Readi

ngCompr
ehens
ionPas
sages

Pas
sage-
1

BornonJ an1 2 ,1863i nanaf flue ntBe ngalifami l

y,Nar endr aNat haDat t
awasa
precoc iousc hildwhowaswhatwec al
lnowaday s,anal l-rounde r,exc el
lingi n
mus i
c ,studie sandat hleti
cs.Hi sf athe rVishwanat haDat tawasawe l
l-known
att
or ne y.Howe v
er,het ookt hes piritual r
out einsteadandi ntroduc edHi nduis mto
thewor ldin1 8 93whe nhes pok eatt heWor ld'sPar li
ame ntof Re l
igi
on( pr obably
oneof themos tepicthingsanyI ndi anhasdoneabr oad!).Thehi stori
cs pe echwas
giv
enonSe pt e mbe r11 ,1893bySwami Vi
v ekananda.  
He re '
st hef ulltextof his
openi ngandc losi
ngaddr ess: SistersandBr ot hersof Amer ica,Itfil
lsmyhe artwith
j
oyuns pe akabl etor iseinres pons et othewar mandc ordial we lcomewhi chy ou
havegi v enus .I t
hanky ouint henameof themos tanc ientor derof monk si nthe
world; Ithanky oui nthenameof themot he rof r
eligions, andI thanky oui nthe
nameof milli
onsandmi l
li
onsof Hindupe opleof allclasse sands e c
ts.
Mythank s
,als o,tos omeof thes pe ak er
sont hisplatformwho, referr
ingt ot he
delegat esfromt heOr ient,hav etol dy out hatt heseme nfr omf ar-
off nationsmay
wellc l
ai mthehonorof bearingt odi ffer
entl andst hei deaof tol er
ation. Iampr oud
tobel ongt oar eli
gionwhi c hhast aughtt hewor l
dbot htol eranc eanduni versal
accept anc e
.
Webe li
e venotonl yinuni vers altol erati
on, butweac ceptal lreli
gionsast rue.Iam

proudt obe longtoanat ionwhi chhass he l

ter
edt hepe rsecutedandt her ef
uge e
s
ofallreli
gionsandal lnationsof theearth.Iampr oudt otellyout hatwehav e
gathe r
e dinourbos omt hepur e str
emnantof t
heI srae
lite
s, whoc amet oSout hern
Indi
aandt ookr ef
ugewi thusi nt heveryyearinwhi chthe i
rholyt emplewas
shatteredt opi ecesbyRomant yranny.Iampr oudt obe l
ongt ot hereli
gi
onwhi c
h
hass helteredandi sstil
lfosteringthere mnantof thegrandZor oastr
iannation.I
willquot etoy ou, brethren, af
e wl i
nesfromahy mnwhi chI re
me mbertohav e
repeate dfrommye ar
liestboy hood, whichiseverydayr epe atedbymi ll
ionsof
humanbe ings :
"Ast hedi ff
erents tr
eamshav i
ngthe i
rsource sindiff
erentpaths
whic hme nt akethroughdi f
ferenttende nci
es,variousthought he yappear,crooked
orstraight, alll
eadt oThe e.
"
Thepr ese ntc onvent i
on, whichi soneof themos taugus tassembl ie
se verheld,i
sin
i
tselfavi
ndi c
ati
on,adecl
arat
iontothewor l
dofthewonderf
uldoctr
inepr
eached
i
nt heGita:"Whosoeve
rcomest ome,throughwhatsoev
erf
orm, I
reachhi
m;all
me nares t
ruggl
ingt
hroughpathswhichintheendleadtome."Sect
ari
ani
sm,
bigotr
y,anditshorr
ibl
edescendant
,fanati
cis
m,havelongposses
sedthi
sbeaut
if
ul
earth.

Q1.WhatwasVi shwanat
haDat
ta’
spr
ofes
sion?
1.
Att
orne y
2.
Spir
ituall
eader
3.
Teacher
4.
Noneof theabove

Q2.Whos pokeattheWor
ld’
sPar
li
amentofRel
igi
on?
1.
NarendraNathDatta
2.
Swami Vivek
ananda
3.
Both
4.
None

3. I
nthephras
e:“Iampr
oudt
obel
ongt
oanat
ion”–whatnat
ioni
sthe
speakerref
err
ingto?
1.I
ndia
2.Sout
hernI
ndia
3.Rome
4.Ameri
ca
Pas
sage2

Operar eferst oadramat icar tform, ori

ginati
ngi nEurope,i
nwhi cht he
emot ionalcont enti
sconv eyedt ot heaudienceasmucht hroughmusi c,both
vocal andinst rumental,
asi tist hroughthely r
ics.Bycontrast
,inmusi cal
theateranact or'
sdramat icper f
or mancei sprimary,andthemusi cplaysa
l
esserr ole.Thedr amai noper aispr esentedusingthepr i
maryel ement sof
theatersuchasscener y
, costumes, andacting.Howev er,
thewor dsoft he
opera, orli
bretto,ar
esungr athert hanspoken.Thesi nger
sareaccompani ed
byamusi cal ensembl erangingf r
om asmal li
nstrumentalensembl et oafull
symphoni cor chestra.

