20.A simple flower made headlines in the British press last week.How could that be?British Prime Minister David Cameron and his ministers were attending a reception(招待會)hosted by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.They insisted on wearing poppies (罌粟花) in their buttonholes.
What's wrong with that?
According to the Global Times,Chinese officials had clearly asked the UK delegation not to wear poppies.The British said that poppies meant a great deal to them on that day and they would wear them all the same.
So what's the importance of the poppy?It's a flower which has different cultural and symbolic meanings for British and Chinese people.
From the Chinese point of view,the poppy is a symbol of China's humiliation(恥辱) at the hands of European powers in the Opium Wars(鴉片戰(zhàn)爭) of the 19th century.Britain forced China to open the borders to trade-including in the opium-which was made from poppies grown in India.
Yet from the British viewpoint the poppy is a reminder of the killing during World WarⅠ.Red poppies grew on the battlefields of Flanders in Belgium where many thousands of British soldiers died or were buried.Since then,Poppy Day (November 11 ) has become a time in the UK to wear poppies and remember the sacrifices of British soldiers and civilians in times of war.
So you can see that the poppy sets off strong feelings in the hearts of Chinese and British people for different reasons.And it makes sense for us to try to understand each other's standpoint.
Of course cultural differences can also be interesting and funny.And what one nation thinks is an acceptable gift may be viewed differently by their guest from overseas.US President Barack Obama gave a gift of an iPod to Britain's Queen-a dull person with no interest in music.Obama also presented Gordon Brown with a fine selection of American movies.But they were in US format and impossible to play on British DVD players.
Many countries have diplomats(外交官)stationed overseas.Diplomats provide information and advice to their governments back home.However,sometimes it would seem that even diplomats can overlook the cultural importance of a small flower.
29.British Prime Minister David Cameron probably attended a reception in Beijing onB.
A.October 1
B.November 11
C.December 31
D.January 1
30.The poppy reminds the Chinese ofA.
A.the shame caused by European countries in the 19th century
B.the British soldiers who were killed and buried during World WarⅠ
C.the Chinese soldiers killed during World WarⅡ
D.the suffering caused by Britain during World WarⅠ
31.The diplomatic problem in Beijing is mainly caused byC.
A.the translation mistake
B.the language difference
C.the cultural difference
D.the different lifestyle
32.We can infer thatD.
A.Britain's Queen is not interested in art
B.Gordon Brown was fond of American movies US President Obama sent him
C.US President Obama received a gift for music
D.Britain's Queen may not like the iPod US President Obama presented her.
分析 一束小花竟引起了外交爭端.作者認(rèn)為是文化差異導(dǎo)致了這起外交事件.
解答 BA CD
64.B 推理判斷題.根據(jù)第四段第二句The British said that poppies meant a great deal to them on that day and they would wear them all the same及第七段第三句中的Since then,Poppy Day (November 11)has become a time in the UK to wear poppies可以判斷這天應(yīng)該是Poppy Day,即11月11日.
65.A細(xì)節(jié)理解題.根據(jù)第六段第一句From the Chinese point of view,the poppy is a symbol of China's humiliation at the hands of European powers in the Opium Wars of the 19th century可知罌粟花使中國人民想起了鴉片戰(zhàn)爭期間中國遭受到的歐洲列強(qiáng)的羞辱.
66 C細(xì)節(jié)理解題.根據(jù)第五段第二句It's a flower which has different cultural and symbolic meanings for British and Chinese people.可知主要是文化差異導(dǎo)致了這次外交事件.文章最后一段也是答案提示.
67.D 推理判斷題.根據(jù)倒數(shù)第二段第二、三句可以判斷英國女王可能不太喜歡美國總統(tǒng)奧巴馬送的iPod.
點(diǎn)評 本文是新聞題材,關(guān)注此類文章的特征:新聞的主題往往在第一段,最后常常有總結(jié)的段落.中間部分是對新聞細(xì)節(jié)的展開說明.所以在閱讀時要關(guān)注首段和尾端,把握主旨;解題時要關(guān)注中間的細(xì)節(jié),根據(jù)題干和選項(xiàng)中的關(guān)鍵詞或句定位細(xì)節(jié),比對選項(xiàng)和文章細(xì)節(jié)確定答案.