2001考研英语阅读真题解析(5) 英语, 考研, 解析, 阅读

幽幽草

When I decided to quit my full time employment it never occurred to me that I might become a part of a new international trend. A lateral move that hurt my pride and blocked my professional progress prompted me to abandon my relatively high profile career although, in the manner of a disgraced government minister, I covered my exit by claiming I wanted to spend more time with my family.
　　
　　Curiously, some two-and-a-half years and two novels later, my experiment in what the Americans term downshifting has turned my tired excuse into an absolute reality. I have been transformed from a passionate advocate of the philosophy of have it all, preached by Linda Kelsey for the past seven years in the pages of she magazine, into a woman who is happy to settle for a bit of everything.
　　
　　I have discovered, as perhaps Kelsey will after her much-publicized resignation from the editorship of She after a build-up of stress, that abandoning the doctrine of juggling your life, and making the alternative move into downshifting brings with it far greater rewards than financial success and social status. Nothing could persuade me to return to the kind of life Kelsey used to advocate and I once enjoyed: 12-hour working days, pressured deadlines, the fearful strain of office politics and the limitations of being a parent on quality time.
　　
　　In America, the move away from juggling to a simpler, less materialistic lifestyle is a well-established trend. Downshifting—also known in America as voluntary simplicity—has, ironically, even bred a new area of what might be termed anti-consumerism. There are a number of bestselling downshifting self-help books for people who want to simplify their lives; there are newsletters, such as The Tightwad Gazette, that give hundreds of thousands of Americans useful tips on anything from recycling their cling-film to making their own soap; there are even support groups for those who want to achieve the mid-'90s equivalent of dropping out.
　　
　　While in America the trend started as a reaction to the economic decline—after the mass redundancies caused by downsizing in the late 80s—and is still linked to the politics of thrift, in Britain, at least among the middle class downshifters of my acquaintance, we have different reasons for seeking to simplify our lives.
　　
　　For the women of my generation who were urged to keep juggling through the 80s, downshifting in the mid-90s is not so much a search for the mythical good life—growing your own organic vegetables, and risking turning into one—as a personal recognition of your limitations.
　　
　　67. Which of the following is true according to paragraph 1?
　　
　　[A] Full-time employment is a new international trend.
　　
　　[B] The writer was compelled by circumstances to leave her job.
　　
　　[C] A lateral move means stepping out of full-time employment.
　　
　　[D] The writer was only too eager to spend more time with her family.
　　
　　68. The writer's experiment shows that downshifting ________.
　　
　　[A] enables her to realize her dream
　　
　　[B] helps her mold a new philosophy of life
　　
　　[C] prompts her to abandon her high social status
　　
　　[D] leads her to accept the doctrine of She magazine
　　
　　69. Juggling one's life probably means living a life characterized by ________.
　　
　　[A] non-materialistic lifestyle