1.I
tispointedouti nthereadingt hatopera-
---
.
A)hasdev el
opedundert hei nfl
uenceofmusi calt
heat
er
B)i
sadr amasungwi t
htheaccompani mentofanorchest
ra
C)i
snotahi gh-budgetproduction
D)i
softenper formedi nEurope
E)i
sthemostcompl exofall t
heper f
ormingarts

2.Wecanunder st andf rom ther eadingt hat----

.
A)peoplear ecapt ivatedmor ebyoper at hanmusi caltheater
B)dramai noperai smor eimpor tantt hant hemusi c
C)orchestrasinoper ascanv aryconsi derablyinsize
D)musi caltheat
err el i
esabov eal lonmusi c
E)thereisargumentov erwhet hert hemusi ci simpor tantorthewor
dsi
n 
 
  
  
  
 opera
3.I
tisst at
edi nther eadingthat- -
--.
A)actingandcost umesar esecondar ytomusi cinmusi calt
heat
er
B)manypeopl efindmusi caltheatermor ecapt i
vat i
ngt hanopera
C)musi cinmusi cal theateri
snotasi mpor tantasi tisinopera
D)anoper
arequi
resahugeorchestr
aaswel
lasal
argechoir
E)oper
adoesn'
thaveanypr
operti
esincommonwi
thmusicaltheat
er

Passage3-
Dol
phi
ns

Dolphinsar eregar dedast hef r

iendliestcr eat ur
esint heseaandst or i
esof
them helpingdr owningsai lorshavebeencommonsi nceRomant imes.The
mor ewel ear naboutdol phins,themor ewer eali
zethattheirsocietyi smore
compl exthanpeopl epreviouslyimagi ned.Theyl ookafterotherdol phins
whent heyar ei ll
,careforpr egnantmot hersandpr otecttheweakesti nthe
communi t
y ,aswedo.Somesci entistshav esuggest edthatdol phinshav ea
l
anguagebuti tismuchmor eprobabl et hatt heycommuni catewi theach
otherwithoutneedi ngwor ds.Couldanyoft hesemammal sbemor e
i
ntell
igentthanman?Cer t
ainlythemostcommonar gumenti nf avorofman' s
superior
ityov ert hem thatwecanki llthem mor eeasi l
ythant heycanki l
lusi
s
theleastsat i
sf actory.Ont hecont rary,themor ewedi scoveraboutt hese
remarkablecr eat ures,thelessweappearsuper i
orwhenwedest royt hem.
1.I
tisclearfrom thepassaget hatdolphi
ns--
--
.
A)don'twantt obewithusasmuchaswewantt obewitht
hem
B)areprovent obelessintell
igentthanoncethought
C)havear eputati
onforbeingf riendl
ytohumans
D)arethemostpower f
ul creaturesthatli
vei
ntheoceans
E)arecapableoflearni
ngal anguageandcommuni cati
ngwithhumans

2.Thefactthatthewrit
erofthepassaget hinkst hatwecanki l
ldolphi
ns
moreeasi l
ythantheycankil
lus- -
--.
A)meanst hattheyarebet
teradapt edtot heirenv ironmentthanwear e
B)showst hatdolphi
nshaveav erysophi sticatedf orm ofcommunicati
on
C)provesthatdolphi
nsarenott hemosti ntell
igentspeciesatsea
D)doesnotmeant hatwearesuper iortot hem
E)provesthatDolphi
nshavelinguisticskill
sf arbey ondwhatwe 
 
  
  
  
 pr
eviousl
ythought

3Onecani nferfr
om thereadi
ngthat--
--.
A)dolphinsar equi
teabundanti
nsomear easoftheworld
B)communi cati
onisthemostfasci
natingaspectofthedolphi
ns
C)dolphinshav eski
ll
sthatnootherl
ivi
ngcr eat
ureshavesuchasthe 
 
  
  
  
 abi
li
tytot hi
nk
D)itisnotusual f
ordolphi
nstocommuni catewitheachother
E)dolphi
nshav esomesocialt
rai
tsthataresimil
artothoseofhumans

Passage4-
Unsi
nkabl
eShi
p
Nav alar
chi
tectsneverclaimt hatashipisunsi nkable,butthesi nkingofthe
passenger-
and-carferryEstoniaintheBalticsurelyshouldhav enev erhave
happened.Itwaswel ldesignedandcar efull
ymai ntained.I
tcar riedtheproper
numberoflifeboat
s.Ithadbeent horoughlyinspectedt hedayofi t
sf at
al
voyage.Yethourslater,t
heEst oniarol
ledov erandsanki nacol d,stormy
night.I
twentdownsoqui cklythatmostoft hoseonboar d, caughti nthei
r
dark,fl
oodi
ngcabins, hadnochancet osav ethemsel ves:Oft hosewho
managedt oscrambl eoverboar
d,only139survi
ved.Therestdi
edof
hypother
miabef oretherescuer
scoul dpl
uckthem fr
om thecol
dsea.The
fi
naldeathtol
lamount edto912soul s.However,
therewereanunpl
easant
numberofquest ionsaboutwhyt heEstoni
asankandwhysomanysur vi
vor
s
weremeni nthepr imeoflif
e,whil
emostoft hedeadwerewomen, chi
ldr
en
andtheelderl
y.

