Question

Shakespeare, more perhaps than any other writer, made full use of the greatest 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 words! 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 uses it. Such a study is well worth the effort, even though some aspects of English usage, and the meaning of many words, have changed since Shakespeare’s day.

However, it is surprising that we should know comparatively little about the life of the greatest English writer. We know that Shakespeare was born in 1564 in Stratford-on-Avon, and that he died there in 1616. He almost certainly attended the Grammar School in the town, but of this we cannot be sure. We know he was married there in 1582 to Anne Hathaway and that he had three children. We know that he spent much of his life in London writing his great works. But this is almost all that we do know.

However, what is important about Shakespeare’s life is not its other less important details but its products, the plays and the poems. For many years scholars have been trying to add a few facts about Shakespeare’s life to the small number we already possess and for an equally long time critics (評論家) have been talking about the plays. Sometimes, indeed, it seems that the poetry of Shakespeare will disappear under the great mass of comment (評論) that has been written upon it.

Luckily this is not likely to happen. Shakespeare’s people have long delighted not just the English but lovers of literature everywhere, and will continue to do so after the scholars and critics and all their works have been forgotten.

According to the writer, which of the following remains uncertain about Shakespeare?

  A. His date of birth.                  B. His marriage.

  C. His life in the Grammar School.      D. His date of death.

It can be inferred from Para.3 that ______.

  A. not all the comments on Shakespeare’s works have produced good effects

  B. scholars have successfully collected facts about Shakespeare’s life

  C. critics are more interested in Shakespeare’s plays than his poetry

  D. the details of Shakespeare’s life are more important than his literary works

What does the last sentence in Para.3 mean?

  A. People don’t think the poetry of Shakespeare good any more.

  B. People pay more attention to the comment than the poetry of Shakespeare.

  C. People can’t see the poetry of Shakespeare any more.

  D. The comment is printed upon the poetry of Shakespeare.

“Shakespeare’s people” in Para.4 refers to _______.

  A. the characters in Shakespeare’s products  B. the people whose native language is English

  C. the people living in Shakespeare’s day    D. the readers of Shakespeare’s works

Answer 1

【小題1】Ｃ

【小題2】Ａ

【小題3】Ｂ

【小題4】Ｂ

解析:

略