英語四級閱讀理解訓練附答案

　　In the 1960s, medical researchers Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe developed a checklist ofstressful events.They appreciated the tricky point that any major change can be stressful.Negative events like “serious illness of a family member” were high on the list, but so were somepositive life-changing events, like marriage. When you take the Holmes-Rahe test you mustremember that the score does not reflect how you dealwith stress—it only shows how muchyou have to deal with. And we now know that the way you handle these events dramaticallyaffects your chances of staying healthy.

　　By the early 1970s, hundreds of similar studies had followed Holmes and Rahe. And millions ofAmericans who work and live under stress worried over the reports. Somehow, the researchgot boiled down to a memorable message. Women’s magazines ran headlines like “Stresscauses illness!” If you want to stay physicallyand mentally healthy, the articles said, avoidstressful events.

　　But such simplistic advice is impossible to follow. Even if stressful events are dangerous,many—like thedeath of a loved one—are impossible to avoid. Moreover, any warning to avoidall stressful events is a prescription ***處方*** for staying away from opportunities as well astrouble. Since any change can be stressful, a person who wanted to be completely free ofstress would never marry, have a child, take a new job or move.

　　The notion that all stress makes you sick also ignores a lot of what we know about people. Itassumes we’re all vulnerable ***脆弱的*** and passive in the face of adversity ***逆境***. But whatabout human initiative and creativity? Many come through periods of stress with morephysical and mental vigor than they had before.We also know that a long time without changeor challenge can lead to boredom, and physical and metal strain.

　　練習題：

　　Choose correct answers to the question:

　　1. The result of Holmes-Rahe’s medical research tells us ________.

　　A. the way you handle major events may cause stress

　　B. what should be done to avoid stress

　　C. what kind of event would cause stress

　　D. how to cope with sudden changes in life

　　22. The studies on stress in the early 1970’s led to ________.

　　A. widespread concern over its harmful effects

　　B. great panic over the mental disorder it could cause

　　C. an intensive research into stress-related illnesses

　　D. popular avoidance of stressful jobs

　　23. The score of the Holmes-Rahe test shows ________.

　　A. how much pressure you are under

　　B. how positive events can change your life

　　C. how stressful a major event can be

　　D. how you can deal with life-changing events

　　24. Why is “such simplistic advice” ***Line 1, Para. 3*** impossible to follow?

　　A. No one can stay on the same job for long.

　　B. No prescription is effective in relieving stress.

　　C. People have to get married someday.

　　D. You could be missing opportunities as well.

　　25. According to the passage people who have experienced ups and downs maybecome ____.

　　A. nervous when faced with difficulties

　　B. physically and mentally strained

　　C. more capable of coping with adversity

　　D. indifferent toward what happens to them

　　1.[C] 事實細節題。根據文章的第1句話可知，這兩位科學家對造成人們壓力的事件列了一個清單,故C與此相符,為正確答案。

　　2.[A] 事實細節題。根據文章第2段第2句“…millions of Americans... worried over the reports.”可見此研究報告引起了 widespread concern,故選A。

　　3.[A] 事實細節題。根據第1段第4句中的does not reflect..., it only shows...可知本題答案應為破折號後的內容，其中how much指的是how much stress,故可知A為正確答案。

　　4.[D] 推理判斷題。這裡的建議是指第2段末尾提出的“避免帶來壓力的事”。根據第3段第3句“而且，警告人們遠離壓力，這個處方不僅使人避免麻煩，同時也使人放棄了機會”,故選D。

　　5.[C] 推理判斷題。根據文章倒數第2句“很多人經歷一段時間的壓力後，無論是身體還是精神都比原來更有活力”，故選C。

　　It is not often realized that women held a high place in southern European societies in the 10thand 11th centuries. As a wife, the woman was protected by the setting up of a dowry ***彩禮***.Admittedly, the purposeof this was to protect her against the risk of desertion, but in realityits function in the social and family life of the time was much more important. The dowry wasthe wife’s right to receive a tenth of all her husband’s property. The wife had the right to withhold consent, in all transactions the husband wouldmake, and more than just a right; thedocuments show that she enjoyed a real power of decision, equal to that of her husband. Inno case do the documents indicate any degree of difference in the legal status of husbandand wife.

　　The wife shared in the management of her husband’s personal property, but the opposite wasnot always true. Women seemed perfectly prepared to defend their own inheritance againsthusbands who tried to exceed their rights, and on occasion they showed a fine fighting spirit.A case in point is that of Maria Vivas. Having agreed with her husband Miro to sell a field shehad inherited, for the needs of the household, she insisted on compensation. None beingoffered, she succeeded in dragging her husband to the scribe***法學家*** to have a contract dulydrawn up assigning her a piece of land from Miro’s personal inheritance. The unfortunatehusband was obliged to agree, as the contract says, “for the sake of peace.” Either throughthe dowry or through being hot-tempered, the wife knew how to win herself, with the contextof the family, a powerful economic position.ric illnesses including depression often do notmanifest themselves until the late teens or early 20s.

　　練習題：

　　Choose correct answers to the question:

　　1. A decimum was ________.

　　A. the wife's inheritance from her father

　　B. a gift of money to the new husband

　　C.a protection of the wife’s right

　　D. a written contract

　　2. In the 10th and11th centuries in southern European, women’s social position was______.

　　A. higher than men’s

　　B. as high as men’s

　　C. lower than men’s

　　D.never recognized