Many a young person tells
me he wants to be a writer. I always encourage such people, but I also explain
that there's a big difference between "being a writer" and writing. In most
cases these individuals are dreaming of wealth and fame, not the long hours
alone at a typewriter. "You've got to want to write," I say to them, "not want
to be a writer." The reality is that writing is a lonely,
private and poor-paying affair. For every writer kissed by fortune there are
thousands more whose longing is never rewarded. When I left a 20-year career in
the U. S. Coast Guard to become a freelance writer, I had no prospects at all.
What I did have was a friend who found me my room in a New York apartment
building. It didn't even matter that it was cold and had no bathroom. I
immediately bought a used manual typewriter and felt like a genuine
writer. After a year or so, however, I still hadn't gotten a
break and began to doubt myself. It was so hard to sell a story that barely made
enough to eat. But I knew I wanted to write. I had dreamed about it for years. I
wasn't going to be one of those people who die wondering "What if?" I would keep
putting my dream to the test—even though it meant living with uncertainty and
fear of failure. This is the Shadowland of hope, and anyone with a dream must
learn to live there.
单选题
The passage is meant to ______.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】主旨判断题。本题询问的是文章的主题思想，即作者写这篇文章的目的。文章第一段指出，作者在鼓励一些想当作家的年轻人的同时也向他们指出当作家与从事写作间的天壤之别。第二段中作者首先指出"The reality is that writing is a lonely，private and poor paying affair"，然后作者以自己的亲身经历说明了写作的艰难与困苦。由此可见，作者写作本文的目的主要是“告诫年轻人一个成功的作家所要经历的艰难困苦”，故选项A为正确答案。选项B说“建议年轻人放弃成为一名职业作家的念头”，这不符合本文内容，因为文章第一段第二句话就指出“我总是鼓励这些人”故选项B不是正确答案。文章中说想成为作家的青年人是在梦想着财富与荣誉，但并没有提到作家追求名利是不现实的，所以选项C“向青年人说明作为一名作家去追求财富与荣誉是不现实的”是不正确的。虽然作者提到他总是鼓励那些想成为作家的年轻人，但文章的主旨并不是这种鼓励，而是让年轻人认识到从事写作的艰难和清贫，故选项D也不是正确答案。
单选题
What can be concluded from the passage?
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】推理题。本题要求根据文章内容判断四个选项中哪一个符合文章内容。文章中并没有提到“真正的作家经常发现自己的工作是有趣的、值得做的”，或“作家的成功依赖于运气而非努力”，所以选项A和 B均不是正确答案。文章第二段的第一句话中虽谈到了清贫和孤独，只是泛泛地说现实中的写作是孤独的、私人的及待遇微薄的事，并没有提到名作家通常过的是贫困和孤独的生活，故选项C也不是正确答案。文章第二段的第二句“For every writer kissed by fortune there are thousands more whose longing is never rewarded．”说明每一个幸运成功的作家背后还有千千万万个永远无法实现自己梦想的人，这与选项D“作家成功的机会是很少的”相符合，故选项D为正确答案。
单选题
Why did the author begin to doubt himself after the first year of his writing career?
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】要点定位题。本题询问的是为什么作者在从事写作一年后开始怀疑自己。文章第三段的第一句"After a year or so，however，I still hadn't gotten a break and began to doubt myself．”指出作者因为没有成功的机会而开始怀疑自己，这与选项B“他没有看到进展的机会”，相吻合，故选项B是正确答案。文章第三段第二句提到"It was so hard to sell a story"，说明作家能写出东西，而问题在于很难使自己写出的东西得以发表，故选项A“作者写不出一本书”是不符合文章内容的。选项C“整整一年他都不能休息一下”和选项D“他发现自己的梦想难以成为现实”都是本文未涉及到的内容。
单选题
"… people who die wondering What if?" (Para. 3) refers to "those ______".
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】语义理解题。本题需要根据上下文确定"people who die wondering What If?”指的是一类什么样的人。文章第三段的第五和第六句“I wasn't going to be one of those people who die wondering, What If ? I would keep putting my dream to the test—even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure．”指出作者不想成为在临死前还在想“假如我…”的人，而是要坚持自己的理想，把自己的梦想付诸于实践，即使这意味着难以预料的前途和失败的可能。这就说明临死前还在想“假如我…”的人是那些没能坚持自己的理想，没能把梦想付诸于实践的人，即半途放弃写作生涯的人。故选项B为正确答案。而选项A“对生活的阴暗面想得过多的人”选项C“只想不做决定的人”及选项D"即使对死都充满了幻想的人”均脱离了此句出现的上下文内容，故都不是正确答案。
单选题
"Shadowland' in the last sentence refers to ______.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】语义推断题。本题需要根据上下文推断出所代表的含义。本文的最后两句话“I would keep putting my dream to the test—even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure．This is the Shadowland of hope，and anyone with a dream must learn to live there．”指出作者会坚持把自己的梦想付诸于实践——即使这意味着要生活在对前途的难以预料及对失败的恐惧中，这是一种充满希望的 Shadowland。由此可见，句中this指代的是living with uncertainty and fear of failure，即成功前的未来总难以确定的状态，这也正是Shadowland的所指内容，故选项C为正确答案。选项A说“人们常幻想的奇妙之境”，选项B说“人们所期盼的辉煌的未来”，选项D说“人们想像中的世界”，这些解释都脱离了Shadowland一词的上下文内容，故均不是正确答案。