大学英语二级期末考试阅读理解命题范围

Passage 1

Charlie Chaplin has broken all records in making people laugh. No one has so set a whole world laughing as the little man with the walking stick and the oversized shoes.

Much has been written about Chaplin's art and his career, and opinions have ranged widely. But perhaps those who called him "the truest huma n being of our time" came closest to the truth. Those who have called him a genius stress the timeless and com mon qualities in his work. It is an art filled with sad elements and deep human feeling, with which an audienee cannot help but become in volved. It is for these reas on s, I believe, that the figure of Charlie has attracted generation after generation.

All the writers who give accounts of Chaplin's life agree that Charlie's unhappy early years in the area in London where houses were dirty and wor n had a great in flue nee on his developme nt and on the type of films he made. Chapli n himself emphasizes it in his memoirs （回忆录）.The more one reads about his earliest period, the more one tends to agree. In deed, his sufferi ng youth had a last ing in flue nce on him.

Chapli n was n ever afraid to deal with subjects caus ing much disagreeme nt in his films. He gave a humorous performance on war only a few weeks before the American soldiers came home from World War I in 1918. This was regarded as madn ess, but the performa nce was well received. So perfectly did it hit the nail on the head that even the returning soldiers found it impossible to hate it and deeply appreciated this short and humorous performance on what for them had been an unpleasant reality. Chaplin gave numerous performances attacking capital gover nmen ts, satiriz ing （讽朿H） the cruelty of the machi ne age, and eve n making fun of Hitler.

Years after his death, the funny films of motion picture actor and director Charlie Chapli n con ti nue to be well loved. He is particularly well known for his success as a creator of humorous prese ntati ons that make fun of people, the establishme nt, or n etworks.

1. All of the followi ng about Charlie Chaplin are true except ______________ .

A. he was born in the USA

B. he was a great film actor

C. he had an un happy early life

D. he made fun of Hitler in one of his films

2. According to the author, Charlie Chaplin has been well loved by generation after

gen erati on because ____________ .

A. he set the whole world laughi ng

B. his performa nces get people in volved

C. his works appeal to people in differe nt periods

D. both B and C

3. Accord ing to the writers of Charlie Chapli n's life history, ___________ had a strong

in flue nee on the type of films he made.

A. the society in which he lived

B. the audie nee who praised and admired him

C. his un happy early years in the poor area in London

D. those who called him a genius

4. Accord ing to the passage, which of the followi ng is true?

A. There are timeless qualities in Chapli n's work because he did n't in volve himself in

political affairs.

B. Chapli n became well loved years after his death.

C. Chapli n's performa nee is funny without any sad eleme nts.

D. Chapli n's films are the comb in ati ons of funny and sad eleme nts.

5. This passage was ___________ .

A. written by Charlie Chaplin

B. writte n about Charlie Chapli n

C. advertis ing one of Charlie Chapli n's films

D. written for students to learn film-making

Passage 2

Although Beethove n could sit dow n and compose easily, his really great compositi ons did not come easily at all. They cost him a great deal of hard work and he always found it hard to satisfy himself.

When he was 28, he began to notice a strange noise in his ears. As it grew worse, he went to see doctors, and was told that he was going deaf. This was too much for any composer to bear. Beethoven was without hope; he was sure that he was going to die. He went to the countryside where he wrote a long good-bye letter to his brothers, describing how sad and Ion ely his deaf ness made him. He Ion ged to die, and said to death, "Come whe n you will; I shall meet you bravely."

In fact, Beethove n did somethi ng braver tha n dying. He gathered his courage and went on writi ng music, though he could hear what he wrote more and more fai ntly. He wrote the music for which we remember him best after he became deaf. This music was very differe nt from any that had bee n composed before. In stead of the artistic and beautiful music that earlier composers had written for their rich listeners, Beethoven wrote stormy, exciting music