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It’s a common belief that the roles actors play might somehow reflect their true personalities. It’s usually not true, but British actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge, 34, is an exception.
Just like Fleabag, the character she played in the comedy-drama series of the same name, Waller-Bridge feels that her life is a mess. “It’s just really wonderful to know that a dirty and messed up woman can make it to the Emmys,” she said. She may be “messed up”, but Variety magazine calls her an “all-around icon”.
Last month, Waller-Bridge took home three Emmy awards for her work on Fleabag — best writing in a comedy series, best lead actress, and best comedy series.
Her success is partly because of her family. Waller-Bridge was brought up in a free environment. Her mother always told her, “You can be whatever you want if you imagine it.” So Waller-Bridge broke all the rules about what a “good” girl should do. “Our laws and moral codes don’t apply — she lives without fear of consequence,” The Sun noted.
That fearlessness extends to being authentic (真实的) in her writing and acting. Unlike the can-do heroines and strong, successful women in many TV dramas, Waller-Bridge shows a flawed but real character. The character Fleabag was a screw-up who always found a way to say or do the wrong thing. “It resonated with the lives of stressed-out women everywhere in reality — doing their best to find balance in their lives,” a viewer wrote on US movie website.
Villanelle in Killing Eve, another hit TV series developed by Waller-Bridge, was a little bit violent but showed no interest for the rules others created, which make many people see themselves in her.
“People have been scared to write characters like these. But I think, now, women are so relieved to have this new template (样板). And, aren’t we all a bit of everything?” Waller-Bridge said in an interview with Indian Express.
With such courage and sincerity, Waller-Bridge is, without a doubt, a “golden girl” in Hollywood, Australian news website The New Daily commented.
1.What is the article mainly about?
A.What helped Waller-Bridge succeed in comedy.
B.The popularity of the comedy-drama series Fleabag.
C.What inspired Waller-Bridge to take up writing and acting.
D.The similarities between Phoebe Waller-Bridge and the character she plays on Fleabag.
2.How did Waller-Bridge’s parents influence her growth?
A.They pushed her to follow social codes.
B.They constantly encouraged her to be herself.
C.They always reminded her to be curious and fearless.
D.They taught her to write and act when she was young.
3.The underlined phrase “resonated with” in Paragraph 7 probably means “__________”.
A.messed up B.paid attention to
C.had great effects on D.was in agreement with
4.What do Villanelle in Killing Eve and Fleabag in Fleabag have in common?
A.Both are courageous and organized.
B.Both are much alike in character.
C.Both successfully find balance in their lives.
D.Both are rebellious but strong and successful.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Grandma Pugh sized up the baby like a pig at the farmers’ market. There was a pause and then she pronounced. “He’s got nice long legs.” She clapped her hands once in approval. But then she frowned and leaned forward. Everyone waited anxiously. The baby had opened his eyes and was staring up. “But those cross eyes won’t do,” she declared firmly, shaking her head in disappointment.
That had been Freddie Pilcher’s first meeting with Grandma Pugh. Since then, ten years had passed. Much to his grandmother’s satisfaction, she’d been proven right about the boy’s legs. He was a regular beanpole. Grandma Pugh had also been correct about his eyes. Freddie had been wearing glasses to correct his vision since he was two years old. His current pair was thick, and cheap-looking, but at least he could see.
Freddie not only had poor eyesight, but he was also clumsy. He wasn’t good at schoolwork either. But there was one thing that the boy was good at and it was all on account of the length of his legs. He could jump.
Freddie was the best jumper in school. Not only could he leap the furthest but also the highest. At break times, he entertained the little ones by leaping over the school wall into Mrs. Hobson’s garden and then rapidly jumping back. She had been up to see the head teacher several times because somebody had been crushing her vegetables.
It was badgers (獾), Freddie suggested, when questioned by Miss Harpy—definitely badgers; no doubt about it. His dad had terrible problems with badgers. Only last week he had lost two rows of carrots. Freddie had woken one night and heard them tearing through the garden, a whole herd of them. They rooted up the lawn and dug up the vegetables. Terrible things, badgers. All the other children nodded their heads wisely. There was a moment’s pause in Class Three as everyone thought about the dreadful damage that badgers could do.
1.What do we know about Grandma Pugh?
A.She was present at the birth of baby Freddie.
B.She was unwilling to listen to the ideas of others.
C.She valued physical appearance over all other things.
D.She was a figure of great importance in the family.
2.Which of the following best describes Freddie’s physical appearance?
A.
B.
C.
D.
3.Why does Freddie talk about badgers in the final paragraph?
A.To explain the cause of the damage.
B.To warn the class about their danger.
C.To make up an excuse for the cause of the damage.
D.To describe what happened to his father’s garden.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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In 1800, only three percent of the world's population lived in cities. Only one city — Beijing — had a population of over a million. Most people lived in rural areas, and never saw a city in their lives. In 1900, just a hundred years later, roughly 150 million people lived in cities, and the world’s ten largest cities all had populations exceeding one million. By 2000, the number of city dwellers exceeded three billion; and in 2008, the world's population crossed a tipping point — more than half of the people on Earth lived in cities. By 2050, that could increase to over two-thirds. Clearly, humans have become an urban species.
In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many people viewed cities negatively — crowded, dirty environments full of disease and crime. They feared that as cities got bigger, living conditions would worsen. In recent decades, however, attitudes have changed. Many experts now think urbanization (城市化) is good news, offering solutions to the problems of Earth’s growing population.
Harvard economist Edward Glaeser, author of The Victory of the Cir, is one such person. Glaeser argues that cities are very productive because “the absence of space between people” reduces the cost of transporting goods, people, and ideas. While the flow of goods has always been important to cities, what is most important today is the flow of ideas. Successful cities enable people to learn from each other easily, and attract and reward smart people with higher wages.
Another urbanization supporter is environmentalist Stewart Brand. Brand believes cities help the environment because they allow haft of the world’s population to live on about four percent of the land. This leaves more space for open country, such as farmland. City dwellers also have less impact per person on the environment than people in the countryside. Their roads, sewers, and power lines need fewer resources to build and operate. City apartments require less energy to heat, cool, and light. Most importantly, people in cities drive less so they produce fewer greenhouse gases per person.
So it’s a mistake to see urbanization as evil; it’s a natural part of development. The challenge is how to manage the growth.
1.What is Paragraph 1 mainly about?
A.The history of modern cities.
B.Changes taking place within cities.
C.How cities have grown over time.
D.Why modern cities are changing.
2.How have experts’ attitudes towards cities changed in recent decades?
A.They now view the weaknesses as strengths.
B.They no longer see city-riving as attractive.
C.They accept city life in spite of its problems.
D.They think city-riving provides more benefits.
3.Which of the following would Edward Glaeser agree with?
A.Cities provide more economic opportunities.
B.City people get along better with each other.
C.Over-crowded cities result in problems.
D.Cities limit the flow of ideas.
4.According to Paragraph 4, what would be the result of moving people out of cities?
A.Economic production would be reduced.
B.There would be less farmland available.
C.People would travel less frequently.
D.House values would fall greatly.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析