　　
　　[B] a bit of everything
　　
　　[C] extreme stress
　　
　　[D] anti-consumerism
　　
　　70. According to the passage, downshifting emerged in the US as a result of ________.
　　
　　[A] the quick pace of modern life
　　
　　[B] man's adventurous spirit
　　
　　[C] man's search for mythical experiences
　　
　　[D] the economic situation
　　
　　重点单词：
　　
　　lateral /5lAtErEl/（侧面的，旁边的）可看作later+al，later即单词后来，-al词后缀，后来者只能靠边站→旁边的。在文中此词用引申义，各参考书观点不尽相同，请自甄别。
　　
　　curiously /5kjuEriEsli/（好奇地；奇怪地）←curious+ly；curious（好奇的；奇怪的）即curi+ous，curi关心=care（因为元音可替换），-ous形容词后缀有……性质的，故对某事非常关心的→好奇的。It is a curious fact that in bad days we can very vividly recall the good time that is now no more； but that in good days we have only a very cold and imperfect memory of the bad.一个奇怪的事实是，在失意的日子里，我们能够生动地想起不复存在的美好时光；而在得意的时候，对苦难的日子却只留有非常淡漠而残缺的记忆。←这是德国哲学家叔本华说的，其代表作《作为意志与表象的世界》是guangxian最欣赏的哲学作品，商务印书馆出过中译本。
　　
　　downshifting /5daun7FiftiN/←down+shift+ing，原义指汽车调档减速，文中指放慢生活节奏。
　　
　　passionate /5pAFEnit/（充满热情的）即passion+ate，passion（激情；暴怒），-ate此作形容词后缀。A poet is, before anything else, a person who is passionately in love with language.一个诗人首先是个热爱语言的人。Death is the only pure， beautiful conclusion of a great passion.死是伟大激情的唯一纯洁与美丽的终结。Three passions, simple but overwhelmingly strong. have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge and the unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind.有三种情感，虽朴实却无可抗拒地主宰着我的生命：对爱的渴望，对知识的探求，以及对人类所受苦难的怜悯。Passion is in all great searches and is necessary to all creative endeavours.激情存在于一切伟大的追求中，对所有创造性的活动都是必不可少的。
　　
　　preach /pri：tF/（v.鼓吹；布道）可看作pr（e）+each，pre-前缀在前，each每个，牧师走到每个人面前→布道。Preach not because you have to say something， but because you have something to say.布道不是由于你不得不说些什么，而是由于你有些话要说。
　　
　　resignation /7rezi^5neiFEn/（辞职；顺从）←resign+ation名词后缀；resign（v.辞职；顺从）←re+sign，re-前缀=away或=again，sign签署，故签署后离开→辞职，再次签署→顺从。What is called resignation is confirmed desperation.所谓顺从就是确定了的绝望。no resign oneself to being defeated不甘心于失败。
　　
　　editorship /5editEFip/（编辑职务，编辑工作）←editor+ship，editor（编辑者），-ship抽象名词后缀表性质、职位、资格等，如：friendship、leadership、membership等。
　　
　　doctrine /5dCktrin/（教义；学说）←doctr+ine，doctr=doctor（元音可增减），-ine名词后缀表物，故教授拿来讲授的东西→教义。参vaccine（疫苗），2003年Text 2.The wisest man preaches no doctrines； he has no scheme.最大的智者不鼓吹任何学说，没有任何体系。
　　
　　juggle /5dVQ^l/（n.v.杂耍）发音与沪方言对扑克牌中Jack的发音同，拿扑克牌玩杂耍（juggle），引得大家咯咯（guggle）笑，文中juggle引申为忙忙碌碌。
　　
　　deadline /5dedlain/（最后期限）←dead+line.
　　
　　Newsletter /5njU：z7letE/（时事通讯，简报）←news+letter.
　　
　　cling-film（食品保鲜膜）←cling粘着+film薄膜。
　　
　　equivalent /i5kwivElEnt/（相等的，等价的；相等物，等价物）即equi+val+ent，equi相等（如：equal相等的），val价值（如：value价值），-ent后缀。In truth， politeness is artificial good humor， it covers the natural want of it， and ends by rendering habitual a substitute nearly equivalent to the real virtue.礼貌实际上是人为的好性情，它掩盖了它天生的不足，结果给惯于此道者提供了与真正美德几乎相当的代用品。
　　
　　drop out退隐，逃避现实。
　　
　　redundancy /ri5dQndEnsi/（冗余）即red+und+ancy，red-（=re-），und词根多，-ancy名词后缀，越来越（re）多→冗余。同根词：abundant（丰富的）←ab加强前缀+und多+ant形容词后缀。redundancy—an air-bag in a politician‘s car多余物-政治家汽车里的保险气袋。
　　
　　thrift /Wrift/（节俭；繁荣）可记：节俭导致繁荣；thrifty（节俭的；繁荣的）←thrift+y形容词后缀。thrift→thrive（v.繁荣），类似变化的单词有theft（n.偷）→thieve（v.偷）。It is thrifty to prepare today for the wants of tomorrow.节俭就是今天为明天的需要作准备。
　　
　　mythical /5miWikEl/（神话的；虚构的）←myth神话+ical后缀。myth—a religion in which no one any longer believes神话-一种没有人再信仰的宗教。
　　
