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Making the announcement, Peter Englund, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, called Alice Munro a “master of the contemporary short story”.
“She has taken an art form, the short story, which has tended to live a little bit in the shadow of the novel, and she has cultivated it almost to perfection,” he said.
The 82-year-old, whose books include Dear Life and dance of the Happy Shades, is only the 13th woman to win the Nobel Prize for literature since its start in 1901.
“I knew I was in the running, yes, but I never thought I would win,” Munro told Canadian media.
Alice Munro: “I would really hope that this would make people see the short story as an important art form.”
Munro, who began writing in her teenage years, published her first story, The Dimensions of a Shadow, in 1950.
Dance of the Happy Shades, published in 1968, was Munro’s first collection, and it went on to win Canada’s highest literary prize, the Governor General’s Award.
In 2009, she won the Man Booker International Prize for her entire body of work — but she downplayed her achievements.
“I think maybe I was successful in doing this because I didn’t have any other talents,” she once said in an interview.
BBC Arts Editor Will Gompertz said Munro had been “at the very top of her game since she started”.
“Very few writers are her equal,” he said, adding “She gets to the heart of what it is to be human”.
The award “probably won’t make a commercial difference” to the author, he added, but it “makes a huge difference to how her work will be viewed in historical terms”.
“If she hadn’t won it before she died, I think it would have been a terrible, terrible omission (遗漏).”
Often compared to Anton Chekhov, she is known for writing about the human spirit and a regular theme of her work is the dilemma faced by young girls growing up and coming to terms with living in a small town.
Several of her stories have also been adapted for the screen, including The Bear Came over the Mountain.
1.According to the text, Alice Munro ________.
A. is very good at writing short stories
B. had her first story published in 1968
C. is the first woman to win the Nobel Prize for literature
D. was confident of winning the Nobel Prize for literature
2.What does Will Gompertz think of Alice Munro?
A. He thinks very highly of her.
B. He thinks she’s a productive writer.
C. He is amazed by her different skills.
D. He compares her to Anton Chekhov.
3.Which words can best describe Alice Munro?
A. Honest and responsible.
B. Cautious and friendly.
C. Caring and determined.
D. Talented and modest.
4.What’s the best title for the text?
A. Short story — an important art form.
B. A master of the contemporary short story.
C. Alice Munro’s novel adapted for the screen.
D. Alice Munro wins Nobel Prize for Literature.
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One evening last summer, when I asked my 17-year-old son, Ray, for help with dinner, his response surprised me, “What’s a colander (漏勺)?” he asked.
I could only blame myself. Nobody’s hands went in the sauce except my own. But that night, as I explained with a touch of panic that a colander is the thing with holes in it, I wondered what else I hadn’t prepared Ray for.
As parents, while we focus on our child’s confidence and character, we perhaps don’t always consider that we are also raising someone’s future roommate, boyfriend, husband, or father. I wanted to know that I’d raised a boy who would never ask the woman in his life, “What’s for dinner?” So I came up with a plan: I would offer Ray a private home economics course. I was delighted to find that he didn’t say no.
For two hours, three days a week, Ray was all mine. One day, as his tomato sauce reduced on the stove, he washed and seasoned a chicken for roasting. Then he rolled out the piecrust (馅饼) and filled it with apples, all while listening to my explanation on the importance of preheating an oven.
I knew that he would rather have been shooting hoops I the driveway than learning to mend socks with his mother — he tried to beg off sewing lessons, even though I insisted that one day, someone would find the sight of him fixing his own shirt very attractive — but it couldn’t be denied that he was learning, and more than just housekeeping. “I appreciate more what you do as a mom,” he told me one day.
Ray now understands the finer points of cooking, and more important, he realizes there’s nothing masculine (男子气的) about being helpless. Not only can he make his own dinner, he can make it for his family, too. That’s what I call a man.
1.Hearing her son’s question, the author felt _______.
A. shocked B. angry
C. disappointed D. calm
2.We can learn from the text that Ray ________.
A. preferred sewing to cooking
B. made great progress in cooking
C. was unwilling to take the course at first
D. always thought it attractive to do housework
3.The underlined part “more than just housekeeping” shows that Ray ______.
A. fell in love with house work
B. did other work in the house
C. began to be more important
D. acknowledged the author’s efforts
4.What would be the best title for the text?
