是为那些美好事务而不是实用品的消逝而哀叹。我们现在用“纸盘子”而非“瓷盘子”装着我们的英语大餐。真是惭愧啊，但很可能已无法避免。