江西省2020届高三英语二轮专项训练 阅读理解（78）

江西省2020届高三英语二轮专项训练：阅读理解（78）阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。AWhen Charles Strattion was five, he stopped growing. His mother took him to see the famous showman, P.T.Barnum, and thought a small person would be the perfect addition to his show. He hired Charles parents along with him, and they traveled around the world together.He gave the two-foot-tall Charles a new name, general Tom Thumb. He taught Tom how to sing, dance, act, and tell jokes. When he felt Tom was ready to perform on stage, he made up ads. To stir up great interest, he said that Tom was eleven years old and had come from England.During the show, Tom fought battles pretendedly with tall people. He also danced upon a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall.Toms act was very popular and brought in a lot of money. By the time Tom was an adult, he had grown very rich. He had become a billionaire at the age of twenty-five.Fortunately for Tom, Mr. Barnum added more little people to his show, and Tom became lucky in love as well. One of the little people was Lavinia Warren, a school teacher. Tom was able to win her love, and they married.The ceremony and reception were the talk of the town. They were attended by many rich and famous people and by about two thousand guests. Crowds filled the streets of New York to have a look at their tiny wedding carriage. The couple even met with President Abraham Lincoln on their honeymoon, just before going to live in Toms house in Connecticut.Their wedding, which took place during the Civil War, provided a welcome escape from the sad problems of war. Not willing to let this bit of sunshine fade, communities throughout the country sponsored “Tom Thumb” weddings. In these weddings, small boys and girls, all dressed up, went through marriage ceremony for fun.1.“the talk of the town” means _ .A. they were in the newspaperB. people spread mean rumors about themC. they were the most popular things happeningD. they were discussed in a city meeting2. What does the author think about Tom Thumbs wedding?A. People gave it too much of their attention.B. It helped people cheer up in a dark time.C. It was funny and ridiculous.D. Tom and Lavinia were stupid.3. Which of the following is the best clue to the fact that Tom was smart?A. He became a billionaire at twenty-five.B. He learned how to sing, dance, and act at a very young age.C. He met with President Lincoln during his honeymoon.D. He married a school teacher.4. It was very funny when Tom danced on a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall because _ .A. the wooden plate would make it sound as if Tom were tap dancingB. it made Tom feel tallerC. the eight-foot-tall man was the only tall person Tom trustedD. the difference between them would make Tom look even smaller5. What does the author imply in the last paragraph?A. Weddings always make people feel full of sunshine.B. People are always disappointed during wartime.C. Entertainment can serve an important purpose.D. People should be married even if they are small.BIf you intend using humor in your talk to make people smile, you must know how to identify shared experiences and problems. Your humor must be relevant to the audience and should help to show them that you are one of them or that you understand their situation and are in sympathy with their point of view. Depending on whom you are addressing, the problems will be different.If you are talking to a group of managers, you may refer to the disorganized methods of their secretaries; alternatively if you are addressing secretaries, you may want to comment on their disorganized bosses.Here is an example, which I heard at a nurses convention, of a story which works well because the audience all shared the same view of doctors. A man arrives in heaven and is being shown around by St. Peter. He sees wonderful accommodations, beautiful gardens, sunny weather, and so on. Everyone is very peaceful, polite and friendly until, waiting in a line for lunch, the new arrival is suddenly pushed aside by a man in a white coat, who rushes to the head of the line, grabs his food and stomps over to a table by himself. Who is that? the new arrival asked St. Peter. Oh, thats God. came the reply, but sometimes he thinks hes a doctor.If you are part of the group which you are addressing, you will be in a position to know the experiences and problems which are common to all of you and itll be appropriate for you to make a passing remark about the inedible canteen food or the chairmans notorious bad taste in ties. With other audiences you mustnt attempt to cut in with humor as they will resent an outsider making disparaging remarks about their canteen or their chairman. You will be on safer ground if you stick to scapegoats like the Post Office or the telephone system.If you feel awkward being humorous, you must practice so that it becomes more natural. Include a few casual and apparently off-the-cuff(即兴的)remarks which you can deliver in a relaxed and unforced manner. Often its the delivery which causes the audience to smile, so speak slowly and remember that a raised eyebrow or an unbelieving look may help to show that you are making a light-hearted remark.Look for the humor. It often comes from the unexpected. A twist on a familiar quote If at first you dont succeed, give up or a play on words or on a situation. Search for exaggeration and understatements. Look at your talk and pick out a few words or sentences which you can turn about and inject with humor.6. To make your humor work, you should _.A. take