英语100篇精读荟萃（中级篇）7a

时间：2007-09-17 05:59:30

（单词翻译:单击）

Passage Seven (The Most Important of All Human Qualities is a Sense of Humor)
Biologically, there is only one quality which distinguishes us from animals: the ability to laugh. In a universe which appears to be utterly1 devoid2 of humor, we enjoy this supreme3 luxury. And it is a luxury, for unlike any other bodily process, laughter does not seem to serve a biologically useful purpose. In a divide world, laughter is a unifying4 force. Human beings oppose each other on a great many issues. Nations may disagree about systems of government and human relations may be plagued by ideological5 factions6 and political camps, but we all share the ability to laugh. And laughter, in turn, depends on that most complex and subtle of all human qualities: a sense of humor Certain comic stereotypes7 have a universal appeal. This can best be seen from the world-wide popularity of Charlie Chaplin’s early films. The little man at odds8 with society never fails to amuse no matter which country we come from. As that great commentator9 on human affairs, Dr. Samuel Johnson, once remarked, ‘Men have been wise in very different modes; but they have always laughed in the same way.’
    A sense of humor may take various forms and laughter may be anything from a refined tingle10 to an earth quaking roar, but the effect is always the same. Humor helps us to maintain a correct sense of values. It is the one quality which political fanatics11 appear to lack. If we can see the funny side, we never make the mistake of taking ourselves too seriously. We are always reminded that tragedy is not really far removed from comedy, so we never get a lop sided view of things.
    This is one of the chief functions of satire12 and irony13. Human pain and suffering are so grim; we hover14 so often on the brink15 of war; political realities are usually enough to plunge16 us into total despair. In such circumstances, cartoons and satirical accounts of somber17 political events redress18 the balance. They take the wind out of pompous19 and arrogant20 politicians who have lost their sense of proportion. They enable us to see that many of our most profound actions are merely comic or absurd. We laugh when a great satirist21 like Swift writes about war in Gulliver’s Travels. The Lilliputians and their neighbors attack each other because they can’t agree which end to break an egg. We laugh because we meant to laugh; but we are meant to weep too. It is too powerful a weapon to be allowed to flourish.
    The sense of humor must be singled out as man’s most important quality because it is associated with laughter. And laughter, in turn, is associated with happiness. Courage, determination, initiative - these are qualities we share with other forms of life. But the sense of humor is uniquely human. If happiness is one of the great goals of life, then it is the sense of humor that provides the key.

