1.The entertainer was know for his------: he gave essentially the same solid performance night after night for twenty years.(A)Bluntness(B)Arrogance(C)Obedience(D)Generosity(E)Consistency2.Transoceanic navigation is so------coastal navigation that the development of the former from the latter required------new instruments rather than modifying older ones.(A)contingent on .. perfecting(B)different from .. inventing(C)divorced from .. rejecting(D)separate from .. repairing(E)inferior to .. exploiting3.It is widely------,almost to the point of being conventional wisdom, that movies have experienced and overall------in quality; exceptions are generally regarded as happy accidents.(A)assumed .. decline(B)denied .. drop(C)known .. improvement(D)overlooked .. lapse(E)hoped .. rise4.Once regarded as an accurate, or------, representation of reality, the well-known painting is now consideration to be an entirely------creation.(A)faithful .. imaginative(B)distorted .. confusing(C)outdated .. fictional(D)precise .. practical(E)artificial .. sufficient5.Many teachers------jargon: they avoid specialize terminology, explaining difficult concepts in term that students understand.(A)manifest(B)divulge(C)propagate(D)invoke(E)eschewQuestions 6-9 are based on the following passage.Passage 1The destruction and excision of novelist Jane Austen’sletters by her sister Cassandra leaves the impression,according to Austen biographer Claire Tomalin, that Janewas dedicated to trivia. As Tomalin says of the surviving5letters, they “rattle on, sometimes almost like a comedian’spatter. Not much feeling, warmth or sorrow has beenallowed through.” A more recent counterargument is thatthe letters, rather than being disparaged by comparison withthe novels, should be attended to for what they do reveal.10Or, perhaps, as Professor Kathryn Sutherland suggests,there “was never a confiding correspondence to hold back.”It’s just that biographers are suspicious of gaps andsilences.Passage 215What is a biographer to make of the strange silencescreated by the Austen family policy of censorship: blankyears, for which no letters exist? In her novel MansfieldPark, Jane Austen herself comments on the joy with whichher character Fanny Price seizes upon a “scrap of paper”20containing a brief message from Edmund Bertram. “Twolines more prized had never fallen from the pen of the mostdistinguished author--never more completely blessed theresearches of the fondest biographer.” The distinguishedauthor of these lines would understand the frustrations of25a biographer who well knows that so many of his subject’smost revealing letters have been deliberately destroyed.6.Which best describes the relationship between the two passages?(A)Passage 1 exposes a ruthless tactic that Passage 2 argues is a common trend.(B)Passage 1 introduces several generalizations that Passage 2 explains in detail(C)Passage 1 describes a hypothetical scenario that Passage 2 represents as unlikely(D)Passage 1 presents background information for a revelation described in Passage 2(E)Passage 1 provides alternative perspectives on the sentiment expressed in Passage 27.Claire Tomalin (line 3, Passage 1) would most likely claim that the “strange silences”(line 14,Passage 2)(A)strengthen the notion that fiction is a more worthy pursuit than biography(B)heighten readers’ curiosity about the motives of Jane Austen’s family(C)prevent people from knowing what Jane Austen truly felt(D)perpetuate the idea that Cassandra dominated her sister Jane(E)justify a biographer’s need to interpret information liberally8.Which best describes the strategies used in lines 5-7, Passage 1 (“they rattle...through”), and lines19-22, Passage 2(“Two...biographer”)?(A)The first is a simile,the second hyperbole.(B)The first is a paradox, the second wordplay(C)The first is a metaphor, the second melodrama(D)The first is anecdotal, the second factual(E)The first is direct citation, the second paraphrase9.According to the “counterargument” (line 7, Passage 1), the surviving Austen letters(A)make light of serious issues(B)reveal Austen’s affectionate side(C)are inferior to Austen’s novels(D)may contain useful insights(E)reflect elements of Austen’s worksQuestions 10-16 are based on the following passage.In this passage from a 2007 book, the author discussesUnited States history textbooks.Steadfast reader, we are about to do something no highschool American history class has ever accomplished inthe annals of American education: reach the end of thetextbook. What final words do American history courses5impart to their students? The American Tradition assuresstudents “that the American tradition remains strong--strong enough to meet the many challenges that lie ahead.”