【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[听力原文] Clowns have existed in different forms for a long time. Researchers have found evidence of downs in ancient Rome, China, and Africa. Their job was to make the ancient rulers laugh. At least one native American group, the Hopi Tribe, also has a tradition involving clown-like characters. Clowns began appearing in the form we recognize today in the 17th century, as a character known as a harlequin. They were common in European theater, and played a character who acted foolish or played tricks. A harlequin wore colorful clothing and covered his face with a mask to protect his identity. Clowns from Europe arrived in North America after England began exporting circuses, with their clowns, other performers and trained animals. Starting in the early 1900s, circus shows were very successful in the United States. Also in the 1960s, McDonald's, the fast-food business, chose a happy clown to appear in its advertisements. Today that company mascot, Ronald McDonald, is world famous. However, the image of a happy clown is largely an American creation. So says Benjamin Radford, who wrote a book called Bad Clowns. In other cultures, he says, the clown character is not necessarily good. In the 18th century, English actor Joseph Grimaldi became famous for playing a clown in theaters. Grimaldi himself was reported to be an alcoholic and suffered from depression. Literature experts say Charles Dickens remembered those qualities when he created a clown character in his book The Pickwick Papers. The character made people laugh, but was sad and lonely when he left the theater. What is the job of clowns in ancient times? 题干问的是古代小丑是干什么的。短文中提到，研究人员在古罗马、中国和非洲发现了小丑存在的证据。小丑的工作就是逗古代的统治者开心。故答案为C(取悦古代统治者)。A项(逗平民百姓开心)与短文内容不符，故排除。B项(表演神圣的祭祀舞蹈)和D项(吓唬坏人)短文中均未提及，故排除。 预读三道题的各个选项，根据选项中的laugh，amuse，clowns，theater，circuses，successful and popular等词可预测，短文内容可能与小丑有关，可能涉及小丑的起源、流行的原因等内容。
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[听力原文] What does the speaker imply by mentioning the example of English actor Joseph Grimaldi? 题干问的是说话者提到英国演员约瑟夫·格里马尔迪的例子是为了说明什么。短文提到，本杰明·拉德福说，快乐小丑的形象很大程度上是由美国人创造出来的，在其他文化中，小丑角色不一定就是好的。文章接着提到约瑟夫·格里马尔迪的例子，是为了呼应拉德福的话，反映小丑不那么积极、欢乐的一面。故答案为D(表明小丑的角色并不一定是好的)。A项(表明小丑大获成功，很受欢迎)虽然短文中有提到，但并不是说话者列举约瑟夫·格里马尔迪这一例子的意图，故排除。B项(说明小丑是一份收入很低的工作)和C项(表明小丑的生活困难艰辛)短文中均未提及，故排除。