阅读理解每天一练(4)
Passage 4
Until the end of the 18th century,it was men who lavished attention on their fee
t.Louis XIV wore high heeled mules to show off his shapely legs; his courtiers a
dorned their figures and feet with feathers,pink silk,lace,and jewels; even in c
olonial American,men fussed with their wigs and the bows and buttons on their sh
oes.The end of that foppery,called “the great renunciation” by his torians,coi
ncided with an epochal shift in politics and society,toward democracy,industry,a
nd reason,away from the aristocracy with its affectations that spoke of rank,par
asitism and,to the modern eyes,effeminacy. Women?s fashion is now,some believe,a
t the turning point of similar magnitude,coinciding with the equally dramatic so
cial transformation of the past several decades.The change has been slow: a cent
ury?long move away from the padding,corseting,and decoration that made a woman i
nto a kind of ornate bauble and displayed her familys wealth,and toward the clea
n,sleek modern lines first introduced with the suffrage movement.But the shift h
as accelerated in recent years,thanks to changes in the technology and business 
of fashion.The use by top designers of “weird,fabulous,unrecognizable synthetic
s,” says Hollander, “has ruined the status of certain fabrics,like linen,which
 has had a leveling 
effect for the sexes and for the classes.” And the emergence of chains like Clu
b Monaco means that “forward looking style is disseminated very fast and very c
heaply,” according to Valerie Steele,a historian and curator of “Shoes: A Lexi
con of Style,” an exhibition now on view at New York?s Fashion Institute of Tec
hnology.Such store have succeeded,she believes,because “there?s substantial gro
up of people with a sophisticated eye for design” who are eager for an affordab
le version of what was once thought to be “dog?whistle fashion,” pitched so hi
gh that only a few would get it. Against that background,the shoes at FIT look l
ike fashion?s last gasp. The exhibit begins with the most symbolically loaded of
 women?s shoes: high heels,which Steele calls “a prime symbol of women?s sexual
 power over men.” That same defiance of feminine expectations is visible throug
hout the FIT show: in the boot,for instance,with its connotations of machismo an
d military power,or the androgynous oxford,made girlish with a big chunky heel.T
he show ends,fittingly,with the sneaker.No longer simply a downscale kidswear it
em,the big,brilliantly colored,high?tech sneaker has become one of the today?s m
ost dramatic fashion statement,asserting street hip and futuristic velocity.Mayb
e shoes aren't so indifferent to the changes in modern lives,after all. 
　　1.The end of men?s lavish attention to fashion marks ____. 
　　A) great political and social changes 
　　B) aristocracy 
　　C) social ranks 
　　D) the great renunciation 
　　2.Throughout last century,a woman adorned herself in an elaborate way to 
　　____. 
　　A) show her importance in society 
　　B) show her quality as woman 
　　C) display her family?s wealth 
　　D) challenge men?s position in society 
　　3.The introduction of clean and neatly?tailored modern fashion coincided 
　　 
　　 with ____. 
　　A) industrialization 
　　B) the establishment of democracy 
　　C) the emergence of chain stores 
　　D) the suffrage movement 
　　4.What helps to speed up the popularity of modern fashion? 
　　A) Changes in the technology and business practice. 
　　B) The use of synthetics instead of linen. 
　　C) The emergence of chain stores like Club Monaco. 
　　D) The consumers? sophisticated eyes for design and affordable fashions. 
　　5.The FIT shoes exhibition ____. 
　　A) popularized the lexicon of shoe style 
　　B) pitched so high that only a few could appreciate it 
　　C) expressed a defiance of feminine expectations 
　　D) shows women?s sexual power over men 
　　语言注释 
　　Passage 2 
　　1.lavish v.浪费,滥用 
　　2.The end of that foppery,called “the great renunciation” by historians 
　　 
　　,coi 
　　ncided with an epochal shift in politics and society,toward democracy,indust
ry 
　　,and reason,away from the aristocracy with its affectations that spoke of ra
nk 
　　,parasitism and,to the modern eyes,effeminacy.这种被历史学家称为“伟大的放弃
 
　　”的纨绔习气的终结反映了当时划时代的 **** 社会变革。那时社会摒弃了代表地位、
寄生生 
　　活，甚至在现代人看来女气十足的贵族传统，开始向民主、务实和理智转变。 
　　3.pad v.加衬垫 
　　4.corset v.束腰 
　　5.Such stores have succeeded… because “there?s substantial group of pe 
　　 
　　ople w 
　　ith a sophisticated eye for design” who are eager for an affordable version
 of 
　　what was once thought to be “dog?whistle fashion,” pitched so high that on
ly 
　　a few would get it.这种服装店大获成功……因为有很多对服装造型独具慧眼的人渴
望能 
　　买得起那些价格不菲，以至于只有少数人才买得起的高档时装。 
　　6.machismo n.男子气慨 
　　7.the androgynous oxford 牛津鞋，一种不分男女，结实的脚背上系脚带的矮鞋 
　　8.downscale adj.按比例缩小的 
　　9.hip v.喝彩 
　　答案解析 
　　Passage 2 
　　1.A 
　　本题是细节题。要求考生理解文中的具体信息，区分观点和事实。文中第一段中描述了
 
　　18世纪以前男人对鞋子的种种夸张的装饰。继而评论道：这种时尚的结束反映了当时 *
*** 、 
　　社会的巨大变革。故正确答案为A。而选项D只表明当时人们对这一社会现象的评价：“
伟大 
　　的放弃”，所以不能入选。 
　　2.C 
　　本题是细节题。要求考生在掌握文章总体结构和段落之间关系的基础上，理解文章 
　　中的具体信息。文章第二段将女人和男人注重时尚的原因加以比较，指出过去女人精心
装扮 
　　使她们成为花瓶，并且显示家庭的财富。 
　　3.D 
　　本题是细节题。文章第二段中指出简洁、明快的女装在妇女争取选举权的运动中首次亮
 
　　相。故正确答案为D。 
　　4.A 
　　本题是细节题。文章第二段中探讨了女装变化速度加快的原因是由于科技和服装业经营
 
　　方式的变化(thanks to changes in the technology and business of fashion)。 故
正 
　　确答案为A。而选项B、C只谈及一个方面，不够全面；选项D是关于服装连锁店成功的原
因。 
　　5.C 
　　本题要求考生认真阅读文章，区分论点和论据。第四段详细描述了FIT鞋展上几种主要 
　　的款式来说明鞋展的主题――对传统女性角色的挑战，从而说明女鞋款式的变化反映了
现代 
　　生活的变化。 
 
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※作者已于 2003-03-17 13:01:42 修改本文※

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