“Are personal sad stories a must to win talen...

“Are personal sad stories a must to win talent shows?” “Shouldn’t talent be judged on the basis of itself without needing a sad story of struggle to win?” These are questions Sanya Malhotra posed on a recent Facebook post.

This morning I came across this interesting post by Sanya Malhotra. She revealed that she loved dancing and dreamt of becoming an actress, but got defeated in “Dance India Dance” because her background story wasn’t sad and inspiring enough. That’s when she started doubting her artistic gift.

This really set me thinking. Why are people attracted to sob stories? Why do we always appreciate only those people who have achieved something after going through a lot of hardships?　 Why does the headline of a newspaper “Taxi-driver’s Son Stands First In UPSC Exam” find more readers? I think it is because most people, who are in a similar situation, find it comforting that someone has succeeded with so many hardships. I know it is really very difficult for people with financial, health, or family problems to overcome obstacles and succeed. I really feel proud of them and I am often touched and inspired by their stories.

Now come back to what Sanya has said. I think this is a talent show rather than a story-telling competition. When it comes to a competition of singing or dancing or any fine arts, all the competitors should be judged without any bias (偏见). No one should lose because they don’t have a sad story of struggle to tell. It’s very unfair. They can be given opportunities otherwise, but should not be judged because of their stories.

Maybe, the TV channels do it to attract more viewers, because the most important element of any reality show is these touching stories. But as Sanya has said, it’s unfair to those who haven't such a story and are equally talented.

1.What do we know about Sanya Malhotra?

A.She entered a talent show. B.She won “Dance India Dance”.

C.She had a sad story to tell. D.She was rejected in a film.

2.From the second paragraph, we can infer that Sanya Malhotra________.

A.experienced many hardships B.is a famous actress in Indian

C.has a great gift for gymnastics D.used to be confident in her artistic talent

3.Which of the following headlines appeals to the readers most according to the passage?

A.A Millionaire Donated Money To Harvard University.

B.A Gifted Indian Teenager Won “Dance India Dance”.

C.An Armless Girl Was Admitted To Harvard University.

D.A Freshman Paid Off Loans By Getting A Part-time Job.

4.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

A.Winners Should Be Determined By Public Judges

B.Sanya Malhotra Displayed A Great Artistic Gift

C.Competitors Should Not Be Judged By Sob Stories

D.Talent Shows Competitors Can Tell Their Stories

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

. __________ you must do is to choose a scene __________ will best show your acting talent.

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

Want to boost the chance of your story being published in Reader's Digest and win $25,000? Here are a few of our favorite entries so far in our "Your life: The Reader's Digest Version" contest. After reading these, head over to Facebook and submit your own story about a special moment or lesson that shaped your life.

"There's Always a John" By Darla Boyd

My first year of teaching, there was a kid named John in my class. John was difficult to control and he nearly drove me crazy. While talking about him one day, an old teacher put his hand on my shoulder and said, "There will always be a John. Your job is to learn to discover what makes him different and help him succeed." The next year, there was indeed another John. But that advice taught me that there is something to appreciate in everyone.

"An Early Key Lesson" By Elaine West

Before I began my first teaching job, my mother, a teacher of 30 years, gave me a very special gift, five simple words that have had an effect on my entire life." Make friends with the janitor（门卫）." Her wisdom taught me the respect for all types of characters and continues to enrich my life to this day. Just five little words but what an impact they can have when you take them to heart.

“Raising Mommy” By Jan Davis

Being a mother can always present challenges and rewards. Someone told me early that children will teach you everything you need to know. Being a mother is being raised. Our children become our advisers. Their dreams become our professors, as we are taking notes carefully. The sounds of their laughter and smiles are a great reward to us. Their tears remind us that it is okay to fail, and that we should wipe the tears away and try again.

1.What did Elaine West's mother advise her to do?

A. Don't treat students differently.　　 B. Respect people from different backgrounds.

C. Don't judge people by appearance.　　 D. Take care of janitors.

2.From the last paragraph, we can infer that ________.

A. a mother improves herself greatly in parenting

B. a mother should be given more care

C. children should realize the dreams of their parents

D. being a mother has more challenges than rewards

3.The text is most probably a(n) ________.

A. poster about a lecture　　 B. ad for three new books

C. introduction to a contest　　 D. notice inviting contributions

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

The notice says _________ you are, you must show your tickets to enter the exhibition.

A. whoever       B. who             C. however          D. Whom

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Talent shows are common on Chinese television, but instead of casting starry-eyed(幻想的) hopefuls, a new series pairs young famous actors with big-name veterans who are ready to teach them a lesson.