1.Onecanunder standf r
om t hereadi
ngthat- -
--
.
A)thel i
fesavingequi pmentdi dnotworkwel landlif
eboatscoul dnotbe 
 
  
  
  
 l
ower ed
B)designf aultsandi ncompet entcrewcontri
butedtothesi nkingofthe 
 
  
  
  
 Estoniafer r
y
C)139peopl emanagedt oleav et
hevesselbutdiedinfreezingwat er
D)nav alarchitectsclai
medt hattheEst
oniawasunsi nkable
E)mostv i
cti
mswer etrappedi nsi
detheboatast heywer ei
nt heircabi
ns

2.Itisclearf
rom thepassaget hatt
hesur vi
vorsoftheaccident--
--.
A)helpedoneanot hertoov er
comet hetragedythathadaf f
ectedthem 
 
  
  
  
 al
l
B)wer emostlyyoungmenbutwomen, childr
enandt heelderl
ystoodlit
tl
e 
 
  
  
  
 chance
C)helpedsavehundr edsofl i
ves
D)arest i
ll
suff
eri
ngf rom severepost-
tr
aumat icstr
essdisorder
E)toldtheinv
estigat
or snothi
ngabouttheacci dent

3.Accor dingtothepassage,whent heEstoniasank,-

---
.
A)therewer eonl
y139passenger sonboar d
B)fewoft hepassengerswer easl
eep
C)therewer eenoughlif
eboatsforthenumberofpeopl eonboard
D)fasterreact
ionbythecrewcoul dhaveincreasedtheEstoni
a'
s 
 
  
  
  
 chancesofsurviv
al
E)allthepassengershadalreadymov edoutintotheopendecks
Passage5-
Er
osi
oni
nAmer
ica

ErosionofAmer ica'
sfar mlandbywi ndandwat erhasbeenapr oblem since
settl
ersfirstputthepr air
iesandgr asslandsunderthepl owinthenineteenth
century.Byt he1930s, mor ethan282mi ll
ionacresoffarmlandwer e
damagedbyer osion.After40y earsofconser vat
ioneffort
s,soi
lerosi
onhas
acceleratedduet onewdemandspl acedont helandbyheav ycropproduction.
Inthey earsahead, soilerosi
onandt hepol l
uti
onprobl
emsi tcausesarel i
kely
toreplacepet rol
eum scar cit
yast henat i
on'smostcrit
icalnatur
alresource
problem.

1.Asweunder st andf rom ther eading,t

oday ,soi
lerosioninAmer
ica-
--
-.
A)causeshumanst opl acenewdemandsont heland
B)i
swor sethanitwasi ntheni neteenthcentury
C)happenssosl owl ythatitishar dl
ynoticed
D)i
st hemostcr i
ticalproblem thatthenat ionfaces
E)i
swor sei
nar easwhi chhav eal otofpetroleum product
ion

2.Theaut horpoi
ntsoutint hepassaget hater
osi oni
nAmer ica--
--
.
A)hasdamaged282mi l
li
onacr esev ersi
ncesettlersf
ir
stputtheprair
ies 
 
  
  
  
 andgrassl
andsundertheplow
B)hasbeensosev eret
hati thasf or
cedpeopletoabandont heir
 
 
  
  
  
 set
tl
ements
C)occursonlyinar
easwithnov egetat
ion
D)canbecomeamor eseriouspr obl
em inthefuture
E)wasont hedecli
nebefore1930s

3.Itispointedoutint hereadingthati nAmer i

ca---
-.
A)petroleum iscausingheavysoi lerosionandpoll
uti
onprobl
ems
B)heav ycropproduct i
onisnecessar ytomeett hedemandsandt
o 
 
  
  
  
 preventadisaster
C)soilerosionhasbeenhast enedduet otheover
useoffar
mingl
ands
D)wat erisundoubtedlythelargestcauseofer osi
on
E)therearemanyway storeduceer osion
Passage6