1.    The most important of all human qualities is
[A] a sense of humor.
[B] A sense of satire.
[C] A sense of laughter.
[D] A sense of history.
2.    The author mentions about Charlie Chaplin’s early films because
[A] they can amuse people.
[B] Human beings are different from animals.
[C] They show that certain comic stereotypes have a universal appeal.
[D] They show that people have the same ability to laugh.
3.    One of the chief functions of irony and satire is
[A] to show absurdity22 of actions.
[B] to redress balance.
[C] to take the wind out of politicians.
[D] to show too much grimness in the world.
4.    What do we learn from the sentence ‘it is too powerful a weapon to be allowed to flourish in totalitarian regimes?’
[A] It can reveal the truth of political events with satire.
[B] It can arouse people to riot.
[C] It shows tragedy and comedy are related.
[D] It can make people laugh.
5.     Who is Swift?
[A] A novelist.
[B] A poet.
[C] A dramatist.
[D] A essayist.
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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 utterly ZfpzM1     
adv.完全地，绝对地
参考例句：
  • Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
  • I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。
2 devoid dZzzx     
adj.全无的，缺乏的
参考例句：
  • He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
  • The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。
3 supreme PHqzc     
adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的
参考例句：
  • It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
  • He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。
4 unifying 18f99ec3e0286dcc4f6f318a4d8aa539     
使联合( unify的现在分词 )； 使相同； 使一致； 统一
参考例句：
  • In addition, there were certain religious bonds of a unifying kind. 此外，他们还有某种具有一种统一性质的宗教上的结合。
  • There is a unifying theme, and that is the theme of information flow within biological systems. 我们可以用一个总的命题，把生物学系统内的信息流来作为这一研究主题。
5 ideological bq3zi8     
a.意识形态的
参考例句：
  • He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
  • He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。
6 factions 4b94ab431d5bc8729c89bd040e9ab892     
组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )
参考例句：
  • The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
  • rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别
7 stereotypes 1ff39410e7d7a101c62ac42c17e0df24     
n.老套，模式化的见解，有老一套固定想法的人( stereotype的名词复数 )v.把…模式化，使成陈规( stereotype的第三人称单数 )
参考例句：
  • Such jokes tend to reinforce racial stereotypes. 这样的笑话容易渲染种族偏见。
  • It makes me sick to read over such stereotypes devoid of content. 这种空洞无物的八股调，我看了就讨厌。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
8 odds n5czT     
n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别
参考例句：
  • The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
  • Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？
9 commentator JXOyu     
n.注释者，解说者；实况广播评论员
参考例句：
  • He is a good commentator because he can get across the game.他能简单地解说这场比赛，是个好的解说者。
  • The commentator made a big mistake during the live broadcast.在直播节目中评论员犯了个大错误。
10 tingle tJzzu     
vi.感到刺痛，感到激动；n.刺痛，激动
参考例句：
  • The music made my blood tingle.那音乐使我热血沸腾。
  • The cold caused a tingle in my fingers.严寒使我的手指有刺痛感。
11 fanatics b39691a04ddffdf6b4b620155fcc8d78     
狂热者，入迷者( fanatic的名词复数 )
参考例句：
  • The heathen temple was torn down by a crowd of religions fanatics. 异教徒的神殿被一群宗教狂热分子拆除了。
  • Placing nukes in the hands of baby-faced fanatics? 把核弹交给一些宗教狂热者手里？
12 satire BCtzM     
n.讽刺，讽刺文学，讽刺作品
参考例句：
  • The movie is a clever satire on the advertising industry.那部影片是关于广告业的一部巧妙的讽刺作品。
  • Satire is often a form of protest against injustice.讽刺往往是一种对不公正的抗议形式。
13 irony P4WyZ     
n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄
参考例句：
  • She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。
  • In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。
14 hover FQSzM     
vi.翱翔，盘旋；徘徊；彷徨，犹豫
参考例句：
  • You don't hover round the table.你不要围着桌子走来走去。
  • A plane is hover on our house.有一架飞机在我们的房子上盘旋。
15 brink OWazM     
n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿
参考例句：
  • The tree grew on the brink of the cliff.那棵树生长在峭壁的边缘。
  • The two countries were poised on the brink of war.这两个国家处于交战的边缘。
16 plunge 228zO     
v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲
参考例句：
  • Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
  • That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。
17 somber dFmz7     
adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的
参考例句：
  • He had a somber expression on his face.他面容忧郁。
  • His coat was a somber brown.他的衣服是暗棕色的。
18 redress PAOzS     
n.赔偿，救济，矫正；v.纠正，匡正，革除
参考例句：
  • He did all that he possibly could to redress the wrongs.他尽了一切努力革除弊端。
  • Any man deserves redress if he has been injured unfairly.任何人若蒙受不公平的损害都应获得赔偿。
19 pompous 416zv     
adj.傲慢的，自大的；夸大的；豪华的
参考例句：
  • He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities.他有点自大，自视甚高。
  • He is a good man underneath his pompous appearance. 他的外表虽傲慢，其实是个好人。
20 arrogant Jvwz5     
adj.傲慢的，自大的
参考例句：
  • You've got to get rid of your arrogant ways.你这骄傲劲儿得好好改改。
  • People are waking up that he is arrogant.人们开始认识到他很傲慢。
21 satirist KCrzN     
n.讽刺诗作者，讽刺家，爱挖苦别人的人
参考例句：
  • Voltaire was a famous French satirist.伏尔泰是法国一位著名的讽刺作家。
  • Perhaps the first to chronicle this dream was the Greek satirist Lucian.也许第一个记述这一梦想的要算是希腊的讽刺作家露西安了。
22 absurdity dIQyU     
n.荒谬，愚蠢；谬论
参考例句：
  • The proposal borders upon the absurdity.这提议近乎荒谬。
  • The absurdity of the situation made everyone laugh.情况的荒谬可笑使每个人都笑了。

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