“If these values are those on which most Americans canagree,” says The American Adventure, “The American10Adventure will surely continue.””Most Americansremained optimistic about the nation’s future. They wereconvinced that their free institutions, their great naturalwealth, and the genius of the American people wouldenable the U.S. To continue to be--as it always has been--15THE LAND OF PROMISE,” L and of promise concludes.Even most textbooks that don’t end with their titlesclose with the same vapid cheer. “The American spiritsurged with vitality as the nation headed toward the closeof the twentieth century,” the authors of The American20Pageant assured us in 1991, ignoring opinion polls thatsuggested the opposite. Fifteen years later, “The Americanspirit pulse with vitality in the early twenty-first century,”they write, but now “grave problems continued to plaguethe Republic.”Life and Liberty climbs farther out on this25hollow limb:”America will have a great role to play inthese future events. What this nation does depends on thepeople in it.” Can’t argue with that! “Problems lie ahead,certainly,” predicts American Adventures. “But so doopportunities.” In short, all we must do to prepare for the30morrow is keep our collective chin up. Or as Holt AmericanNation put it in 2003, “Americans faced the future withhope and determination.”Well, why not end happily? Might be one response.We don’t want to depress high school students. After all,35it’s not really history anyway--we cannot know for surewhat’s going to come next. So let’s end on an upbeat.Indeed, just as we don’t know with precision what wenton thousands of years ago, we cannot know with precisionwhat will happen next. Precisely for this reason, the40endings of these books provide another site where authorsmight appropriately provoke intellectual curiosity. Canstudents apply ideas they have learned from these hugeAmerican history textbooks? After all, as Shakespeare said,the “past is prologue.” If we understand what has caused45what in the past, we may be able to predict what willhappen next and even adopt national policies informed byour knowledge. Surely helping students learn to do so is thekey reason for teaching history in the first place. If historytextbooks supplied tools for projection or examples of50causation in the past that might (or might not) continue intothe future, they would encourage students to think aboutwhat they have just spent a year learning. What a thrillingway to end a history textbook!But no, the lack of intellectual excitement in these books55is most pronounced at their ends. All is well, the authorssoothe us. No need to ponder whether the nation or allhumankind is on the right path. No need to think at all. Notonly is this boring pedagogy, it’s had history.10.The primary purpose of the passage is to(A)explain to readers the importance of studying history(B)warn readers of the consequences of using certain textbooks(C)object to the quality of discussions in high school history classes(D)analyze the history textbooks currently used in United States high schools(E)criticize a particular aspect of United States history textbooks11.The tone of the opening sentence (lines 1-4) is best described as(A)brazenly belligerent(B)tactfully incredulous(C)falsely dramatic(D)quietly apprehensive(E)openly admiring12.In lines 6-15, the author quotes from textbooks primarily to show that the quoted statements often(A)warn of the dangers to democracy(B)obscure the importance of past events(C)challenge readers to action(D)share a common sentiment(E)critique a pattern of events13.The author refers to “opinion polls” (line 20) in order to point out(A)a correlation between practice and belief(B)a similarity between past and present(C)an opposition between convention and inclination(D)a confusion between method and result(E)an inconsistency between claim and evidence14.The interjection in line 27 (“Can’t...that!”) indicates that the author regards the assertion in lines 26-27 (“What...in it”) as(A)erroneous(B)misguided(C)self-evident(D)perceptive(E)prophetic15.In context, the author uses the quotation in line 44 to suggest that the past(A)must be continually reinterpreted(B)can never be altered(C)serves as a guide to the future(D)cannot be fully understood(E)always exhibits a sentimental attraction16.In lines 48-52 (“If history...learning”), the author implies that history textbooks should do which of the following?