Pol i
tical educat ionhasmanyconnot ations.I tmaybedef inedast he
prepar at i
onofaci tizent ot akewel l informed, responsi bleandsust ained
actionf orpar ticipat ioni nt henat i
onal struggl ei nor dert oachi evet he
soci o-economi cobj ect i
v esoft hecount ry .Thepr edomi nantsoci o-economi c
object i
v esi nI ndi aar et heabol itionofpov ertyandt hecr eat ionofamoder n
democr at ic, secul arandsoci ali
stsoci et yinpl aceoft hepr esentt radi ti
onal,
feudal ,hier ar chi cal andi negal itar ianone.
Undert hecol oni al rule, theCongr essl eader sar guedt hatpol i
t i
cal educat ion
wasani mpor t antpar tofeducat ionandr efusedt oacceptt heof ficial vi
ew
thateducat ionandpol iticsshoul dnotbemi xedwi thoneanot her .Butwhen
theycamet opoweri n1947t heyal mostadopt edt heBr itishpol i
cyandbegan
tot alkofeducat ionbei ng  def i
led  bypol i
tics.‘ Handsof feducat i
on’ wast he
call topol iti
cal par t
ies.Buti nspi teofi t,pol i
tical i
nf ilt
rationi ntot he
educat ional sy stem hasgr eat l
yi ncr easedi nt hesenset hatdi fferentpol i
ti
cal
par ti
esv i
ewi theachot hert ocapt ur et hemi ndoft eacher sandst udent s.The
wiseacademi cianswant edpol iti
cal suppor t,wi thoutpol itical interfer ence.
Whatwehav eact ual l
yr ecei vedi si nf initepol i
tical interfer encewi thl i
t t
le
genui nepol itical suppor t .Thi si nter fer encewi tht heeducat i
onal sy st em by
political par tiesf ort heirownul ter iormot ivesi snopol itical educat i
onatal l
andwi tht heal l r
oundgr owt hofel i
tism, itishar dl yamat terf orsur pr iset hat
real pol itical educat ionwi thint heschool sy stem ( whi chr eal l
ymeanst he
creat ionofacommi tmentt osoci al transf or mat ion)hasbeenev enweaker
thani nt hepr e- i
ndependenceper iod.
Dur ingt hatt i
meonl y ,t
hest ruggl ef orf r
eedom camet oanendandt hemaj or
non-f or mal agencyofpol iti
cal educat iondi sappear ed.Thepr esspl ay eda
maj orr olebypr ov idingsomepol iti
cal educat ion.Buti tdi dnotut i
lizet he
oppor tuni tyt ot hef ul landt hest rangl ehol dofv est edi nter est scont inuedt o
domi nat ei t
.Thesamecanbesai dofpol iti
cal par tiesaswel l asofot her
i
nst itutionsandagenci esout sidet heschool sy stem whi chcanbeexpect edt o
prov idepol i
t i
cal educat ion.Af teranal yzingal ltheset hings, itappear sthatwe
hav emadenopr ogressi ngenui nepol it
ical educat ioni nt hepost -
educat i
on
per i
odandhav eev ensl idedbacki nsomer espect s.Fori nst ance, the
educat ionsy st em hasbecomeev enmor eel ite-or iented.Pat riot i
sm has
becomet hef irstcasual ty .Thef at heroft henat iongav eust hecour aget o
opposegov er nmentwheni twaswr ong, i
nadi sci plinedf ashi onandonbasi c
princi ples.Today ,wehav eev enl ostt hecour aget of i
ghtonbasi ci ssuesi na
disci pli
nedmannerbecauseagi tat ional andanar chi cpol iticsf orindi vidual,
grouporpar t yaggr andi zementhasbecomecommon.I nt her ecentt imest he
 educati
onsystem continuestosuppor tdominati
onoft hepr i
vil
egedgr oups
anddomest i
cati
onoft heunder -pri
vi
legedones.Thesi tuati
onwi l
l notchange
unlesswetakev i
gorousst epstoprovidegenuinepoli
ticaleducat iononan
adequatescal
e.Thisisoneoft hemaj oreducati
onalr
ef ormsweneed, andif
i
tisnotcarri
edout,mer elinearexpansionoftheexist
ingsy stem off or
mal
educati
onwillonl
ysuppor tthestatusquoand  hamper radical social
tr
ansformati
on.

1.Whichwor
disnear
lyopposi
tei
nmeani
ngas 
“def
il
e” 
asusedi
nthe
passage?

A.Di
spar
age
B.f
orger
y
C.degener
ate
D.Sanct
if
y

2.Accordi
ngt
othepassage,
whatshoul
dbet
hemai
npur
poseofpol
it
ical
educati
on?

A.Tochampi
ont
hecauseofel
i
tism
B.Tobr
ingqual
i
tat
ivechangei
ntheent
ir
eeducat
ionsy
stem
C.Tocr
eat
eanegal
i
tar
iansoci
ety
D.Topr
epar
ethey
ounggener
ati
onwi
thhi
ghi
ntel
l
ect
ual
acumen

3.Howhaspolit
icsbeenr
elat
edt
oeducat
ionali
nst
it
uti
onsaf
ter
i
ndependence?

A.Al
thought
heygotpol
i
tical
suppor
tbutt
her
ewasnoi
nter
fer
enceofpol
i
tics.
B.I
tiscl
eart
hatt
heygotal
mostnopol
i
tical
suppor
taswel
laspol
i
tical
i
nter
fer
ence.
C.Theygotpol
i
tical
suppor
tatt
hecostofpol
i
tical
int
erf
erence.
D.Ther
ewassubst
ant
ial
int
erf
erencewi
thoutpol
i
tical
suppor
t.

Passage7
 Af actt hatdr awsourat t entioni sthat,accordingt ohispositioninl i
fe, an
extravagantmani sei t
heradmi redorloat hed.Asuccessf ulbusinessman
doesnot hingt oi ncreasehi spopul ari
tybybei ngpr udentwithhismoney .A
personwhoi sweal thyisexpect edtoleadal uxuriouslif
eandt obel av ishwi t
h
hishospi tali
ty .Ifhei snotso, heisconsi deredmean, andhisr eputat i
oni n
businessmayev ensuf ferinconsequence.The  paradox remainst hathehad
notbeencar eful withhismoneyi nthef ir
stplace; hewoul dnev erhav e
achiev edhi spr esentweal th.
Amongt hel owi ncomegr oup, adiff
erentsetofv aluesexists.They oungcl erk,
whomakeshi swi feapr esentofanewdr esswhenhehasnotpai dhi shouse
rent,iscondemnedasext rav agant.Car eful
nesswi thmoneyt ot hepoi ntof
meannessi sappl audedasav irt
ue.Not hinginhi slif
eisconsi deredmor e
wor thyt hanpay inghisbi ll
s.Thei dealwi feforsuchamansepar atesher
housekeepi ngmoneyi nt ojoy lesslit
tl
epi les–somuchf orrent,forfood, f
or
thechi ldren’ sshoes, shei sabl etofacet hemi l
kmanwi t
h equani mity ev ery,
mont hsat isfiedwi t
hhereconomi zingway s,andnev erknowst hegui l
tof
buy i
ngsomet hingshecan’ tr eall
yaf f
ord.
Asf ormy self,If al
lneitheroft hesecat egor i
es.IfIhav emoneyt ospar eIcan
beext rav agant ,butwhen, asi susuallythecase, Iam hardupandt henIam
themeanestmani magi nable.

