考研英语阅读理解命题思路透析和真题揭秘(40)

　　1997年Passage 2

　　A report consistently brought back by visitors to the US is how friendly, courteous, and helpful most Americans were to them. To be fair, this observation is also frequently made of Canada and Canadians, and should best be considered North American. There are, of course, exceptions. Small minded officials, rude waiters, and ill-mannered taxi drivers are hardly unknown in the US. Yet it is an observation made so frequently that it deserves comment.

　　For a long period of time and in many parts of the country, a traveler was a welcome break in an otherwise dull existence. Dullness and loneliness were common problems of the families who generally lived distant from one another. Strangers and travelers were welcome sources of diversion, and brought news of the outside world.

　　The harsh realities of the frontier also shaped this tradition of hospitality. Someone traveling alone, if hungry, injured, or ill, often had nowhere to turn except to the nearest cabin or settlement. It was not a matter of choice for the traveler or merely a charitable impulse on the part of the settlers. It reflected the harshness of daily life: if you didn't take in the stranger and take care of him, there was no one else who would. And someday, remember, you might be in the same situation.

　　Today there are many charitable organizations which specialize in helping the weary traveler. Yet, the old tradition of hospitality to strangers is still very strong in the US, especially in the smaller cities and towns away from the busy tourist trails. "I was just traveling through, got talking with this American, and pretty soon he invited me home for dinner - amazing." Such observations reported by visitors to the US are not uncommon, but are not always understood properly. The casual friendliness of many Americans should be interpreted neither as superficial nor as artificial, but as the result of a historically developed cultural tradition.

　　As is true of any developed society, in America a complex set of cultural signals, assumptions, and conventions underlies all social interrelationships. And, of course, speaking a language does not necessarily mean that someone understands social and cultural patterns. Visitors who fail to "translate" cultural meanings properly often draw wrong conclusions. For example, when an American uses the word "friend", the cultural implications of the word may be quite different from those it has in the visitor's language and culture. It takes more than a brief encounter on a bus to distinguish between courteous convention and individual interest. Yet, being friendly is a virtue that many American value highly and expect from both neighbors and strangers.

　　56. It could be inferred from the last paragraph that _____.

　　[A] culture exercises an influence over social interrelationship

　　[B] courteous convention and individual interest are interrelated

　　[C] various virtues manifest themselves exclusively among friends

　　[D] social interrelationships equal the complex set of cultural conventions

　　[答案] A

　　[解题思路]

　　最后一段第一句话指出"As is true of any developed society, in America a complex set of cultural signals, assumptions, and conventions underlies all social interrelationships"(同任何发达国家一样，美国人所有的社会交往的基础是一整套复杂的文化特征，信念和习俗)，因此A符合题意，为正确答案。B选项的错误在于，虽然倒数第二句话提到了"It takes more than a brief encounter on a bus to distinguish between courteous convention and individual interest"(要想分清称呼"朋友"是出于好客的文化习俗还是出于个人兴趣，只靠在公共汽车上的萍水相逢是不够的)，但是却没有提及courteous convention和individual interest之间的关系。C选项"exclusively"显然与文中描述的美国人对陌生人的热情这一事实不符，文章最后一句也提到"Yet, being friendly is a virtue that many American value highly and expect from both neighbors and strangers"(然而，友好是很多美国人推崇备至的美德，同时他们也希望自己的邻居和陌生人也能够如此)。D选项与该段第一句话的意思有出入，social interrelationships 与the complex set of cultural conventions之间并不是平等(equal)的关系。

　　[题目译文]

　　从最后一段可以推断 。

　　[A] 文化对于社会相互关系有一定的影响力

　　[B] 表示客气的传统和个人兴趣是相关的

　　[C] 各种美德只是在朋友之间才表现出来

　　[D] 社会间的相互关系等同于复杂的文化传统