Unit 13 The mystery of the Moonstone

具体内容

1. The novel The Moonstone is set in England in 1848, but it really began 50 years earlier.

set: represent the action of a play in a specified place

eg.

The movie is set in pre-war London.

2. His move to quit smoking cigars to please her is seen by the servants as evidence that he is in love with Rachel.

move: action

quit smoking: give up smoking

3. Rachel is stubborn in resisting his enquiries about the Moonstone to the degree that she makes it seem as if she does not want the mystery to be solved.

in: in the course of doing sth.

Rachel is so stubborn in resisting his enquiries that she makes it seem as if …

4. However, what happened later proved me wrong.

Later that evening Dr Candy had put some opium into Franklin’s drink to prove to him that it would help.

prove sth to sb. : show that sth. is true or certain by means of argument or evidence.

eg.

I shall prove it to you that Mary didn’t tell you the truth.

The task proved(to be)more difficult than we’d thought.

He proved himself a better driver than the champion.

5. You may remember that Franklin was suffering from lack of sleep at the time Rachel’s birthday, and had upset Dr Candy with his remarks about doctors.

upset: disrupt a plan; cause sb. worried

eg.

Our arrangements for the weekend were upset by her visit.

The sight of physical suffering always upsets me.

6. Servants had little private life or free time of their own, so they were interested in everything that happened “upstairs” and would gossip about the family and their guests.

gossip: talk about other people including rumor and critical comments

eg.

I can’t stand here gossiping with you all the day.

Everyone gossiped about their relationship.

【典型例题】

[例1] This is a world-famous novel.______can be enjoyed from it until you have finished reading it, though.

A. Nothing B. Much C. Few D. Something

答案:A

解析:这句话实际上是not… until结构的变形,用nothing来表示否定,只有你读完了才能理解这本书。

[例2] It’s said that there are plenty of hotels in that town. There be any difficulty for you to find somewhere to stay .

A. wouldn’t B. mustn’t C. shouldn’t D. needn’t

答案:A

解析:这道题看上去是道简单的情态动词题,实际上,考核了几个情态动词之间细微的差别。

[例3] It is fairly common in Africa for there ______a group of expert musicians surrounded by others who also join in the performances.

A. beingB. to beC. beD. is

答案:B

解析:这句话中it是形式主语,真正的主语是there be 结构的不定式there to be.

[例4] The medicine is supposed to cure this disease, but I’m not sure it .

A. does B. was C. has D. is

答案:A

解析:这句话是个省略句,补全了应该是I’m not sure whether it works or not.

[例5] —Are you sure that he is able to do the work well?

— ______he could give his mind to it.

A. In caseB. If only C. On condition thatD. Unless

答案:B

解析:If only引导的虚拟语气结构,could do的形式表示对将来的虚拟。

[例6] Let us suppose that you are in position of parent. Would you allow your child to do such a thing?

A. a; aB. a; theC. the; aD. the; the

答案:C

解析:冠词用法中,the表示特指,a加名词表示一类人。

【模拟试题】(答题时间:50分钟)

(A)

Sometimes people come into your life and you come to realize that they meant to be there to serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson, or to help you figure out who you are or who you want to become. You never know who these people 1 be, but when you lock your eyes with them , you know 2 that they will affect your life in some profound way.

And sometimes things happen to you that may seem 3 , painful and unfair at first, but 4 you find that without overcoming those obstacles(障碍)you would have never realized you potential(潜力),strength, will or heart. Everything happens 5 . Nothing happens by chance or by means of good luck. Illness, injury, love and success all take place to test the 6 of your soul. Without these small tests, 7 they may be, life would be like a smooth, straight road to 8 . It would be 9 , but dull and completely pointless.