advantage of different kinds of audienceB. make fun of the disorganized people.C. address different problems to different people.D. show sympathy for your listeners.7. The joke about doctors implies that, in the eyes of nurses, they are _.A. impolite to new arrivals. B. very conscious of their godlike role.C. entitled to some privileges. D. very busy even during lunch hours.8. It can be inferred from the text that public services _.A. have benefited many people. B. are the focus of public attention.C. are an inappropriate subject for humor.D. have often been the laughing stock.9. To achieve the desired result, humorous stories should be delivered _.A. in well-worded language. B. as awkwardly as possible.C. in exaggerated statement. D. as casually as possible.10. The best title for the text may be _.A. Use Humor Effectively. B. Various Kinds of Humor.C. Add Humor to Speech. D. Different Humor Strategies.CA person may have an idea about himself that will prevent him from doing good work. He may have the idea that he is not capable of it. A child may think he is stupid because he does not understand how to make the most of his mental faculties(机能), or he may accept another persons mistaken estimate(评价) of his ability. Older people may be handicapped(阻碍) by the mistaken belief that they are incapable of learning anything new because of their age.A person who believes that he is incapable will not make a real effort, because he feels that it would be useless. He wont go at a job with the confidence necessary for success. He is therefore likely to fail, and the failure will strengthen his belief in his incompetence. Alfred Adler, a famous doctor, had an experience which illustrates this. When he was a small boy he got off to a poor start in arithmetic. His teacher got the idea that he had no ability in arithmetic, and told his parents what she thought in order that they would not expect too much of him. In this way, they too developed the idea, “Isnt it too bad that Alfred cant do arithmetic？” He accepted their mistaken estimate of his ability, felt that it was useless to try，and was very poor at arithmetic, just as they expected.One day Adler succeeded in solving a problem which none of the other students had been able to solve. This gave him confidence. He rejected the idea that he couldnt do arithmetic and was determined to show them that he could. His newfound confidence stimulated him to go at arithmetic problems with a new spirit. He now worked with interest, determination and purpose, and he soon became extraordinary good at arithmetic.This experience made him realize that many people have more ability than they think they have, and that lack of success is as often the result of lack of knowledge of how to apply ones ability, lack of confidence, and lack of determination as it is the result of lack of ability.11Why might a person be prevented from doing good work? _.A. Because he thinks he is old enough to make the most of his mental facilitiesB. Because he accepts another persons mistaken estimate of his abilityC. Because he has the idea that he is incapable of doing everythingD. Because he believes in what other people think of him12A person who believes in his low ability will _.A. spare no efforts to do thingsB. fail to go at a job but never lose heartC. change to learn other course instead of mathematicsD. show complete lack of confidence13As a boy, Alfred Adler was poor at arithmetic because _.A. he lost his self-confidence B. he was weak in thinkingC. his parents expected too much of him D. his teacher had no confidence in herself14Which of the following is the most important factor to Alders success？_A. Spirit and experience B. Interest and self-respectC. Confidence and determination D. Purpose and knowledge15Alders experience made him realize that _.A. people are not as capable as they thinkB. people can be more capable than they thinkC. lack of confidence leads to failureD. lack of ability results in lack of determinationDChristopher Thomas, 27, was a writer by night and a teacher by day when he noticed he was always tired and was losing weight fast. Diagnosed with diabetes(糖尿病), Thomas would need to inject himself with insulin(胰岛素) three times a day for the rest of his life or risk nerve damage, blindness, and even death. And if that werent bad enough, he had no health insurance.After a month of feeling upset, Thomas decided hed better find a way to fight back. He left Canton, Michigan for New York, got a job waiting tables, nicknamed himself the Diabetic Rockstar, and created , a free online community for diabetics and their loved onesa place where over 1,100 people share personal stories, information, and resources.Jason Swenckis son, Kody, was diagnosed with type diabetes at six. Father and son visit the online childrens forums(论坛) together most evenings. Kody gets so excited, writing to kids from all over, says Swencki, one of the sites volunteers. They know what hes going through, so he doesnt feel alone.Kody is anything but alone: Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with 24 million diagnosed cases. And more people are being diagnosed at younger ages.These days, Thomass main focus is his charity（慈善机构）, Fight It, which provides medicines and supplies to people225 to datewho cant afford a diabetics huge expenses. F has raised about $23,000in products and in cash. In May, Thomas will hold the first annual Diabetic Rockstar Festival in the Caribbean.Even with a staff of 22 volunteers, Thomas often devotes up to 50 hours a week to his cause, while still doing his full-time job