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Lawns(草坪)are some of the most common things in the world until you really start thinking about them. That’s when you realize that they make no sense. Why do people keep these uninteresting, pointless little plants outside their homes? They’re not beautiful like flowers, they don’t provide food and you have to take care of them constantly.

Israeli bestselling author Yuval Noah Harari thought these deeds were weird too. He looked into their history and ended up with an interesting story.

No one considered putting patches of grass outside their homes in ancient times. That changed in the Middle Ages, when French and English kings and nobles started putting patches of grass at their castle entrances.

“Well-kept lawns demand land and a lot of work,” wrote Harari in his book. “In exchange, they produce nothing of value.” Peasants could never afford to waste their time or land on lawns, so these lawns were a perfect status symbol(身份的象征)for nobility(高贵).

When the Industrial Revolution began in the 18th and 19th centuries, the middle classes started being able to afford their own suburban(郊区的)houses. And guess what became the suburban status symbol? A perfectly kept lawn.

The popularity of lawns continued to grow, taking over public event spaces and sports. In the past, people played sports on all kinds of surfaces—dirt, ice, sand. But in the last couple centuries, they made the switch to green grass.

“Grass is nowadays the most widespread crop in the USA after corn and wheat,” Harari continued. Lawns spread beyond Europe and the U.S, and they’re now status symbols around the world.

Suburban people may not realize it, but they care for lawns just because centuries ago, French and English kings wanted to show off by intentionally planting something useless. It’s strange that people should continue to spend so much time and money on what’s really a leftover(遗留物)from the Middle Ages. When you plan your house, you can shake off(摆脱)the cultural leftover and imagine for yourself a rock garden or some other new creation.

1.What does the underlined word “weird” in paragraph 2 probably mean?

A.strange B.ordinary

C.beneficial D.attractive

2.What could lawns indicate in the 19th century?

A.Environmental awareness. B.People’s taste.

C.Cultural background. D.Personal wealth.

3.What is the author’s attitude towards keeping lawns?

A.Uncaring. B.Disapproving.

C.Favorable. D.unclear.

4.What might be the best title for the text?

A.The Function of Lawns B.The Value of Lawns

C.The History of Lawns D.The Management of Lawns

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题

少年,再来一题如何?
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