13．The first day of the month of May is known as May Day．It is the time of year when warmer weather begins．People celebrate the coming of summer with customs that are expressions of joy and hope after a long winter．Today，May Day activities have been moved to the May Day holiday on the first Monday of the month．It is a public holiday when families take advantage of the time off to visit some of the UK's many attractions，including parks，zoos，historic buildings，ancient towns and villages and beautiful countryside．
May Day celebrations have their origins in the Roman festival of Flora，the goddess of fruit and flowers，which marked the beginning of summer．People would decorate their houses and villages with leaves and flowers they picked at daybreak in the belief that the vegetation spirits would bring good luck．In the very early morning，young girls went into the fields and washed their faces with dew （露水）．They believed this made them very beautiful for the following year．
May Day was an important day in the Middle Ages and was a favorite holiday of many English villages．People of the time used to cut down young trees and stick them in the ground in the village to mark the arrival of summer．This is the origin of the maypole （五月柱）．People danced around them in celebration of the end of winter．Maypoles were once common all over England and were kept from one year to the next．The tallest maypole is said to have been put up in London on the Strand in 1661．It stood more than 143feet high and was cut down in 1717，when it was used by Newton to support a new reflecting telescope （反射式望远镜） invented by Dutch scientist Huygens．
21．How do British people celebrate May Day？B
A．They visit friends and family members．
B．They celebrate it on the first Monday of May．
C．They spend a lot of time shopping around．
D．They show great love for the long winter．
22．The underlined word"this"in Paragraph 2refers toA．
A．washing the face with dew
B．going into the fields
C．picking flowers at daybreak
D．getting up early in the morning
23．What can we learn about the maypole？C
A．People climb it on May Day．
B．It was usually found in the cities．
C．It dates from the Middle Ages．
D．People used old，tall trees to make it．
24．The purpose of the text is toD．
A．describe Roman customs
B．suggest spring family activities
C．explain the origins of maypoles
D．introduce a British festival．
分析 本文是一篇介绍说明类文章，介绍了英国历史上和今天的人们如何庆祝May Day．
解答 21B 22A 23C 24D
21．B 细节理解题．根据文章第一段"Today，May Day activities have been moved to the May Day holiday on the first Monday of the month．"可知May Day活动现在已挪至五月的第一个星期一．选项B表述与原文一致，故选B．
22．A 代词指代题．根据this所在句的上一句，即文章第二段中"In the very early morning，young girls went into the fields and washed their faces with dew （露水）"可知，女孩子们会在早上去田里用露水洗脸．因为她们相信这（this）会使她们来年很漂亮．所以代词this指代的就是上一句的内容．故选A．
23．C 细节理解题．根据倒数第一段中的"May Day was an important day in the Middle Ages and was a favorite holiday of many English villages．People of the time used to cut down young trees and stick them in the ground in the village to mark the arrival of summer．"可知，关于五月柱的习俗从中世纪就开始．选项C表述与原文一致．故选C．
24．D 主旨大意题．本文介绍了英国节日May Day（五月节），以及历史上和今天的人们是如何庆祝这一节日的．故选D．
点评 阅读理解题测试考生在阅读基础上的逻辑推理能力，要求考生根据文章所述事件的逻辑关系，对未说明的趋势或结局作出合理的推断；或根据作者所阐述的观点理论，对文章未涉及的现象、事例给以解释．考生首先要仔细阅读短文，完整了解信息，准确把握作者观点．