　　recognition /7rekE^5niFEn/（n.认出，承认）是recognise（或recognize）的名词形式。Three fundamental truths without a recognition of which there can be no effective liberty： that what we believe is not necessarily true； that what we like is not necessarily good； and that all questions are open.有三条基本真理，如果不承认就不会有实在的自由：我们相信的未必真实，我们喜爱的未必美好，一切问题都无定论。The highest possible stage in moral culture is when we recognize that we ought to control thoughts.道德修养有可能达到的最高境界是认识到我们应该控制自己的思想。A celebrity is a person who works hard all his life to become known， then wears dark glasses to avoid being recognized.所谓名人不过是这样一种人：他终生勤奋努力而致成名，然后戴上墨镜以免被别人认出。
　　
　　adventurous /Ed5ventFErEs/（喜冒险的；充满危险的）←adventur（e）冒险+ous形容词后缀。A good critic is one who narrates the adventures of his mind among masterpieces.好的批评家是个讲述自己的精神在杰作中历险的人。adventure—the vitaminizing element in histories both in dividual and social冒险-个人历史和社会历史中的维生素。
　　
　　难句解析：
　　
　　①A lateral move that hurt my pride and blocked my professional progress promoted me to abandon my relatively high profile career alhough， in the manner of a disgraced government ministe， I covered my exit by claiming I wanted to spend more time with my family。▲本句中a lateral move是主语，promoted是谓语，that hurt my pride and blocked my professional progress是a lateral move的定语，although， in the manner of a disgraced government minister， I covered my exit by claiming I wanted to spend more time with my family是状语，其中逗号之间的in the manner of a disgraced government minister是插入语。
　　
　　△注意找准主句主谓结构。
　　
　　②Curiously， some two-and-a-half years and two novels later， my experiment in what the Americans term downshifting has turned my tired excuse into an absolute reality.▲本句主干是…… my experiment…… has turned my tired excuse into an absolute reality.注意其谓语是一个turn sth. into sth.的结构。前面两个逗号之间的是时间状语。
　　
　　△注意抓句子的主干，其中主语的修饰部分in what the Americans term downshifting看不懂可以跳过去。当然，如果我们对英语的预感较好，就可以猜测downshifting一词的意思与驾驶骑车有关，在这里，作者把生活比喻为开车，因此放弃对物质生活的热衷追求就像在开车时减档减速一样。
　　
　　③I have discovered， as perhaps Kelsey will after her much-publicized resignation from the editorship of She after a build-up of stress， that abandoning the doctrine of juggling your life， and making the alternative move into downshifting brings with it far greater rewards than financial success and social status.▲I have discovered是主句的主谓结构，that abandoning the doctrine of juggling your life， and making the alternative move into downshifting brings with it far greater rewards than financial success and social status是主句的宾语，其中abandoning the doctrine of juggling your life， and making the alternative move into downshifting为该宾语从句的主语，brings为谓语。as perhaps Kelsey will after her much-publicized resignation from the editorship of She after a build-up of stress既是伴随状语，又是插入语，其主语为Kelsey，谓语为will，而after her much-publicized resignation from the editorship of She after a build-up of stress是本插入语中的时间状语。
　　
　　△注意一些词汇的含义：much-publicized十分张扬的；She是杂志的名字，因此首字母须大写；build-up积聚；juggling忙碌；brings with it far greater rewards than带来的利益远远不止……。
　　
　　④Downshifting—also known in America as voluntary simplicity—has， ironically， even bred a new area of what might be termed anti-consumerism.▲本句的句子结构是Downshifting has bred a new area，破折号之间的是插入结构，ironically也是插入语，可放在句首，what相当于thought which.
　　
　　△重点是抓住句子的主干成分。
　　
