On November 19,1863, Abraham Lincoln went to Gettysburg in Pennsylvania to speak at the National Soldiers Cemetery. The Civil War was still going on. There was much criticism of President Lincoln at the time. He was not at all popular. He had been invited to speak at Gettysburg only out of politeness. The principal speaker was to be Edward Everett, a famous statesman and speaker of the day. Everett was a handsome man and very popular everywhere.
It is said that Lincoln prepared his speech on the train while going to Gettysburg. Late that night, alone in his hotel room and tired out, he again worked briefly on the speech. The next day Everett spoke first. He spoke for an hour and 57 minutes. His speech was a perfect example of the rich oratory of the day. Then Lincoln rose. The crowd of 15,000 people at first paid little attention to him. He spoke for only nine minutes. At the end there was little applause. Lincoln turned to a friend and remarked, "I have failed again." On the train back to Washington, he said sadly, "That speech was a flat failure, and the people are disappointed."
Some newspapers at first criticized the speech. But little by little as people read the speech they began to understand better. They began to appreciate its simplicity and its deep meaning. It was a speech which only Abraham Lincoln could have made.
Today, every American schoolchild learns Lincoln's Gettysburg Address by heart. Now everyone thinks of it as one of the greatest speeches ever given in American history.
In 1863, Abraham Lincoln was（ ）.
细节题。由题干关键词 1863 可定位至第一段第四句 “He was not at all popular. ” ，林肯一点也不受欢迎。故选 B 。
Lincoln was invited to speak at the National Soldiers Cemetery because he was（ ）.
推断题。第一段第三句“There was much criticism of President Lincoln at the time. ”表明了林肯的身份，而第四、五句 “He was not at all popular ． He had been invited to speak at Gettysburg only out of politeness.”意思是，林肯一点也不受欢迎，他被邀请去葛底斯堡演讲只是出于对他总统身份的礼貌。故选 C 。
It can be inferred from the text that（ ）.
推断题。由第二段前两句 “It is said that Lincoln prepared his speech on the train while going to Gettysburg ． Late that night, alone in his hotel room and tired out, he again worked briefly on the speech.” 可知 A 选项错误， B 选项正确。由第三段第三句 “They began to appreciate its simplicity and its deep meaning .” 可知 C 选项错误，林肯的演说用词简洁，而非华丽。由第二段倒数第四旬 “He spoke for only nine minutes. ” 可知 D 选项错误。
It was a fact that Lincoln' s speech was （ ）.
细节题。由最后两段可知，林肯的演讲一开始没有很好地被观众接受，后来慢慢地人们才开始欣赏它的简洁和深刻的寓意。 A 项 “ 立即获得成功 ” 与 C 项 “ 完全失败 ” 错误。根据第二段中的 “there was little applause” 可知， B 项 “ 受到热烈鼓掌 ” 错误。 D 项 “ 一开始没被很好地接受 ” 符合文意，故选 D 。
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?（ ）
细节题。由第三段第三句“They began to appreciate its simplicity and its deep meaning.” 可知 A 项和 B 项说法正确。由最后一段 “today, every American school child learns Lincoln's Gettysburg Address by heart ． Now everyone thinks of it as one of the greatest speeches ever given in American history .” 可知 C 项说法正确， D 项说法错误，应该是最伟大的演讲之一。故选 D 。