单选题 How often one hears children wishing they were grown up, and old people wishing they were young again. Each age has its pleasures and its pains, and the happiest person is the one who enjoys what each age gives him without wasting his time in useless regrets.
Childhood is a time when there are few responsibilities to make life difficult. If a child has good parents, he is fed, looked after and loved, whatever he may do. It is impossible that he will ever again in his life be given so much without having to do anything in return. In addition, life is always presenting new things to the child—things that have lost their interest for older people because they are too wellknown. But a child has his pains: he is not so free to do what he wishes to do; he is continually being told not to do things, or being punished for what he has done wrong.
When the young man starts to earn his own living, he can no longer expect others to pay for his food, his clothes, and his room, but has to work if he wants to live comfortably. If he spends most of his time playing about in the way that he used to as a child, he will go hungry. And if he breaks the laws of society as he used to break the laws of his parents, he may go to prison. If, however, he works hard, keeps out of trouble and has good health, he can have the great happiness of building up for himself his own position in society.
单选题 According to Para. 2, the writer thinks that ______.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】文中第二段第一句说：“儿童时期是承担艰辛的生活责任较少的时期。如果一个孩子有好的父母，无论他可能怎么做，他都会得到养育、照看和爱。”由此我们可以看出，生活对一个孩子来说相对容易一些。
单选题 After a child grows up, he ______.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】文中第三段第一句说：“当年轻人开始谋生时，他再也不能期望别人为他购买食物、衣服和房子了。如果他想过得舒服的话，他就不得不工作。”由此可以看出，当一个孩子长大后，他就应该能够照顾自己。
单选题 Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】本题可以通过排除法找到答案。由对上题的理解可知，选项D是文章中陈述的内容，应首先排除；文中第二段第四句说：“……对于年龄大一些的人来说，这些东西已经失去了兴趣，因为他们对此太熟悉了。”选项B的内容文中已涉及，故可排除；文中第三段最后一句说：“然而，如果他工作努力，避免麻烦且有好的身体，那么他就能够在社会中靠着自己的力量为自己建立起幸福美满的根基。”由此我们可以看出，青年人是自由的、完全可以按照自己的意愿生活。因为选项C的内容符合文章内容，可排除。唯有选项A“人们通常对他们的生活很满意”，文中没有提及。
单选题 The main idea of the passage is that ______.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】文中第二段后两句说：“超过60%的受调查者说他们宁愿默默忍受而不愿维护自己的权利。这种事在老年人和受过高等教育的人中间特别多。”所以选项A“教师、工程师和受过良好教育的人”和选项C“老而弱的那些人”，都符合文章内容。故答案应为D。
单选题 The paragraph following the passage will most probably discuss ______.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】本文的内容是围绕主题句展开的。第二段讲孩子的快乐和痛苦；第三段讲青年人的快乐和痛苦。按照主题句展开的逻辑顺序，下一段应该讲的是老年人的快乐和痛苦。故选项C正确。