1.
Whi
choft
hef
oll
owi
ngwoul
dbet
hemostappr
opr
iat
eti
tl
efort
hepassage:

A.Bei
ngext
rav
aganti
sal
way
scondemnabl
e.
B.Thecauseofpov
ert
yisext
rav
agance.
C.Ext
rav
agancei
sapar
toft
her
ichaswel
lasoft
hepoor
.
D.St
ingyhabi
tsoft
hepoor
.

2.Accor
dingtot
hepassaget
heper
son,
whoi
sasuccessf
ulbusi
nessman
andwealthy

A.I
sexpect
edt
ohav
elav
ishl
i
fest
yle.
B.Shoul
dnotbot
heraboutpopul
ari
ty.
C.I
smor
epopul
ari
fheappear
stobewast
ingawayhi
sti
me.
D.Mustbeext
rav
agantbef
oreachi
evi
ngsuccess.

3.
Thephr
ase‘
lav
ishwi
thhi
shospi
tal
it
y’i
nthet
hir
dsent
enceoft
hef
ir
st
par
agr
aphmeans

A.Thought
ful
inspendi
ngonl
yonguest
sandst
ranger
s.
B.Unconcer
nedi
ntr
eat
inghi
sfr
iendsandr
elat
ives.
C.St
ingi
nessi
ndeal
i
ngwi
thhi
srel
ati
ves.
D.Ext
rav
agancei
nent
ert
aini
ngguest
.

Passage8
Ifaper sonsuddenl yencount ersanyt erri
bledanger , t
hechangeofnat ureone
under goesi sequal lygreat .Somet i
mesf earnumbsoursenses.Li keani mal s,
onest andsst il
l,
power l
esst omov east epi nfri
ghtort oli
ftahandi ndefense
ofourl ives,andsomet i
mesonei sseizedwi t
hpani c,andagai n, actmor el i
ke
thei nf
eriorani malst hanr ational bei
ngs.Ont heot herhand, frequent l
yin
casesofsuddenext remeper il
,whichcannotbeescapedbyf light,andmust
bei nstantlyfaced, event hemostt i
mi dmenatonceasi fbymi racle,become
possessedoft henecessar ycour age,shar pquickappr ehensionandswi ft
decision.Thi sisami raclev er ycommoni nnature.Manandt hei nferi
or
animal salike, whenconf ront edwi t
hal mostcer tai
ndeat h‘ gatherr esolution
from despai r’butther ecanr eallybenot raceofsodebi l
i
tatingaf eeli
ngi nthe
personf ighting,orpr eparedt of i
ghtfordearl if
e.Atsucht i
mest hemi ndis
clearerthani thasev erbeen; thener v
esar esteel,
ther eisnot hi ngfeltbuta
wonder f
ul st
r engthanddar i
ng.Looki ngbackatcer tai
nper ilousmoment sin
myownl ife,
Ir emembert hem wi thaki ndofj oy,nott hatther ewasanyj oy f
ul
excitementt hen, butbecauset heybroadenedmyhor izon,lif
tedmef orat ime
abov emy self.

1.Thet
it
let
hatbestsui
tst
hepassagewoul
dbe:
-

A.TheWi
l
ltoFi
ght
B.TheMi
racl
eofConf
ront
ingDanger
C.TheChangeofNat
ure
D.Cour
ageandPani
c
2.Amanmayreactt
osuddendangeri
nthr
eedi
ff
erentway
s.Whatar
ethey
?

A.Hemayf
leei
npani
c,orf
ightbackorst
andst
il
l.
B.Hemaybepar
aly
zedwi
thf
ear
,sei
zedwi
thpani
coractl
i
keani
nfer
iorani
mal
.
C.Hemaybepar
aly
zedwi
thf
ear
,orsei
zedwi
thpani
c,orasi
fbymi
racl
e,
becomepossessedoft
henecessar
ycour
age,
andf
acet
hedanger
.
D.Hemaybepar
aly
zedwi
thf
ear
,runawayorf
ight
.

3.Whati
sthemeani
ngoft
hewor
ddebi
li
tat
ing?

