阅读技巧训练（二）

　　（一）

　　When a group of children politely stop a conversation with you， saying： “We have to go to work now， ”you‘re left feeling surprised and certainly uneasy. After all， this is the 1990s and the idea of children working is just unthinkable. That is， until you are told that they are all pupils of stage schools， and that the “work”they go off to is to go on the stage in a theatre.

　　Stage schools often act as agencies（代理机构）to supply children for stage and television work. More worthy of the name“stage school”are those few places where children attend full time， with a training for the theatre and a general education.

　　A visit to such schools will leave you in no doubt that the children enjoy themselves. After all， what lively children wouldn‘t settle for spending only half the day doing ordinary school work， and acting， singing or dancing their way through the other half of the day？

　　Then of course there are times for the children to make a name and make a little money in some big shows. Some stage schools give their children too much professional work at such a young age. But the law is very tight on the amount they can do. Those under 13 are limited to 40 days in the year； those over 13 do 80 days.

　　The schools themselves admit that not all children will be successful in the profession for which they are being trained. So what happens to those who don‘t make it？ while all the leading schools say they place great importance on children getting good study results， the facts seem to suggest this is not always the case.

　　1. People would stop feeling uneasy when realizing that the children they‘re talking to _____.

　　A. attend a stage school

　　B. are going to the theatre

　　C. have got some work to do

　　D. love singing and dancing

　　2. In the writer‘s opinion， a good stage school should ______.

　　A. produce star performers

　　B. help pupils improve their study skills

　　C. train pupils in language and performing arts

　　D. provide a general education and stage training

　　3. “Professional work”as used in the text means _______.

　　A. ordinary school work

　　B. money-making performances

　　C. stage training at school

　　D. acting， singing or dancing after class

　　4. Which of the following best describes how the writer feels about stage schools？ _______

　　A. He thinks highly of what they have to offer.

　　B. He favours an early start in the training of performing arts.

　　C. He feels uncomfortable about children putting on night shows.

　　D. He doubts the standard of ordinary education they have reached.

　　［译文］

　　当一帮孩子停止跟你谈话，很有礼貌地说：“我们要去工作了”的时候你会感到惊奇、不安，这毕竟是20世纪90年代，孩子们工作的想法还是不可思议的。确实不可思议，但当你听说他们是戏校的学生时，你就不再这样想了。他们要去干的“工作”就是要走上舞台。

　　戏校常常是一个代理机构，它给孩子们提供舞台和电视教学，更能配得上“戏校”这个称谓的是那些孩子们能够全天使用的一些地方，或者进行戏剧排练，或者上普通文化课程。

　　如果你到这些学校去参观，你就会毫不怀疑地发现孩子们在这里很快乐，毕竟，半天的时间上普通文化课，半天的时间表演、唱歌或者跳舞，还有什么样的活泼的孩子不会为此而安心呢？

　　当然有时孩子们也想在大型演出中出名或挣钱，某些戏校让孩子们在幼小的年龄阶段演太多的戏，法律对演戏的多少有严格控制，13岁以下的孩子一年中演戏的时间不能超过40天，13岁以下的孩子80天。

　　学校也承认并不是所有的孩子在他们的训练专业上都会成功，这样那些专业不成功的人怎么办呢？虽然所有重点戏校都说他们非常重视学生的学习质量，事实好象表明并不总是那样。

　　（二）

　　Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman. A man goes shopping because he needs something. He knows what he wants， and his purpose is to find it and buy it， the price is a less important consideration. All men simply walk into a shop and ask the assistant for what they want. If the shop has it， the salesman immediately produces it， and the business of trying it on is done at once. All being well， the bargain（交易）can be and often is completed in less than five minutes， with hardly any chat and to everyone‘s satisfaction.

　　For a man， slight problems may begin when the shop does not have what he wants. Then the salesman tries to sell the customer（顾客）something else-he offers the nearest he can to the thing required. He usually says， “I know this jacket is not the style（式样）you want， sir， but would you like to try it on for size？ It happens to be the color you wanted. ”Few men have patience with this treatment， and the usual reply is： “This is the right colour and may be the right size， but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on. ”

　　Now how does a woman go about buying clothes？ She does so in the opposite way. She has never fully made up her mind what she wants， and she is only “having a look round”。 She is always open to persuasion， indeed she considers of great importance what the saleswoman tells her， even what her friends tell her. She will try on any number of things. Highest in her mind is the thought of finding something that everyone thinks suits her. Most women have an excellent sense（判断力）of value when they but clothes. They are always trying to find an unexpected bargain. Faced with a roomful of dresses， a woman may easily spend an hour going from one counter（柜台）to another before selecting the dresses she wants to try on. It takes a great deal of time but gives great joy. Most dress shops supply chairs for the waiting husbands.

　　1. When a man is buying clothes， he ______.

　　A. puts price before quality

　　B. chooses things that others think suitable for him

　　C. does not mind much the price he has to pay for the right things

　　D. buys good quality things， so long as they do not cost too much

　　2. From the passage， we know that in shopping for a jacket ______.

　　A. men like their jackets to be bigger than their size

　　B. most men can tell whether it is the right size for them

　　C. men make sure it fits them before buying it

　　D. men don‘t worry whether the clothes fit well or not so long as it is the right colour

　　3. When a man cannot get what he wants， he ______.

　　A. buys something of the same colour in a slightly different style

　　B. usually does not buy anything

　　C. will try on some other clothes of the same style

　　D. wastes no time in buying something else

　　4. What does the passage tell us about women shoppers for clothes？

　　A. They welcome suggestions from anyone.

　　B. Women seldom consider buying cheap clothes.

　　C. Women often buy things without thinking.

　　D. They listen to advice but never take it.

　　5. The most obvious difference between men and women shoppers is ______.

　　A. that men do not try clothes on in a shop while women do

　　B. that women bargain for their clothes and men don‘t

　　C. that women do their shopping standing up but men do theirs sitting down

　　D. the time they take over buying clothes

　　［译文］

　　男女对于选购衣物的体验绝对不同。男人去购物是因为需要。他的目的就是找到需要的东西并买下它。至于价格却是次要的。他们走进商店后就径直走向售货员询问他们所需要的东西。如果商店里有，售货员会立刻出示给他们，而他们也会毫不耽搁地试穿，如果合适，交易会马上结束。前后时间不会超过5分钟。绝没有额外的聊天而且皆大欢喜。

　　对一个男人来说，问题可能出在商店里没有他们需要的东西。此时，售货员会尽力推荐给他们一些另外的东西，一些最接近他们所需要的东西。他通常会说：“我明白这个夹克衫不是你想要的式样，但是你愿意试试大小吗？这件颜色正好是你喜欢的。”几乎没有一个男人会耐心应付这个提议，而通常的答案是：“这件衣服颜色合适，也许大小也合适，但是我不想浪费你我的时间来试穿这个。”

　　现在我们来看看女人们是如何买衣服的。答案正好相反。她从来没有下了决心的时候，她会说：“只是转转看看。”她总是广纳善言，事实上，她总认为售货员所说的话是非常重要的。尤其是她的朋友的意见对她更加重要。各种型号的衣服她都不放过试穿的机会。她的最高理想是找到一件大家都称好的衣服。多数妇女都能很好地判断所买衣服的价值。她们总是致力于找到一个意想不到的便宜价格。面对一屋子的衣服，她会轻易地花上一小时的时间一个柜台一个柜台地看，然后才想到要试穿她所选好的衣服。这个过程很费时间，但是却给她们带来极大的乐趣。大多数商店设有专门的椅子供等待的丈夫们使用。