The Birth of Performer first appeared on Zhejiang Satellite TV in October and has already received 330 million online views for just its first two episodes. The show has caused debate on social media about the acting skills of some stars.

A flood of investment in China’s TV and film industry has driven up paychecks for popular young attractive persons and soap opera sweethearts, but some stars have been slammed by critics and the public for lacking professionalism and acting skills.

＂People wonder why some actors don’t take acting seriously with more and more money pouring in,＂Wu Tong wrote. However, he said that he had met many devoted young actors through the show, whose A-list cast of mentors(导师) includes Zhang Ziyi, who starred in the Oscar-winning kung fu epic Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; and comedy queen Song Dandan.

One highlight from the first episode saw Zhang appear to become angry when she disagreed with her fellow judge-mentor Liu Ye over the performance of contestant Zheng Shuang.

＂Do you know what acting is?＂Zhang questioned Liu. In response, Liu slammed his phone on the table — and then his shoe.

As the audience and contestants were left stunned(震惊的), Zhang turned to Liu and warmly said, ＂Give me a hug.＂The two mentors explained that their quarrel was intended to show how to act out a scene of conflict — but later, online commentators speculated(推测) that Zhang was concealing her genuine irritation.

1.What can we learn about The Birth of Performer according to Paragraph 2?

A.Only the young love it. B.It proves popular.

C.The performers are excellent. D.There are fewer stars present.

2.What does the underlined word ＂slammed＂in Paragraph 3 mean?

A.Praised. B.Employed.

C.Criticized. D.Applied.

3.By mentioning Zhang Ziyi, Wu Tong wants to show _______.

A.she is famous worldwide

B.she earned a lot of money

C.she is devoted to performance

D.she has drawn public attention

4.How did Liu react when Zhang Ziyi questioned Zheng Shuang’s performance?

A.He consulted with her patiently.

B.He behaved rather rudely.

C.He had words with her.

D.He fought against her.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Every coin has two sides. Beautiful songs, sometimes, ________ just be noise to others.

A.must B.should C.may D.would

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

we___________last night,but we went to the concert instead.

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

In 1995, Susan Boyle went to Glasgow to audition (试演) for My Kind of people, a televised talent show popular in the UK．She was immediately rejected．She was nervous during the audition, and felt she didn't perform well, but her brother said that she was rejected because of her plain looks．Boyle was not discouraged and continued to sing at church and at the karaoke nights in a local pub.

Boyle suffered a personal loss in 1997, when her father passed away．After his death．Boyle put her big dreams on hold to care for her sick mother Bridget Boyle．The mother and daughter often talked of Susan's possible fame．Bridget Boyle encouraged her daughter to take part in singing competitions．“She was the one who said I should enter Britain's Got Talent．We used to watch it together.” Susan later told reporters．“She thought I would win.”

In 1999, Boyle used all of her savings to pay for a professional demo (样本唱片) tape．which she sent to record companies．In 2002, Boyle began taking singing lessons from voice coach Fred O'Neil．

In 2007, Boyle's mother passed away at the age of 91．A neighbor reported that when Bridget Boyle died, her daughter “wouldn't come out for three or four days or answer the door or phone.” She lived alone with her cat, Pebbles．For over a year, she refused to sing．But in August of 2008, O'Neil urged her to try out for Britain's Got Talent．Convinced that the performance would be an honor to her mother, Boyle auditioned in Glasgow, Scotland．She sang I Dreamed A Dream in the first round of the show, which was aired on 11 April 2009.

The 47-year-old Scottish woman's plain looks provided a sharp contrast (对比) to her powerfully beautiful voice．The performance astonished the audience and the judges．Online videos of her performance totaled over 40 million views within a week．Although she failed to win the final of Britain's Got Talent, Susan Boyle became globally popular．Her first album I Dreamed A Dream has sold over five million copies.

1.Bridget Boyle's attitude towards her daughter's musical talent can be described as ________.

A．critical                     B．doubtful                  C．indifferent               D．optimistic

2.From Para．4 we learn that Boyle ________.

A．was slightly discouraged by her voice coach

B．entered Britain's Got Talent to prove her ability

C．decided to give up her singing career

D．was deeply affected by her mother's death

3.Which of the following is TRUE about Susan Boyle?

A．Her international fame grew rapidly in 2008.

B．Her audition for My Kind of People failed.

C．She has never stopped singing since 1995.

D．She was the winner of Britain's Got Talent.

4.In writing this passage, the author mainly intends to ________.