(A)Concentrate on contemporary(B)Provide the means to evaluate events(C)Discuss the past in isolation(D)Supply bibliographies of suggested readings(E)Offer analyses from multiple viewpointsQuestions 17-24 are based on the following passage.The author of this excerpt was adopted from an orphanagein Eritrea, Africa, and raised in England. As a youngwoman, she returns to Eritrea after having been contactedby her Eritrea brother.Some ten-year-old girls plan their wedding day, butI planned the day I’d meet my birth family: what I’d wear,what the weather would be like, whether I’d have a friendwith me. And for the last ten years, it hasn’t been a5complete fantasy. Ever since I got the letter from mybrother, I’ve known the question of a reunion was up to me,it was where if I wanted it, they were waiting--all I had todo was go to Eritrea. And ever since then, the scenes of memeeting whatever family I have left have been playing on10a loop in my head. Other than myself, the main players arefaceless, but it doesn’t matter because I know they all looklike me. I guess they’re faceless because before I met mycousin I had no idea what a man who is related to melooked like, nor a woman. Sure, I’ve seen Eritreans on the 15street who look a bit like me, but that’s only in a relativesense, rather than a full on, bona fide, related one.The opening scene is always the same. I am standingin front of a door. Someone else’s arm (it’s black, I think)reaches in front of the door and turns the round handle.20Sometimes it’s a round brass handle that turns clockwise,like the ones in my apartment; other times it’s a properhandle, I’m not sure what color or material. But it doesn’tmatter, because whichever it is, the person opening thedoor always seems to know. Once they turn the handle,25they push the door open and as my eyes follow the sweepof their arm it opens fully and there, as if in a lineup,aremy family, faceless but there, like shadows. Sometimes theroom is packed; at others, there is no one behind the door.It doesn’t take Freud* to figure out what’s going on. On30good days, everyone shakes hands (how English), kisseson the cheek three times Eritrean-style, and then sits down.The atmosphere is emotional, but not overwhelming-it’salmost chaste. I instantly know who is who, and everyone,not least myself, is amazed by our physical likeness,. We 35laugh the same raucous laughter, despite the fact we havenever previously met.On less good days, people start shouting at me prettymuch as soon as I enter the room. They are speakinga mixture of English and Tigrinya, but I know they are40all saying the same thing: “Why didn’t you write back?””Why didn’t you come sooner?” and so on, while I juststand there, unable to answer their questions. And on reallybad days? Well, on really bad days when the mystery handopens the door, there are a group of people standing around45an old man in a bed. The youngest of the group, a man inhis early thirties,turns around and tells me that my fatherhas just died.If I stay in this hotel room forever I well never learnwhich version, if any, is the right one, but right now that’s50preferable to taking the risk either way. As soon as I leavethis room, a chain of events that are way beyond my controlwill start. My life will never be the same again: I will havemet my birth family. In half an hour, I will have come fullcircle. The story of my life will be completely different.55I will no longer have to dodge the simplest of questions,questions like “What does your father look like?” or “Whodo you get your eyes from?” In half an hour I will know theanswer.* Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), a pioneering psychoanalyst17.The author’s overall attitude toward the “reunion” (line 6) is best described as a mixture of(A)excitement and anger(B)dread and humility(C)anxiety and caution(D)anticipation and trepidation(E)apathy and confusion18.In line 9, “playing” most nearly means(A)frolicking(B)jesting(C)feigning(D)maneuvering(E)running19.Why does the door handle (lines 18-22) vary in appearance?(A)Having entered the room so long ago, the author cannot recall the handle’s details.(B)With no experience of the actual object, the author can only imagine what the handle might looklike.(C)Because of her excitement on entering the room, the author did not note the handle’s design.(D)The author’s creative mind allows her to visualize strikingly different versions of the handle shehad seen.(E)The handle is very ornate, and the author notices something different about it each time she opensthe door.20.In describing the members of her family as “faceless” in line 27, the author means that they are(A)indistinct(B)impassive(C)insincere(D)ordinary(E)cowardly21.Which pair of words best describes the mood in the room on “good days” (line 30) and “less good days” (line 37), respectively?(A)Festive, mournful(B)Mysterious; disconcerting(C)Inspirational; volatile(D)Congenial; confrontational(E)Humorless; conspiratorial22.The author represents the “raucous laughter”(line 35) primarily as(A)a form of greeting(B)a personal quirk(C)a familial trait(D)an acquired behavior(E)a friendly gesture23.The situation in lines 43-47 (“Well...died”) is best understood to be the author’s(A)most vivid dream(B)most baffling challenge(C)most poignant experience(D)starkest recollection(E)greatest dread24.The passage as a whole suggests that the most likely result of learning “the answer” (lines 57-58) is that the author will(A)strive to be more open-minded(B)acquire a new set of talents(C)write about the lives of Eritreans(D)become more independent of her family(E)arrive at some emotional resolution。