A.enf
eebl
e
B.st
rengt
hen
C.debase
D.t
hri
vi
ng
Passage9
Ont hesur
face, theconquestoft heAzt ecempi rebyHer manCor tesisoneof
themostamazi ngmi l
i
taryaccompl i
shment sinhi st
ory.Wi t
hasmal lfighti
ng
forcenumberingi nthehundr eds,Cort
esl edtheSpani shexplorersint
ov i
ctor
y
againstanAzt ecpopul at
iont hatmanybel i
evet opped21mi ll
ion.Inlightof
suchaseemi nglyi mpossi blevict
ory,t
heobv i
ousquest i
oni s:howdi dasmal l
groupoff oreignf ightersmanaget ot oppl
eoneoft hewor ld'
sst rongest,
wealthi
est
,andmostsuccessf ulmil
it
aryempi res?
Sever alfactorsledt oCortes'success.Fi r
st,theSpanishexpl oit
edanimosity
towar dtheAzt ecsamongr i
valgroupsandconv incedthousandsofl ocalsto
fi
ght.I noneaccountofabat tl
e,itisr ecordedthatatl east200,000nat i
ves
foughtwi t
hCor t
es.Next,t
heSpani shpossessedsuper i
ormi li
taryequipment
i
nt hef orm ofEur opeancannons,guns,andcr ossbows,l eadingtoef f
ecti
ve
and ef fi
cientdi sposalofAzt ecdef enses.Forexampl e,Spani sh cannons
quicklydef eatedlargeAztecwal lst hathadpr otectedtheempi r
eagainstbig
andl esst echnical
lyadvancedar mies.
Despitet heSpanishadv antages,theAztecsprobablycouldhavesucceeded
i
n def endi ng t
heircapitalcity ofTenochtitl
an had they l
everaged thei
r
i
ncrediblepopul at
ionbaset oincreasetheirarmy'
ssizeandensur edt hatno
rogueci tieswouldal l
ywi thCortes.Inordert oaccomplishthi
sl atergoal,
Aztecl eaderMot ecuhzomaneeded t o send envoysto neighbori
ng citi
es
tel
li
ng t heirinhabit
ants aboutt he hor
rors ofSpanish conquestand t he
i
nev i
tabili
tyofSpanishbetrayal
.
Inadditi
on,t heAztecsshoul dhav eexploitedt hef actt hatt hebat t
lewas
takingplaceont hei
rterr
itory
.Nor easonexistedf ort heAzt ecstoconsentt o
aconv entionalbattl
e,whi chheav i
lyfavor
edt heSpani sh.Mot ecuhzoma' s
forcesshouldhav ethoughtout sidetheboxandal l
owedCor tesintotheci ty
,
onlytosubsequent l
yusehundr edsoft housandsoff ighterstopr eventescape
andpr oceedi nsurpri
se" door-
to-door"combat .Witht hist ypeofbat tl
e,t he
Aztecs woul d havel argelythwar t
ed Spani sh technol ogicalsupr emacy .
Howev er,int heend,t hesuper i
orweaponr yoft heSpani sh,t hepent-up
resentmentofAzt ecriv
als,thef ail
ureofAztecdi plomacy ,andt helackofan
unconventionalAztecwarpl anl edt ooneoft hemostsur pri
singmi l
itary
outcomesi nthepastonet housandy ear
s.
1.Whi
chofthefol
lowi
ngbestchar
act
eri
zest
hemai
npoi
ntt
heaut
hori
str
ying
toconveyi
nthepassage?

A.
Azt
ecf
ail
uret
ofi
ghtanunconv
ent
ional
warl
edt
oanunnecessar
ydef
eat

BSpanishv
ict
orywasnei
therasi
mpr
essi
venorassur
pri
singasi
tmayf
ir
st
appear

CResent
mentt
owar
dtheAzt
ecsl
edt
othei
rdemi
se

2.
Theauthori
mpli
eswhichofthefol
lowi
ngabouttheAzt
ecv
iewt
owar
dan
unconv
enti
onalmi
li
tar
yconfr
ontat
ionoftheSpani
sh?

A.
TheAzt
ecsdi
dnotconsi
deri
t

B TheAztecsconsi
der
edi
t,butr
eject
edi
toutofbel
i
efsabouthowbat
tl
es
oughtt
obefought
.

CTheAzt
ecsf
eltt
hegeogr
aphyofTenocht
it
landi
dnotf
avort
hisst
rat
egy

Passage10

Ifel
tthewal lofthetunnelshiv
e r
.Themas teral ar
ms queale
dthroughmy
earphones .Al
mos tsi
mul t
aneous l
y,Jac kye lleddownt omet hatther
ewasa
warninglighton. F
leeti
ngbuts pectaculars ight ss
nappedintoansoutof vi
ew,t
he
snow, theshowe rofdebri
s,themoon, loomi ngc l
oseandbig,t
hedaz zl
ing
sunshineforonc eunfi
lte
redbyl ayersof air.Thel astt
we l
vehoursbeforere-
ent
ry
werepar ti
cularbone-chi
ll
ing.Duringthi spe riod,Ihadtogoupi ntocommand
modul e.Evenafterthefi
eryre-entrysplashi ngdowni n8 1o 
waterinsouthpaci
fi
c,
wec oulds t
ill
seeourfrostybreathinsidet hec ommandmodul e.

1.

Theword'CommandModul
e'usedt
wicei
nthegi
venpassagei
ndi
cat
es
per
hapsthati
tdeal
swi
th
A.anal
armi
ngj
our
ney

B. acommandi
ngsi
tuat
ion

C.aj
our
neyi
ntoout
erspace

D.af
ri
ght
ful
bat
tl
e

2.

