单选题
It was a fixing sight: there, in the Capitol itself, a U.S.
Senator often mocked for his halting, inarticulate speaking, reached deep into
his Midwestern roots and spoke eloquently, even poetically, about who he was and
what he believed, stunning politicians and journalists alike. I
refer, of course, to Senator Jefferson Smith. In Frank Capra's classic Mr. Smith
Goes to Washington, Jimmy Stewart plays this simple, idealistic small-town
American, mocked and scorned by the big-moneyed, oh-so-sophisticated power
elite--only to triumph over a corrupt Establishment with his rock-solid
goodness. At root, it is this role that soon-to-be-ex-Senator
Bob Dole most aspires to play: the self effacing, quietly powerful small-town
man from {{U}}Main Street{{/U}} who outwits the cosmopolitan, slick-talking snob
from the {{U}}fleshpots{{/U}}. And why not? There is, after all, no more enduring
American icon. How enduring? Before Americans had a
Constitution, Thomas Jefferson was arguing that the new nation's future would
depend on a base of agrarian yeomen free from the vices inherent in big cities.
In 1840 one of the classic, image-driven presidential campaigns featured William
Henry Harrison as the embodiment of rural virtues, the candidate of the log
cabin and hard cider, defeating the incumbent Martin Van Buren, who was accused
of dandified dress and manners. There is, of course, a huge
disconnect between this professed love of the simple, unspoiled life and the way
Americans actually live. As a people, Americans have spent the better part of
the 20th century deserting the farms and the small towns for the cities and the
suburbs; and are torn between vacationing in Disney World and Las
Vegas. U.S. politicians too haven't exactly shunned the
temptations of the cosmopolitan life. The town of Russell, Kansas, often seems
to be Dole's running mate, but the candidate spends his leisure time in a luxury
condominium in Bal Harbor, Florida. Bill Clinton still believes in a place
called Hope, but the spiffy, celebrity-dense resorts of Martha's Vineyard and
Jackson Hole are where he kicks back. Ronald Reagan embodied the
faith-and-family pieties of the front porch and Main Street, but he fled Iowa
for a career and a life in Hollywood. Still, the hunger for the
way Americans believe they are supposed to live is strong, and the distrust of
the intellectual hustler with his airs and his high-flown language runs deep. It
makes sense for the Dole campaign to make this a contest between Dole as the
laconic, quiet man whose words can be trusted and Bill Clinton as the traveling
salesman with a line of smooth patter but a suitcase full of damaged
goods. It makes sense for Dole to make his campaign song Thank God I'm a
Country Boy--even if he is humming it 9,200 m up in a corporate jet on his way
to a Florida condo.
单选题
We learn from the very beginning of the text that politicians and
journalists may feel
A. annoyed.
B. amazed.
C. agonized.
D. agitated.
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】
单选题
We can learn from the text that Americans have a history of
A. undervaluing those of humble origins.
B. paying tribute to native intellectuals.
C. giving impetus to personal pursuits.
D. worshipping their heroes and heroines.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】
单选题
It seems that many people pretend to choose to live a rural life
characterized by
A. leisure and slow tempo.
B. tension and malice.
C. waste and sophistication.
D. virtue and simplicity.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】
单选题
According to the 3th paragraph, "Main Street" is to "fleshpots" as
A. "reliability" is to "illusion".
B. "classics" is to "pops".
C. "modesty" is to "luxury".
D. "ideals" is to "realities".
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】
单选题
It seems that the author is most critical of some politicians'