完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，从16-35各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项并在答题卡上将其涂黑。

I had always loved music and dreamed of being a musician, travelling to different countries, meeting lots of people and doing something I loved to earn my money.   16 , my parents had a farm and I didn’t want to do that—I wanted to do something   17 . However, I had always been shy and too nervous to try playing   18  in public.

I had been playing the   19  since I was ten years old, but the idea of playing in front of other people was very   20 .

I started one day,   21  a local youth club advertised a talent show—anybody who could play an instrument or sing could put his name down to be in concert. I   22  myself up.

When the day of the show came, I was so   23  that I couldn’t eat.   24  was the first time I had played in front of other people and I felt   25  unsure of myself. I had no idea whether I was   26  good and was worried that no one would like me.

When my turn came, I played my favorite tune and I even started to   27 ! I could not hear what I sounded like, but to my surprise, I eventually forgot about all the people in the audience and started to enjoy myself. When the song ended, everyone clapped and some people

  28 !

After the show a man   29  up to me to say how much he enjoyed my   30 . He said that he had a rock band, and they needed to   31  a guitar player. He asked me to come along the next day to have a try. This successful trial turned my dream into   32 . In the following days, we   33  around a lot, playing in concerts in lots of places around the world. Sometimes we would enter competitions and once we went on TV.

We really enjoyed ourselves and life was like a big long holiday. As we became more successful, we had to work harder and practice more and eventually I became   34  of travelling so much. But now, nearly fifty years later, I look back on those carefree days of my

  35  as among the best moments of my life.

“ Are you too stupid to do anything right？”These words—said by a woman to a little boy who was obviously her son—were spoken   21    he had walked away from her．They boy returned, his eyes down-cast.

Not a   22     moment, perhaps,   23     small moments sometimes last a very long time．And a few words—though they mean   24    at the time to the people who say them—can have great   25    .

I recently heard a story from a man named Malcolm Dalkoff．For the last 24 years he has been a professional   26    ．Here is what he told me:

As a boy in Rock Island, Dalkoff was terribly   27    ．He had few   28    and no self-confidence．One day, his English teacher, Ruth Brach, gave the class an assignment（作业）．The students had been reading To Kill a Mockingbird．Now they were to write their own chapter that would   29     the last chapter of the novel.

Dalkoff wrote his chapter and turned it   30   ．Today he can not recall anything   31 

about the chapter he wrote, or what   32    Mrs．Branch gave him．What he does remember is the four words Mrs．Brach wrote in margin（空白处）of the paper：“This is   33   writing.”

    Four words．They   34     his life.

    “   35     I read those words, I had no idea of who I was or   36   I was going to be.”he said.“After reading her note, I went home and wrote a short story, something I had always been   37    of doing but never believed I could do.”

       Over the rest of that year in school, he wrote many short stories and always brought them to school for Mrs．Brach to evaluate．She was   38     , tough and honest.“She was just what I

   39   .”Dalkoff said.

       His confidence   40   ．Dalkoff believes that none of this would have happened if that woman had not written those four words in the margin of his paper.

A．where           B．why              C．because             D．when

A．wonderful          B．difficult            C．funny               D．big

A．yet             B．although           C．for                 D．therefore

A．much          B．little               C．more               D．most

A．meaning           B．power           C．force               D．sense

A．writer           B．player               C．poet               D．singer

A．sorry           B．proud               C．sick                D．shy

A．books            B．ideas                C．friends              D．chances

A．follow           B．match               C．decide              D．improve

A．on               B．in                C．out                D．down

A．more                 B．again               C．special           D．different

A．honors            B．remarks             C．prizes               D．grade

A．poor          B．serious              C．good                D．silly

A．changed          B．damaged            C．affected            D．improved

A．Unless          B．Until               C．When               D．While

A．what             B．how                C．where               D．which

A．tired             B．fond               C．proud               D．dreaming

A．strict                 B．kind                C．encouraging          D．praising

A．feared          B．needed            C．expected             D．loved

A．grew                 B．lifted               C．appeared            D．returned

There was once a beautiful nymph called Echo. But Echo had one failing; she was fond of talking, and whether in chat or argument, would have the last word. As she was good company , she and Zeus became good friends. However，Zeus’ wife, Hera, became jealous. She followed Zeus to the earth to find out what he was doing and Zeus asked Echo to distract Hera until he could escape. Later when Hera discovered she had been tricked, she became very angry. She turned on Echo and said, “You shall lose the use of your tongue because you cheated me. You’ll have the last word, bur no longer have the power to speak first.” So from that moment on, Beautiful Echo was hardly able to hold a conversation because she could only repeat the last words of those around her. She became very embarrassed and hid herself deep in the woods.

One day a handsome young man called Narcissus came into the woods. He had been hunting deer and lost his way. However, the moment Echo saw him, she fell in love with him. She followed him, wishing to tell him but unable o begin a conversation. Oh, how she wished she could speak first. Unfortunately, Narcissus was far too busy worrying about where his companions might be and how he could find his way home.

Eventually Narcissus, with Echo following behind along, came to a pool of water in the middle of the woods. Feeling thirsty, Narcissus bent down to drink. As he did so, he saw a beautiful creature in the water staring up at him. . He immediately bent over and said to him, “I love you!” Echo, nearby, and seeing her chance, immediately responded “…. I love you!” But it was too late. Narcissus was already in love, with himself.

