Passage 2
I once knew a young man, nineteen years of age, who lived with absolute outward (外表的) confidence and self-possession for a number of years before I discovered that he could not read or write. His various methods of trick, which were also skills of self-protection, were so skillful and so desperate (绝望) that neither I nor any of his other adult friends were aware of his entire helplessness in face of written words until we went to dinner one night at a local restaurant—and suddenly discovered that he could not read.
Even here, it was not the first time we went out to eat, but something like the second or third, that Peter's desperation shocked me. The first time, he was clever enough to cover the truth. He studied the menu for a moment, then looked up to the waitress and asked her if he could have 'just a coke and a hamburger'. He told me later that he had done the same thing many times before and that he had learned to act as if he were examining the menu: 'Then I ask for a coke and a hamburger ...Sometimes they give me a hamburger on a plate with salad and potatoes...Then I ask them for a roll and make my own hamburger.'
As we began to go out to eat more frequently, Peter would ask to go to Howard Johnson's. I soon discovered the reason for his choice: The photographs, attached in cellophane (玻璃纸) containers to each of the standard items on the menu, could help him not to struggle with the shape of words at all. Howard Johnson's, whether intentionally or not, had provided the perfect escape for the endangered pride of an adult who was illiterate (文盲).
When he went to a restaurant, Peter would ______.
本题是事实细节题。题干的意思是：当Peter去饭店时，他会______。本题考察的是细节，一个文盲在饭店会怎样掩饰自己呢?通过第二段作者第一次跟他一起去饭店的细节“He studied the menu for a moment”，可得知他是通过“pretend to be studying the menu”来掩盖事实的。所以选B项。
The young man was not found to be illiterate until ______.
本题是事实细节题。题干的意思是：这个年轻人直到______才被发现是个文盲。从文中第二段第一句话可得知“it was not the first time...but something like the second or third...”C项为正确答案。
What did the young man usually have at a restaurant?
本题是推理判断题。题干的意思是：这个年轻人通常在饭店里吃什么?通过文章我们知道他为了掩盖自己看不懂菜单，经常点的都是可乐和汉堡。所以D项为正确答案。
The word 'self-possession' (Para. 1) probably means ______.
本题是词语理解题。A．self-confidence是自信。B．self-consciousness是自我意识。C．self-discipline是自律。D．self-devotion是自我奉献。可根据文中与“self-possession”并列的单词“confidence”来推测词义。所以选A项。
Why did the young man like to go to Howard Johnson's?
本题是事实细节题。题干的意思是：为什么这个年轻人喜欢去Howard Johnson饭店。文中最后一段有相应的答案：“I soon discovered the reason for his choice”。随着这句话我们发现他喜欢去这家饭店的原因是因为菜单上有图式说明。所以选C项。