A. Should boys be involved in housework?
B. Present for my future daughter-in-law.
C. I’m proud I’ve raised a curious son.
D. Dependent or independent.
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Can food be free, fresh and easily accessible? That’s the bold (大胆) question that the city of Seattle is hoping to answer with a new experimental farm not far from the city’s downtown area that will have fruits and vegetables for anyone to harvest this fall.
On Beacon Hill, just south of central Seattle, landscape developers and a few affordable-food advocates are building an eatable food forest. Everything grown in the area will be eatable. And it’ll be open around the clock to anyone who wants to come and pick some fresh blueberries or pears.
Organizers shared with National Geographic a list of the crop offerings. Many are expected: apples, berries and tomatoes. But others are pretty far-out. A large Asian community in the area suggested things like Asian pears and honeyberries. A European influence led to the planting of medlar trees.
The concept is modeled on permaculture, a design system and school of thought emphasizing the use of renewable nature resources and the enrichment of local ecosystems. Offering people free, fresh food is one motivation, but making the land useful and ecologically enriched is the larger goal.
That being said, some potential problems come to mind. What if all of one fruit is gone the first weekend when it’s ripe? What if people pick things too early and spoil the potential for everyone?
Organizers aren’t concerned about those questions. “We’ve had many discussions about what would happen if someone comes and picks all the blueberries,” says Margarett Harrison, the landscape architect designing the project.” But that’s been considered as a good thing. We’ll just plant more.”
Anything related to agriculture and good food — in large quantities — takes time. Most of the trees won’t be mature enough for a few more years. But a few decades could make the area impressively productive.
Idealistic? Perhaps. But it’s the kind of idealism that anyone who likes to eat fresh things from time to time can get behind. And that’s the type of motivation that organizers hope will keep going.
1. Paragraph 3 is mainly about _______.
A. the crops that will be harvested this fall
B. people’s attitude towards the project
C. which communities live in the area
D. how the food selection was made
2.What’s Margarett Hrrison’s attitude towards the potential problems the forest may face?
A. Concerned. B. Cautious.
C. Optimistic. D. Uninterested
3.The text is mainly about ______.
A. Seattle’s free food experiment
B. what the future of forests will be
C. agricultural development in Seattle
D. how to keep in harmony with nature
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As a contestant on The X Factor, 13-year-old Rachel Crow seemed to have exactly what it took to win: strong praise from judges, a beautiful voice, and a lovable personality. Then she was voted off.
When the results were read, Rachel broke down, sobbing and screaming for her mom, who had to rush onstage to comfort her.
It was a humiliating moment for Rachel, but a great moment for The X Factor — just the kind of drama TV audiences love.
Some fans said Rachel’s breakdown proved she was too young to be on the show. And though there was nothing exceptional about someone Rachel’s age being on reality TV — children and teens appear in everything from Dance Moms to The Biggest Loser — Rachel’s meltdown did raise an important question: Should kids be on reality TV at all? Many psychologists are saying “No”.
It’s well known that early fame can be harmful and that many former child stars struggle as adults. Being followed by photographers 24/7 and having everything they do reported in newspapers and blogs can be hard for young people to deal with. It can make them feel as though their worth depends on what others say. Reality TV takes the pressure of early fame to a whole new level. Kids on reality TV don’t play characters. They play themselves. Cameras expose their most private moments for our entertainment.
Laws exist that protect child actors, making sure they go to school and limiting the hours they can work. In many states, though, these laws do not apply to kids on reality TV, because they are not considered actors.
Dangers aside, there’s no doubt that reality shows do offer exciting opportunities and the potential to make money. A 7-year-old girl who attends a TV show earns about $36,000 per season. After competing on The X Factor, One Direction went on to become international stars. Even Rachel made out OK. She released an album and voices a character in the movie Rio 2. And she showed resilience (适应力). “I’m not feeling great, but I’ll be fine,” she told reporters after breakdown. “I’m Rachel still.”
1.The underlined word “humiliating” in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to “ _______”.
A. exciting B. precious
C. important D. embarrassing
2. We can learn from Paragraph 4 that some of Rachel’s fans thought that she _______.
A. was not good enough
B. deserved better results
C. should have been much stronger
D. shouldn’t have been on the show
3.Paragraph 5 is mainly about _______.
A. how kids should deal with pressure
B. why early fame can be harmful to kids
C. the importance of kids being themselves
D. what some former child stars have achieved
4.What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A. Kids should look for more challenges.
B. Reality shows may change a kid forever.
C. Reality shows can benefit kids in some ways.
D. Kids can earn little money from reality shows.