Whi
choneofthefol
lowi
ngr
easonswoul
doneconsi
derasmor
easpossi
ble
f
ort
hewarni
nglight
stobeon?

A.Ther
ewasashowerofdebr
is.

B. Jackwasy
ell
i
ng.

C.Acat
ast
rophewasi
mmi
nent
.

D.Themoonwasl
oomi
ngcl
oseandbi
g

3.

Thest
atementt
hatt
hedazzl
i
ngsunshi
newas"
foronceunf
il
ter
edbyl
ayer
sof
ai
r"means

A.t
hatt
hesunwasv
eryhot

B. t
hatt
her
ewasnost
rongwi
nd

C.t
hatt
heai
rwasunpol
l
uted

D.noneofabov
e

Passage11

ButIdidnotwanttoshoottheelephant.Iwatchedhim beat
inghisbunchof
grassagainsthi
sknees,wit
hthepreoccupiedgrandmotherl
y 
airt
hatelephant
s
have.I
tseemedt omet hati
twouldbemur dertoshoothim.Ihadnevershot
anelephantandneverwantedto.(Somehowi talwaysseemswor setokill
l
argeanimal.
)Besides,t
herewasthebeast'
sownertobeconsi der
ed.ButI
hadgottoactquickly
.Itur
nedtosomeexper i
enced-
lookingBur manswho
hadbeentherewhenwear riv
ed,andaskedthem howt heelephantshadbeen
behav
ing.Theyal
l sai
dthesamet hi
ng;hetooknonot i
ceofy ouifyoulef
thi
m
al
one,buthemightchargeifyouwenttooclosetohi
m.

1.Thephr
ase'
Preoccupi
edgr
andmot
her
lyai
r'si
gni
fi
es

A.bei
ngt
otal
l
yunconcer
ned

B. pr
etendi
ngt
obev
erybusy

C.av
erysuper
iorat
ti
tude

D.cal
m,di
gni
fi
edandaf
fect
ionat
edi
sposi
ti
on

2.

Fr
om t
hepassagei
tappear
sthatt
heaut
horwas

A.ani
nexper
iencedhunt
er

B. ki
ndandconsi
der
ate

C.possessedwi
thf
ear

D.awor
ri
edman

3.

Theaut
hordi
dnotwantt
oshoott
heel
ephantbecausehe

A.wasaf
rai
dofi
t

B. di
dnothav
etheexper
ienceofshoot
ingbi
gani
mal
s

C.di
dnotwi
sht
oki
l
lani
mal
whi
chwasnotdoi
ngany
bodyanyhar
m

D.di
dnotf
indt
heel
ephantt
obef
eroci
ous
Passage12

Mahat maGandhi beli

ev edt hati
ndustr
iali
sationwasnoanswert othe
problemst hatplaguet hemassofI ndi
a'spoorandt hatvi
ll
ager
sshouldbe
taughttobesel f-suffi
ci entinfood,weavet heirowncl ot
hfrom cot
tonand
eschewt heglitt
er i
ngpr izesthatt
he20t h 
cent urysotemptingl
yoffer
s.Such
anidy l
l
icandr ural paradi sedidnotappeart othosewhoi nheri
tedtherei
nsof
poli
ti
cal power.

1.

Themeani
ngof'
gl
it
ter
ingpr
izest
hatt
he20t
h cent
urysot
empt
ingl
yof
fer
sis

A.pur
sui
tofacommer
cial
i
sedmat
eri
alcul
tur
e

B. r
epl
acementofr
ural
byur
bani
nter
est
s

C.compl
eter
emov
alofpov
ert
y

D.absenceofv
iol
enceandcor
rupt
ion

2.

Thebasi
sof'
ani
dyl
l
icandr
ural
par
adi
se'
is

A.r
api
dindust
ri
ali
sat
ionofv
il
lages

B. sel
fsuf
fi
ciencyi
nfoodcl
othesandsi
mpl
i
cit
yoft
hel
i
fest
yle

C.br
ingi
ngt
othev
il
lagest
hegl
i
tter
ingpr
izesoft
he20t
h cent
ury

D.suppor
ti
ngt
hosehol
dingspower
ful
pol
i
tical
posi
ti
ons
3.

Whichoneoft
hef
oll
owi
ngbesti
l
lust
rat
est
her
elat
ionshi
pbet
weent
he
phr
ases:
 

(
i)'
eschewt
hegl
i
tter
ingpr
izes'
and 

(
ii
)'i
dyl
l
icandr
ural
par
adi
se'
?

A.unl
essy
oudo(
i)
,youcannothav
e(i
i
)

B. (
i)and(
ii
)ar
eident
ical
inmeani
ng

C.f
ir
stofal
lyoumusthav
e(i
i
)inor
dert
odo(
i)

D.t
hemeani
ngof(
i)i
sdi
rect
lyopposi
tet
o(i
i
)

Passage 13

Harol dapr ofessionalmanwhohadwor kedi nanof f

iceformanyy ear
shada
fearfuldream.I nit,hefoundhi msel finalandwher esmal lslug-
li
keanimals
withsl i
myt entaclesl i
vedonpeopl e'sbodi es.Thepeopl etolerat
edt he
l
oat hsomecr eaturesbecauseaf t
ermanyy earstheygrewi ntoelephants
whicht henbecamet henation'ssy stem oft r
ansport,carr
yingev ery
one
wher everhewant edt ogo.Har oldsuddenl yrealisedthathehi mselfwas
cover edwi t
ht heset hi
ngs,andhewokeupscr eaming.Inav ivi
dsequenceof
picturest hi
sdr eam dramatisedf orHar oldwhathehadnev erbeenabl etoput
i
nt owor ds;hesawhi mselfasl ett
ingsoci etyfeedonhi sbodyi nhisearl
y
yearssot hatitwoul dcarr
yhi m whenher et i
red.Helaterthrewof fthe
"secur i
tybug"andt ookupf reel
ancewor k.

