There are many famous writers in the English world, among whom Jane Austen  (1775—1817) has been popular with all ages. But then Jane Austen wrote her novels in England, she was writing about a world that most of us would not recognize.

But today Austen’s books are in greater demand than ever. In the last ten years, five of the six novels have been made into Hollywood films, while her books continue to be bestsellers. So why is Austen still popular?

    Richard Jenkyns, a professor of English at Oxford University, argues that her novels still appeal to people because they focus on issues that are as relevant today as they were when she wrote them. Her novels are about women trying to find a perfect husband, but also explore issues surrounding marriage, friendship and the family. “The plots are fairly timeless stories about human interaction which are familiar to us,” Jenkyns says.

    The most famous book Austen wrote is Pride and Prejudice, a love story between Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy. At first the two characters do not get on. They finally fall in love, but still have to overcome opposition (反对) to their relationship from their families.

    All of Austen’s books are easy to read, making them popular with children and adults, but they work on different levels so people can take what they need from them, author Kate Henry says.

Austen is often praised as the greatest romance writer in the English language, so it is surprising she remained unmarried. “Maybe she was too much of a romantic, waiting for a perfect man,” Henry says.

1.Which of the following can NOT explain why Austen is still popular?

A. Her novels are all about love and marriage.

B. Her novels still make sense to today’s people.

C. All her novels are easy to read.

D. Her novels benefit people of different reading levels.

2. The underlined word “relevant” in Paragraph 3 probably means ______.

A. strange   B. related     C. funny      D. unimportant

3.According to Henry, Austen remained unmarried because ______.

A. she was used to the life of being single

B. the perfect man didn’t appears in her life

C. she was too busy to think of marriage

D. she was afraid of marriage

4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A. More and more people like reading Austen’s novels.

  B. Austen died when she was 42 years old.

  C. Pride and Prejudice is a novel about love.

  D. Austen is often regarded as the greatest writer in the English language.

There are many famous writers in the English world, among whom Jane Austen  (1775—1817) has been popular with all ages. But then Jane Austen wrote her novels in England, she was writing about a world that most of us would not recognize.

But today Austen’s books are in greater demand than ever. In the last ten years, five of the six novels have been made into Hollywood films, while her books continue to be bestsellers. So why is Austen still popular?

    Richard Jenkyns, a professor of English at Oxford University, argues that her novels still appeal to people because they focus on issues that are as relevant today as they were when she wrote them. Her novels are about women trying to find a perfect husband, but also explore issues surrounding marriage, friendship and the family. “The plots are fairly timeless stories about human interaction which are familiar to us,” Jenkyns says.

    The most famous book Austen wrote is Pride and Prejudice, a love story between Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy. At first the two characters do not get on. They finally fall in love, but still have to overcome opposition (反对) to their relationship from their families.

    All of Austen’s books are easy to read, making them popular with children and adults, but they work on different levels so people can take what they need from them, author Kate Henry says.

Austen is often praised as the greatest romance writer in the English language, so it is surprising she remained unmarried. “Maybe she was too much of a romantic, waiting for a perfect man,” Henry says.

Which of the following can NOT explain why Austen is still popular?

A. Her novels are all about love and marriage.

B. Her novels still make sense to today’s people.

C. All her novels are easy to read.

D. Her novels benefit people of different reading levels.

The underlined word “relevant” in Paragraph 3 probably means ______.

A. strange   B. related     C. funny      D. unimportant

According to Henry, Austen remained unmarried because ______.

A. she was used to the life of being single

B. the perfect man didn’t appears in her life

C. she was too busy to think of marriage

D. she was afraid of marriage

Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A. More and more people like reading Austen’s novels.

  B. Austen died when she was 42 years old.

  C. Pride and Prejudice is a novel about love.

  D. Austen is often regarded as the greatest writer in the English language.

第三部分阅读理解(共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
请认真阅读下列短文，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Marco Polo was born in Venice in 1254．He was the most famous Westerner to visit Asia during the Middle Ages．He wrote a book about his travels．In his book he wrote about all the things he saw and heard．Many people read the book, but few believed what Marco Polo said．He spoke of strange people and places that nobody knew about at that time．But, he even said, “What I have written down is only half of what I have seen．”
As a young man, Marco Polo decided to travel together with his father．It took them more than three years to travel to China．He became the Chinese emperor’s (皇帝)friend．He learned the Chinese language when he traveled around and talked to many people．Before he reached the age of 30 he was made a Chinese official．After nearly 17 years in the east, Marco and his father prepared to return home．When they finally arrived in Venice, their family and friends were surprised to see them again．They had been away for almost 25 years and everybody thought that they must have died a long time ago．
56、What did Marco Polo write about in his book?
A. About Venice．                                    B. About the Chinese emperor．
C. About what he saw and heard in Asia．   D. About how he returned home．
57、What did Marco Polo learn Chinese for?
A.To become a Chinese official．       
B.To become the Chinese emperor’s friend．
C.To become a translator for his father.
D. To travel around conveniently in China．
58、Which is NOT true according to the text?
A. Marco Polo and his father had been in China for 17 years．
B. Marco Polo and his father spent nearly 5 years returning home．
C. Marco Polo’s father died on the way home．
D. Marco Polo spent more than three years traveling from Venice to China．
59、By saying “What I have written down is only half of what I have seen…”,  Marco Polo meant that_________．
A.he only saw half of the country during his stay in China        
B.there were still a lot more he couldn’t write down
C. half of the people went to China during that time
D. he wanted to write down the other half of what he saw in China

There are many famous writers in the English world, among whom Jane Austen  (1775—1817) has been popular with all ages. But then Jane Austen wrote her novels in England, she was writing about a world that most of us would not recognize.
But today Austen’s books are in greater demand than ever. In the last ten years, five of the six novels have been made into Hollywood films, while her books continue to be bestsellers. So why is Austen still popular?
Richard Jenkyns, a professor of English at Oxford University, argues that her novels still appeal to people because they focus on issues that are as relevant today as they were when she wrote them. Her novels are about women trying to find a perfect husband, but also explore issues surrounding marriage, friendship and the family. “The plots are fairly timeless stories about human interaction which are familiar to us,” Jenkyns says.
The most famous book Austen wrote is Pride and Prejudice, a love story between Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy. At first the two characters do not get on. They finally fall in love, but still have to overcome opposition (反对) to their relationship from their families.
All of Austen’s books are easy to read, making them popular with children and adults, but they work on different levels so people can take what they need from them, author Kate Henry says.
Austen is often praised as the greatest romance writer in the English language, so it is surprising she remained unmarried. “Maybe she was too much of a romantic, waiting for a perfect man,” Henry says.
【小题1】Which of the following can NOT explain why Austen is still popular?