A．tell us how Boyle's dream came true

B．let us know more about Boyle's personal life

C．show how Boyle was influenced by her family

D．explain how to enter and win a talent show

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

In 1995, Susan Boyle went to Glasgow to audition (试演) for My Kind of people, a televised talent show popular in the UK. She was immediately rejected. She was nervous during the audition, and felt she didn't perform well, but her brother said that she was rejected because of her plain looks. Boyle was not discouraged and continued to sing at church and at the karaoke nights in a local pub.

Boyle suffered a personal loss in 1997, when her father passed away. After his death. Boyle put her big dreams on hold to care for her sick mother Bridget Boyle. The mother and daughter often talked of Susan's possible fame. Bridget Boyle encouraged her daughter to take part in singing competitions. “She was the one who said I should enter Britain's Got Talent. We used to watch it together.” Susan later told reporters. “She thought I would win.”

In 1999, Boyle used all of her savings to pay for a professional demo (样本唱片) tape. which she sent to record companies. In 2002, Boyle began taking singing lessons from voice coach Fred O'Neil.

In 2007, Boyle's mother passed away at the age of 91. A neighbor reported that when Bridget Boyle died, her daughter “wouldn't come out for three or four days or answer the door or phone.” She lived alone with her cat, Pebbles. For over a year, she refused to sing. But in August of 2008, O'Neil urged her to try out for Britain's Got Talent. Convinced that the performance would be an honor to her mother, Boyle auditioned in Glasgow, Scotland. She sang I Dreamed A Dream in the first round of the show, which was aired on 11 April 2009.

The 47-year-old Scottish woman's plain looks provided a sharp contrast (对比) to her powerfully beautiful voice. The performance astonished the audience and the judges. Online videos of her performance totaled over 40 million views within a week. Although she failed to win the final of Britain's Got Talent, Susan Boyle became globally popular. Her first album I Dreamed A Dream has sold over five million copies.

1.Bridget Boyle's attitude towards her daughter's musical talent can be described as ________.

2.From Para. 4 we learn that Boyle ________.

3.Which of the following is TRUE about Susan Boyle?

4.In writing this passage, the author mainly intends to ________.

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

In 1995, Susan Boyle went to Glasgow to audition (试演) for My Kind of people, a televised talent show popular in the UK．She was immediately rejected．She was nervous during the audition, and felt she didn't perform well, but her brother said that she was rejected because of her plain looks．Boyle was not discouraged and continued to sing at church and at the karaoke nights in a local pub.

Boyle suffered a personal loss in 1997, when her father passed away．After his death．Boyle put her big dreams on hold to care for her sick mother Bridget Boyle．The mother and daughter often talked of Susan's possible fame．Bridget Boyle encouraged her daughter to take part in singing competitions．“She was the one who said I should enter Britain's Got Talent．We used to watch it together.” Susan later told reporters．“She thought I would win.”

In 1999, Boyle used all of her savings to pay for a professional demo (样本唱片) tape．which she sent to record companies．In 2002, Boyle began taking singing lessons from voice coach Fred O'Neil．

In 2007, Boyle's mother passed away at the age of 91．A neighbor reported that when Bridget Boyle died, her daughter “wouldn't come out for three or four days or answer the door or phone.” She lived alone with her cat, Pebbles．For over a year, she refused to sing．But in August of 2008, O'Neil urged her to try out for Britain's Got Talent．Convinced that the performance would be an honor to her mother, Boyle auditioned in Glasgow, Scotland．She sang I Dreamed A Dream in the first round of the show, which was aired on 11 April 2009.

The 47-year-old Scottish woman's plain looks provided a sharp contrast (对比) to her powerfully beautiful voice．The performance astonished the audience and the judges．Online videos of her performance totaled over 40 million views within a week．Although she failed to win the final of Britain's Got Talent, Susan Boyle became globally popular．Her first album I Dreamed A Dream has sold over five million copies.

1.Bridget Boyle's attitude towards her daughter's musical talent can be described as ________.

A．critical                B．doubtful             C．indifferent            D．optimistic

2.From Para．4 we learn that Boyle ________.

A．was slightly discouraged by her voice coach

B．entered Britain's Got Talent to prove her ability

C．decided to give up her singing career

D．was deeply affected by her mother's death

3.Which of the following is TRUE about Susan Boyle?

A．Her international fame grew rapidly in 2008.

B．Her audition for My Kind of People failed.

C．She has never stopped singing since 1995.

D．She was the winner of Britain's Got Talent.

4.In writing this passage, the author mainly intends to ________.

A．tell us how Boyle's dream came true

B．let us know more about Boyle's personal life

C．show how Boyle was influenced by her family

D．explain how to enter and win a talent show

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析