8．Disease，poverty，hate，love-Charles Dickens'stories opened his readers eyes to the most important themes of his age．Two hundred years on，his stories still speak volumes（有意义）across the world，proving that Dickens'legacy（遗产）was far greater than just"great literature"
February 7 marks the 20th anniversary of the writer's birthday．To mark this date，BBC writer Alex Hudson listed six things Dickens gave the modem world．Let's take a look at two of them．
A white Christmas
Dickens is described as"the man who invented Christmas"-not the religious festival，but the cultural aspects that we associate with the festive season today．In the early 19th century，Christmas was barely worth mentioning，according to critic and writer Leigh Hunt．The committee which ran the Conservative Party even held ordinary business meetings on Christmas Day-unthinkable in the West nowadays，when everyone but the most necessary workers takes at least three days off．
Many people believe that Dickens'popular descriptions of the festive period became a blueprint for generations to come．In his classic novel，A Christmas Carol，he not only put forward the idea of snow at Christmas，but also painted a picture of glowing warmth-home enjoyments，affections and hopes．
In his biography of Dickens，Peter Ackroyd wrote："Dickens Can be said to have almost single-handedly created the modem idea of Christmas．"
"Dickensian"poverty
Dickens was one of the first to take an honest look at the underclass and the poor of Victorian（the period during British Queen Victoria's reign from l837 to 1901）London．
He helped popularize the term"red tape"to describe situations where people in power use needless amounts of bureaucracy（官僚作风）in a way that particularly hurts the weaker and poorer members of society．
"Dickensian"has now become a powerful word for describing an unacceptable level of poverty．In 2009，when the president of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in the UK wanted to talk about deprivation（剥夺权利）in some areas of Britain，she did not use words like"terrible"or"horrific"，but rather described it as"life mirroring the times of Dickens"．
60．What is the main idea of the article？B
A．An introduction to Charles Dickens'classic novels．
B．Charles dickens'impact on the world．
C．Charles Dickens'amazing characters．
D．Why Charles Dickens is popular across the world．
61．Why is Dickens called"the man who invented Christmas"？B
A．Because he created the religious festival．
B．Because many of his novels have something to do with Christmas．
C．Because one of his novels helped to shape Christmas celebrations．
D．Because he was the first man to have proposed celebrating Christmas．
62．According to the article，the phrase"red tape"refers toD．
A．rules or procedures that are required to accomplish a task
B．a situation in which poor members of society are hurt．
C．conflict between people in power and weaker people
D．pointlessly time-consuming official procedures．
分析 本文属于说明文阅读，作者通过这篇文章主要向我们讲述了狄更斯对整个世界的影响，他不仅一手创造了现代圣诞节，而且诚实对待下层人员和维多利亚穷人，对社会弱势成员普及知识，拒绝官僚作风，他的贡献远远不止是文学上的成就，他为那个时代带去了光芒，因此，他值得我们纪念．
解答 60．B．主旨大意题．根据文章第二段：To mark this date，BBC writer Alex Hudson listed six things Dickens gave the modern world．为纪念这个日子，BBC作家亚历克斯•哈德逊列举了狄更斯带给现代世界的六件事，可知主要讲的是狄更斯对整个世界的影响，故选A．
61．B．细节理解题．根据文章第五段"he not only put forward the idea of snow at Christmas，but also painted a picture of glowing warmth-"home enjoyments，affections and hopes"．"他不仅提出了圣诞节雪的想法，还描绘出一幅温暖发光的图画"以及第六段"Dickens can be said to have almost single-handedly created the modern idea of Christmas．"狄更斯可以说一手创造了现代圣诞节．故选B．
62．D．推理判断题．根据文章倒数第二段"He helped popularize the term"red tape"to describe situations where people in power use needless amounts of bureaucracy （官僚作风） in a way that particularly hurts the weaker and poorer members of society．"可知red tape的意思是官方办事时的繁文缛节，故选D．
点评 考察学生的细节理解和推理判断能力，做细节理解题时一定要找到文章中的原句，和题干进行比较，再做出正确的选择．在做推理判断题不要以个人的主观想象代替文章的事实，要根据文章事实进行合乎逻辑的推理判断．