1.

I
nhi
sdr
eam Har
oldf
oundt
hel
oat
hsomecr
eat
ures

A.i
nhi
svi
l
lage

B. i
nhi
sownhouse

C.i
nadi
ff
erentl
and

D.i
nhi
sof
fi
ce
2.
Whichoneoft
hefol
l
owingphrasesbesthel
pst
obr
ingoutt
hepr
eci
se
meani
ngof'l
oat
hsomecr
eatur
es'?

A.Secur
it
ybugandsl
i
myt
ent
acl
es

B. Fear
ful
dream andsl
ug-
li
keani
mal
s

C.Sl
i
myt
ent
acl
esandsl
ug-
li
keani
mal
s

D.sl
ug-
li
keani
mal
sandsecur
it
ybug

3.

Thest
atementt
hat'
hel
atert
hrewof
fthesecur
it
ybug'
meanst
hat

A.Har
oldsucceededi
nov
ercomi
ngt
heneedf
orsecur
it
y

B. Har
oldst
oppedgi
vi
ngmuchi
mpor
tancet
odr
eams

C.Har
oldst
art
edt
oler
ati
ngsoci
alv
ict
imi
sat
ion

D.Har
oldki
l
ledal
lthebugst
roubl
edhi
m

Passage14

Lawsofnatur
earenotcommandsbutst atementsofacts.Theuseoft he
word"l
aw"inthi
scontexti
srat
herunfort
unate.I
twouldbebettertospeakof
uni
formi
tiesi
nnatur
e.Thiswoulddoawaywi tht
heelementaryfal
lacythata
l
awi mpl
iesalawgiver
.Ifapi
eceofmat t
erdoesnotobeyal awofnat ureiti
s
puni
shed.Onthecontr
ary,wesaythatt
helawhasbeeni ncorr
ectl
ystarted.

1.

I
fapi
eceofmat
terv
iol
atesnat
ure'
slaw,
iti
snotpuni
shedbecause
A.i
tisnotbi
ndi
ngt
oobeyi
t

B. t
her
eisnosuper
iorbei
ngt
oenf
orcet
hel
awofnat
ure

C.i
tcannotbepuni
shed

D.i
tsi
mpl
ymeanst
hatt
hef
act
shav
enotbeencor
rect
lyst
atedbyl
aw

2.

Lawsofnat
uredi
ff
erf
rom man-
madel
awsbecause

A.t
hef
ormerst
atef
act
sofNat
ure

B. t
heymustbeobey
ed

C.t
heyar
enat
ural

D.unl
i
kehumanl
aws,
theyar
esy
stemat
ic

3.

Thel
awsofnat
urebasedonobser
vat
ionar
e

A.concl
usi
onaboutt
henat
ureoft
heuni
ver
se.

B. t
rueandunf
alsi
fi
abl
e.

C.f
igment
soft
heobser
veri
magi
nat
ion.

D.subj
ectt
ochangei
nthel
i
ghtofnewf
act
s.

Passage15

Malelionsareratherret
icentaboutexpandingt
hei
renergyinhuntingmore
thanthreequartersofki
llsaremadebyl i
onessesarei
nf r
ont,t
ensely
scanningahead, t
hecubsl agplayf
ull
ybehindandthemalesbringupt her
ear,
walki
ngsl owl
y,theirmassiveheadsnoddingwitheachstepasiftheywere
boredwi t
hthewhol emat ter
.Butslot
hful
nessmayhav esurvi
valvalue.Wi
th
l
i
onessesbusyhunti
ng,t
hemal esf
unct
ionasguar
dfort
hecubs,
prot
ect
ing
t
hem par
ti
cular
lyf
rom hyenas.

1.

Accor
dingt
othepassagemal
eli
onsgener
all
ydonotgof
orhunt
ingsbecause

A.t
heydonnotl
i
kei
t.

B. t
heywantl
i
onesst
ogett
rai
ning

C.t
heywi
sht
osav
ethei
rvi
gourf
orot
hert
hings

D.t
heyar
ever
ylazy

2.

Mal
eli
onspr
otectt
hei
rcubs

A.f
rom t
hemember
soft
hei
rownspeci
es

B. f
rom hy
enasonl
y

C.f
rom hy
enasasmuchasf
rom ot
herenemi
es

D.mor
efr
om hy
enast
hanf
rom ot
herani
mal
s

3.

Li
onessgof
orhunt
ing

A.al
lal
one

B. wi
tht
hei
rmal
epar
tner
sonl
y

C.wi
tht
hei
rcubsandmal
epar
tner
s

D.wi
tht
hei
rcubsonl
y