2021年襄阳市第四中学高三英语上学期期中试题及答案第一部分阅读（共两节，满分40分）第一节（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳选项AIn his 402nd anniversary year, Shakespeare is still rightly celebrated as a great language master and writer. But he was not the only great master of play writing to die in 1616, and he is certainly not the only writer to have left a lasting influence on theater.While less known worldwide, Tang Xianzu is considered one of Chinas greatest playwrights and is highly spoken of in that country of ancient literary and dramatic traditions.Tang was born in 1550 inLinchuan,Jiangxiprovince. Unlike Shakespeare's large body of plays,poems and sonnets (十四行诗), Tang wrote only four major plays: The Purple Hairpin, Peony Pavilion (《牡丹亭》), A Dream under the Southern bough, and Dream of Handan. The latter three were constructed around a dream narrative, a way through which Tang unlocked the emotional dimension of human desires and ambitions and explored human nature beyond the social and political limits of that time.Similar to Shakespeare, Tang's success rode the wave of a renaissance (复兴) in theater as an artistic practice. As in Shakespeare'sEngland, Tang's works became hugely popular inChinatoo. During Tang'sChina, his plays were enjoyed performed, and changed. Kunqu Opera, a form of musical drama, spread from southernChinato the whole nation and became a symbol of Chinese culture. Combining northern tune and southern music, kunqu Opera was known for its poetic language, music, dance movements and gestures. Tang's works benefited greatly from the popularity of kunqu Opera, and his plays are considered classics of kunqu Opera.While Tang and Shakespeare lived in a world away from each other, there are many things they share in common, such e humanity of their drama, their heroic figures, their love for poetic language, a lasting popularity and the anniversary during which we still celebrate them.1. Why is Shakespeare mentioned in the first paragraph?A. To describe Shakespeare's anniversary.B. To introduce the existence of Tang Xianzu.C. To explain the importance of Shakespeare.D. To suggest the less popularity of Tang Xianzu.2. What's possibly one of the main theme of Tang's works?A. Social reality.B. Female dreams.C. Human emotions.D. Political environment.3. What does the author mainly tell us in Paragraph 4?A. The influence of Kunqu Opera on Tang's works.B. Tang's success in copying Shakespeare's styles.C. The way Kunqu Opera became a symbol of Chinese culture.D. Tang's popularity for his poetic language and music.BIvy League schools are considered to be the most prestigious of all colleges in the United States. These schools are primarily located in the Northeastern part of the country. There are eight total colleges that are considered to be Ivy League. These schools are Brown, Harvard, Cornell, Princeton, Dartmouth, Yale, and Columbia universities and the University of Pennsylvania. Of all institutions of higher learning, these elite schools are considered to be the most outstanding and the most sought-after in terms of acceptance and graduation.The term “Ivy League” came about in 1954 when the NCAA athletic conference for Division I was formed. At the time, the elitism of these schools was really due to their prestige in the realm of sports like basketball. Although the term “Ivy League” was not created until the 1950s, many of these schools were in existence as far back as 1636, when John Harvard became the first benefactor of Harvard University.Although this group of elite schools is considered to be part of one big league of the elite, there have been plenty of internal rivalries over the years. The sports that these colleges play were so popular that some teams began playing games in New York City so spectators could come from far away and watch the games. The popularity of both the athletes who played and the college team rivalries brought in a good deal of attention to the schools as well as revenue from ticket sales. There have also been academic rivalries between schools. Mostly, these rivalries are a matter of opinion in terms of which school has the most honor graduates, which schools offer the most prestigious scholarships, and what famous graduates have come from each school.Each Ivy League college has its own unique accomplishments that make it important. All carry a certain reputation with them, and each school has programs that excel primarily in the medical and law fields, making them some of the most sought-after schools in the world. Their admission process is very selective, which helps the schools ensure that they only accept the best and brightest. Many famous people have graduated from Ivy League schools, including recent presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. This prestige leads many to believe that these colleges are only for the wealthy and elite. Often, companies look for Ivy Leaguegraduates as potential employees, usually preferred by law firms, medical facilities, and large corporations. It has long beencovetedto have earned a degree from an Ivy League school. Today, the Ivy League schools are still excellent in both academia and in sports, and they have left a legacy of higher education with an exceptional track record and reputation to go along with them.4. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?A. Ivy League schools were initially famous for their reputation in sports.B. Ivy League schools didn’t come into existence until the 1950s.C. Ivy League schools do not compete with each other within the league.D. Ivy League schools are most popular for their excellence in the medical and law fields.5. Which of the following aspects is NOT mentioned in the passage?A. The history of the Ivy LeagueB. The rivalry of the Ivy LeagueC. The accomplishments and cultural impacts of the Ivy LeagueD. The future development of the Ivy League6. Why do many people believe that Ivy League colleges are only for the wealthy and elite?A. Because they are the most sought-after schools in the world.B. Because they have selective admission process to help ensure the quality of their students.C. Because many famous people have graduated from Ivy League schools.D. Because manycompanies look for Ivy League graduates as potential employees.7. What does the underlined word “coveted” in the last paragraph probably mean?A. advocatedB.DesiredC. restrictedD. sponsoredCThe term "bird brain" is frequently used to describe a person's lack of intelligence and good decision-making ability. However, some scientists believe it should be considered a praise, given that many birds can perform human tasks like producing and using tools, solving problems, and planning for future needs. Now,Griffin, an African Grey parrot, has proved that birds may even possess better visual memories than human adults and children.The study, led by Hrag Pailian, a researcher at Harvard University, had the parrot compete in the game against twenty-one undergraduate students and twenty-one 6 to 8-year-old children. The popular challenge involveshiding a small object under one of three or more upside-down cups, which are moved around. Participants are required to accurately identify the cup under which the object lies. To make the task more challenging, the researchers required participants to track two, three, and four objects at the same time.An analysis of the results showed thatGriffinoutperformed the 6 to 8-year-olds across all levels on average. Even more impressive, the "bird brain" performed as well as, or slightly better than, the 21 Harvard students on 12 of the 14 trials! It was only in the final two tests, which had the most objects and most movement, that the parrot fell behind the adults. However,Griffin's performance was never below that of the children.Griffinwas the candidate of choice because the scientists needed an animal that had a brain functionality similar to that of humans. "The fact that the smart parrot loves to show off his brain power in exchange for a few cashews (腰果) did not hurt either", said Irene Pepperberg, a Harvard lecturer, who has trained Griffin and several other African Grey parrots, has been studying the species for over four decades and is considered a pioneer in the study of bird intelligence.8. Whatwere the participants required to do in the study?A. Identify different kinds of objects.B. Tell where the hidden object lies.C. Track other participants' performance.D. Move around upside-down cups.9. What did the results of the study indicate?A. 6 to 8-year-olds did better thanGriffin.B. Parrots have a better memory than other birds.C. Harvard students have a better visual memory.D.Griffinoutsmarted Harvard students in some trials.10. Why wasGriffinchosen for the experiment?A. It was good at making decisions.B. It was specially trained for experiments.C. It had similar brain functions to human beings.D. It loved to show off his language power for some treats.11. What is the best title for the text?A. "Bird brain" becomes a term for a stupid person.B. Harvard lecturer pioneers in bird intelligence study.C. Parrot outsmarted Harvard students in visual memory test.D. Researchers made new discoveries about human intelligence.DI had very good parents. My mother came toAmericafromScotlandby herself when she was 11, and she didn’t have much education. My dad was kind of a street kid, and he eventually went into the insurance business, selling nickel policies door to door.One day, my dad asked his boss, “What's the toughest market to sell?” and the insurance guy replied “Well, black people. They don’t buy insurance.” My dad thought, but they have kids; they have families. Why wouldn’t they buy insurance? So he said, “Give meHarlem.”When my dad died in 1994, I talked about him onThe Tonight Show. I told the story of how he worked in Harlem and how he always taught us to be open-minded and not to say or think things of racism (种族主义). Then one day, I got a letter from a woman who was about 75 years old.She wrote that when she was a little girl, a man used to come to her house to collect policies. She said this man was the only white person who had ever come to dinner at their house. The man was very kind to her, she said, and his name was Angelo—was this my father?The letter made me cry. I called her up and said yes, that was in fact my dad, and she told me how kind he had been to her family. Her whole attitude toward white people was based on that one nice man she met in her childhood, who always treated her with kindness and respect and always gave her a piece of candy. From this experience, I learned a valuable life lesson: never judge people and be open-minded and kind to others.12. What did my father do after knowing what was the toughest market to sell?A. He asked his boss to give him some insurance.B. He went toScotlandto improve his education.C. He specially went to white families with kids.D. He choseHarlemto face the toughest challenge.13. What can we learn from the third paragraph?A. It was rare that a businessman had dinner in his customer's house.B. Angelo was the only white person to sell insurance inHarlem.C. The little girl admired Angelo very much.D. Racism was a serious problem inAmericaat that time.14. Which of the following can best describe the author’s father?A. Stubborn and generous.B. Patient and intelligent.C. Determined and open-minded.D. Confident and romantic.15. What can be the best title of the passage?A. Memories from a TV Show.B. A Letter from an Old Lady.C. Life Lessons from My Father.D. My Father's Experience inHarlem.第二节（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）阅读下面短文，从短文后的选项中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