The people you meet who 10 your life, and the success and the downfalls you experience, help to create who you are and who you become. 11 the bad experiences can be learned from. In fact they are 12 the most important ones. If someone hurts you or breaks your heart, 13 them, for they have 14 you learn about trust and the importance of being careful 15 you open your heart. If someone loves, love them back, 16 because they love you, but because 17 , they are teaching you to love and how to open your heart and eyes to things. Make every day 18 . Appreciate every moment and 19 those moments everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again. Tell yourself you are 20 and believe in yourself, for if you don't believe in yourself, it will be hard for others to believe in you.

1. A. must B. should C. may D. will

2. A. in fact B. in an instant C. about D. of course

3. A. horrible B. surprising C. interesting D. enjoyable

4. A. in thought B. in fact C. at once D. as usual

5. A. for certain B. everywhere C. now and then D. for a reason

6. A. thoughts B. abilities C. limits D. strength

7. A. however B. how C .what D. whatever

8. A. everywhere B. nowhere C. somewhere D. anywhere

9. A. safe and comfortable B. simple and meaningless

C. interesting and colorful D. joyful and successful

10. A. change B .influence C. share D .interest

11. A. But B. However C. Meanwhile D. Even

12. A. probably B. possibly C. likely D. certainly

13. A. praise B. encourage C. forgive D. fight

14. A. caused B. helped C. let D. made

15. A. since B. until C. when D. unless

16. A. not B. obviously C. certainly D. not only

17. A. as a matter of fact B. in a way

C. in general D. in this way

18. A. easy B. pass. C. simple D. count

19. A. take from B. enjoy C. do in D. try

20. A. lucky B. successful C. great D. brave

(B)

Testing has replaced teaching in most public schools. Pretests, drills, tests, and retests fill my own children’ s school week. They know that the best way to read a textbook is to look at the questions at the end of the chapter and then skim the text for the answers. I believe that. my daughter Eriea, who gets excellent marks, has never read a chapter of any of her school textbooks all the way through. And teachers are often heard to state proudly and openly that they teach to the mandated state test.

Teaching to the test is a curious phenomenon. Instead of deciding what skills students ought to learn, helping students learn them, and then using some sensible methods of assessment (评价)to discover whether students have mastered the skills, teachers are encouraged to reverse the process. First one looks at a test, which is intended for money. Then one chooses the skills needed not to master reading, but to do well in the test. Finally, the test skills are taught.

The ability to read or write or calculate might imply the ability to do reasonably well on standardized tests. However, neither reading nor writing develops simply through being taught to take tests. We must be careful to avoid mistaking preparation for a test of a skill with the acquisition(习得)of that skill. Too many discussions of basic skill make this misunderstanding because people are only interested in the test rather than concerned with the nature and quality of what is taught.

Recently, many schools have faced what could be called the crisis of comprehension or, in simple terms, the phenomenon of students with grammar skills still being unable to understand what they read. These students are quite good at test taking and filling in workbooks. However, they have little or no experience reading or thinking, and talking about what they read. They know the details but can’ t see or understand the whole. They are taught to be so concerned with grade that they have no time or ease of mind to think about meaning, and reread things if necessary.

21. The author gives an account of Erica’s performance in her study in order to show .

A. her cleverness in test- taking

B. the incompetence of teachers

C. there is something wrong with the current practice in teaching

D. the best way to read textbooks

22. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. The phenomenon of teaching to the test has aroused curiosity in many educators.

B. Skills in general are not only useless but often mislead students.

C. Ability to read and write is one thing, and ability to do well on standardized tests is quite another.

D. Preparation for test of a skill does not necessarily mean the acquisition of that skill.

23. The author insists that .

A. mandated state tests be replaced by some more sensible methods of assessment

B. teachers pay more attention to the nature and quality of what is taught

C. students not be concerned with grades but do more reading and thinking

D. main changes be brought about in the general teaching

24. By “crisis of comprehension” the author means many students .

A. are too much concerned with grades

B. fail to understand the real goal of education

C. lack proper practice in grammar drills

D. are unable to understand what they read, though they do reasonably well on standardized tests

【试题答案】

(A)

1—5 CBAAD 6—10 CDBAB 11—15 DACBC 16—20 DBDAC

(B)

21—24 CDBD