`      The stranger seemed to rise up closer to Narcissus who was so involved that he entirely failed to notice Echo. “I want to stay and look at this beautiful sight forever,” he whispered dreamily to himself.”… Forever,” repeated Echo sadly. “Come her,” called Narcissus to his reflection as he moved his head and the creature seemed to move away. “…Here.” responded Echo. Narcissus bent back down to see his reflection more clearly. “So beautiful! I’ve never seen anything so beautiful!” “….So beautiful!” responded Echo truthfully.

Narcissus remained by the water refusing all Echo’s silent offers of food and drink until he died. Where he had been, a flower grew in his place, as beautiful as Narcissus himself. As for Echo, from that time forward, she also didn’t eat or drink till she turned to rocks and all that was left was her voice. Even now you can still hear Echo trying to attract Narcissus’ attention by repeating his words and still see Narcissus as a beautiful flower growing near a pool.

63. Why was Echo unable to  let Narcissus know she loved him?

A. Because she had lost the ability to speak.        B. Because she was too shy to speak first.

C. Because Hera had taken away her ability to speak first.

D.  Because Narcissus took no notice of her.

64. “The stranger” in paragraph 4 refers to ______.

A. Echo         B. A fairy in the woods.        C. Hera.         D. Narcissus himself.

65. Which of the following kinds of person can be described as a “Narcissus”?

A. A person who loves and admires himself or herself.

B. A person who’s afraid of being separated from companions.

C. A person who is too shy to have a chat with other people.

D. A person who loves to admire beautiful water flowers.

66. Which of the following is the correct order of the events?

a) Hera wouldn’t let Echo start a conversation.

b) Narcissus fell in love with his reflection in the water.

c) Echo saw Narcissus and fell in love at the first sight.

d) Echo distracted Hera to help Zeus escape.

e) Narcissus became a flower and Echo a rock.

A. a-b-c-d-e           B. d-a-c-b-e           C. d-a-b-c-e           D. c-d-a-b-e

67. What’s the best title of this passage?

A. Echo’s sacrifice.                                   B. Echo and Hera.

C. Echo and Narcissus.                       D. Narcissus’s self-love.

The Writers’ Strike：Making the Best of the Worst

By now you are probably feeling the effects of the TV writers’ strike－the decision of television writers to stop working. With few new TV shows, I present to you a list of shows available on DVD worth your viewing time to keep you going during this painful period.
Arrested Development is one of the funniest and most clever shows ever to have appeared on network TV. With a most perfect cast, the show sets out to cover the daily happenings of the Bluth family, a group of selfish staff who manage to still put family first.
For more comedy goodness, I recommend one of the sharpest comedies to have ever aired－30 Rock. Starring Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin, two stars with impressive comic timing，the show gives you a glimpse into the making of a sketch show(幽默短剧), similar to Saturday Night Live, from the funny writers to the self­centered cast all the way up to the boss.

If you are looking for something more serious, or perhaps more juicy, Friday Night Lights might be more to your liking. If you are a fan of football, this show is probably for you. If you are a fan of great drama，both soapy and serious，this show is probably for you. If you are a fan of good­looking people, this show is definitely for you.

If those shows were not enough for you, might I recommend a show with a more heart­pounding excitement? The Amazing Race, after twelve seasons, still remains one of the most exciting shows on TV. Teams of two travel the globe with little to no money and experience far­out adventures in an attempt to remain the last team standing.
【小题1】If you are fond of soapy TV shows, you will probably choose to watch________.

完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）
阅读下面短文，从16-35各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项并在答题卡上将其涂黑。
I had always loved music and dreamed of being a musician, travelling to different countries, meeting lots of people and doing something I loved to earn my money.   16 , my parents had a farm and I didn’t want to do that—I wanted to do something   17 . However, I had always been shy and too nervous to try playing   18  in public.
I had been playing the   19  since I was ten years old, but the idea of playing in front of other people was very   20 .
I started one day,   21  a local youth club advertised a talent show—anybody who could play an instrument or sing could put his name down to be in concert. I   22  myself up.
When the day of the show came, I was so   23  that I couldn’t eat.   24  was the first time I had played in front of other people and I felt   25  unsure of myself. I had no idea whether I was   26  good and was worried that no one would like me.
When my turn came, I played my favorite tune and I even started to   27 ! I could not hear what I sounded like, but to my surprise, I eventually forgot about all the people in the audience and started to enjoy myself. When the song ended, everyone clapped and some people
  28 !
After the show a man   29  up to me to say how much he enjoyed my   30 . He said that he had a rock band, and they needed to   31  a guitar player. He asked me to come along the next day to have a try. This successful trial turned my dream into   32 . In the following days, we   33  around a lot, playing in concerts in lots of places around the world. Sometimes we would enter competitions and once we went on TV.
We really enjoyed ourselves and life was like a big long holiday. As we became more successful, we had to work harder and practice more and eventually I became   34  of travelling so much. But now, nearly fifty years later, I look back on those carefree days of my
  35  as among the best moments of my life.