Question

Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that things generally turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may be successful at work and in love.

But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example, you may fail to obtain a new job; another chance will come around soon). Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams (砰然關上) in your face. That’s bitter reality.

Now a book has been published which confirms what pessimists (悲觀者) have suspected all along. It’s called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for the things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better.”

So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” And “Don’t count your chickens until they hatch.” To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien, the American comedian says, “Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”

There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.

1.What’s the passage mainly about?

A. A book that has recently been published.

B. How to become successful in life.

C. The dangers of being too optimistic.

D. The benefits of defensive pessimism.

2.The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” (Para. 4) means __________.

A. it’s not a dangerous thing to do

B. it is quite simple to understand

C. the cost is not so high   

D. there is no real proof

3.Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?

A. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

B. The glass is half full not half empty.

C. Whatever will be, will be.

D. Every cloud has a silver lining.

4.The writer would probably describe himself as __________.

A. an optimist            B. a   defeatist           C. a realist                  D. a scientist

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.D

2.B

3.A

4.C

【解析】

試題分析：本文是一篇說明文，說明了防御性悲觀主義的積極力量，防御性悲觀使用一個管理策略的恐懼、焦慮和擔心。防御性悲觀主義者為自己準備設定低的結(jié)果，他們仔細考慮處理這些問題的方法，這給了他們一個控制感

1.主旨大意題。文章在第一段提出了人應該樂觀一點會更好，接著主要討論了要做一個有意識的悲觀者，因為這樣的悲觀者才會對以后的事情做好充分的準備，會有詳細的計劃和安排。那樣才能有更好的結(jié)果。故D正確。

2.推理題。諺語This is not rocket science.中的rocket science指困難的事情，指那些很難以理解的事情。本句話的意思就是指這很好理解，不是那么難以理解的事物。故B正確。

3.推理題。根據(jù)文章倒數(shù)第二段3,4行There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,”說明該諺語就是指那些表示謹慎的諺語，故A項符合那些pessimists (悲觀者）的特點。故A正確。

4.推理題。根據(jù)第二段的最后三句：當上帝關上一扇門的時候，他會為你打開另外一扇門。但是實際上并不是總是如此，說明他對待一切是很現(xiàn)實的。以及文章后幾段的內(nèi)容可在C正確。

考點：考查議論文