　　⑤While in America the trend started as a reaction to the economic decline—after the mass redundancies caused by downsizing in the late ‘80s—and is still linked to the politics of thrift， in Britain， at least among the middle-class downshifters of my acquaintance， we have different reasons for seeking to simplify our lives.▲本句首先应该从in Britain的前面一分为二，前面讲的是在美国的情况，其中破折号之间的是一插入成分，而后面讲的是在英国的情况。
　　
　　△注意英美两国的差异。
　　
　　⑥For the women of my generation who were urged to keep juggling through the ‘80s， downshifting in the mid-’90s is not so much a search for the mythical good life—growing your own organic vegetables， and risking turning into one—as a personal recognition of your limitations.▲本句主谓结构为…… downshifting in the mid-‘90s is not……。who were urged to keep juggling through the ’80s是修饰the women of my generation的定语从句。growing your own organic vegetables， and risking turning into one既是插入语，又是the mythical good life的同位语。
　　
　　△注意not so much A（a search for the mythical good life） as B（a personal recognition of your limitations）的句式含义，即与其说是A，不如说是B。
　　
　　试题解析：
　　
　　67. [B]意为：作者因环境所迫而辞职。
　　
　　根据第一段，当作者决定辞去她的全职工作时，她从没有想到自己可能成为一个国际新时尚的一分子。作者写道，一次始料未及的行动伤害了我的自尊，阻碍了我在工作上的进一步发展，使得我不得不放弃相对具有良好公众形象的工作生涯，虽然当时自己像一个出丑的政府部长一样，不得不用我想多花些时间和家人在一起这样的话来掩饰自己的辞职。
　　
　　A意为：全职工作是一种新的国际时尚。第一句中所说的新时尚实际上指下文提到的激流勇退（downshifting），过简朴而无强工作压力的生活。
　　
　　C意为：一次意想不到的行动指放弃全职工作。lateral原来的意思是横向的，这里意思是超出预料的，含义是没有按原设定好的进程而发生的；move意为步骤或行动。根据原文，a lateral move是作者失去工作的原因，而不是指失去工作这一过程本身。
　　
　　D意为：作者太想多花点时间和家人在一起了。
　　
　　68. [B]意为：使作者形成了一种新的生活哲学。
　　
　　作者在第二段指出，奇怪的是，经过了约两年半的时间并发表了两部小说以后，我在美国人称之为激流勇退的生活方式上的实验，却不期将我那乏味的借口（指第一段最后一句掩饰性的话）转化为实实在在的现实。我从一个全力以赴生活哲学-在过去七年里Linda Kelsey一直在她这份杂志上鼓吹这种生活方式-的积极倡导者，演变成一个乐于随遇而安的女人。
　　
　　在第三段作者又指出，像Linda Kelsey有一天也许会认识到的那样（在经历过越来越大的压力之后，她辞去了她杂志的编辑工作，她的辞职被炒得沸沸扬扬），摒弃玩耍生活的生活哲学，而代之以激流勇退的生活哲学，会给人带来比经济上的成功和社会地位更高的益处。现在，谁也不能劝我再回到Kelsey所倡导的-并且我自己也曾经喜欢的那种生活方式中去了：一天工作12小时，充满压力的一件件有最后期限的事情，办公室规章所带来的可怕的压力，以及做母亲（所能花在家人身上）的有限的高质量时间。
　　
　　A不对。新的生活方式是她始料未及的，可以说是她的意外发现-辞职时她并没有梦想要像现在这样生活。
　　
　　C意为：促使她放弃了自己很高的社会地位。根据原文，作者是在辞去工作以后才过上现在这种生活的。
　　
　　D意为：使她接受了她杂志所倡导的生活哲学。恰恰相反，她放弃了这一生活哲学。
　　
　　69. [C]意为：极度紧张。
　　
　　juggle的原义是耍弄，摆弄，在第三段中，juggling your life和downshifting相提并论，而downshifting这里应该和第二段第二句中的settle for a bit of everything属于同义，相应地，juggling one‘s life应该和第二段第二句中的having it all同义。根据第四段，downshifting本文指过简朴、自在的生活，那么，juggling one’s life当指进取的生活方式，工作中的不断进取当然是与工作压力成正比的。
　　
　　A意为：不追求物质利益的生活方式。根据第四段第一句，这是downshifting的生活特点。
　　
　　B不对。根据第二段，这也是downshifting的生活特点。
　　
　　D意为：反消费主义。根据第四段第二句，所谓反消费主义与自愿过简朴的生活是一致的。
　　
　　70. [D]
　　
　　根据第五段，在美国，这种趋势（指上一段提到的downshifting生活方式）的出现最初是对经济衰退的一种反应。
　　
　　A意为：快节奏的现代生活。
　　
　　B意为：人们的冒险精神。
　　
　　C意为；人们对神秘的生活体验的追求。
　　
　　全文翻译：
　　
　　当我决定辞去自己的全日制工作时决没有想到，自己竟成了一种新的国际性潮流的一分子。一次平级的人事调动伤了我的自尊心，并阻断了我的事业发展，这促使我放弃自己地位较高的职业，当然，就像面子扫尽的政府部长那样，我也掩饰说我只想与家人更多的呆在一起。
　　
　　奇怪的是，大约两年半的时间我写完两部小说后，我这个被美国人称为放慢生活节奏的试验，却使我老掉牙的借口变成了现实。我已从一个获得一切哲学（琳达。凯茜过去七年中在《她》这本杂志所宣扬的）的狂热支持者，变成了一个乐于接受任何东西只要一丁点的女人。
　　
　　我已经发现（由于压力过大，凯茜已多次公开宣称要辞去《她》杂志编辑的职务，在这之后她也许会有同样发现），放弃忙忙碌碌的生活哲学，转而过一种放慢生活节奏的生活所带来的回报，比经济成功和社会地位更有价值。什么也说服不了我回到过去那种凯茜所宣扬的、我也曾自得其乐的生活中去：每天12小时的工作日，压得人喘不过气来的最后期限，可怕而紧张的办公室的争权夺利，以及因为时间有限连做母亲也得高效率所造成的种种限制。
　　
　　在美国，摆脱忙碌，转而过一种简单、不大物质化的生活已成明确趋势。具有讽刺意味的是，放慢生活节奏-在美国也称自愿简单化-甚至孕育了一个崭新的、可称之为反消费主义的生活方式。对于那些想简单生活的人来说，有许多很畅销的帮你轻松生活的自助书籍；有各种简讯，例如省钱简报，会给美国人提供成千上万条有用的点子去做事，从回收保鲜腊到自制肥皂；甚至还有一些帮助团体，帮人按90年代中期脱离传统社会的人的生活方式去生活。
　　
　　在美国，这种趋势一开始是对经济衰落所做出的一种反应-出现于80年代后期缩小经济规模所引起的大量人员冗余之后-在英国，至少在我所认识的中产阶级的简化生活者中，这种趋势仍被认为与节俭政治有关联，虽然如此，然而我们有着不同的缘由去寻求使自己的生活简单化。
　　
　　对我们这一代女性来说，整个80年代我们曾被迫忙碌地生活，90年代中期的简化生活与其说是寻求神话般的好生活-自己种有机蔬菜以及冒险制造有机蔬菜-倒不如说我们都认识了自身的局限。