专四2001-2005年口试真题2001年口试真题Task1: Retell a storyI once knew an old man whose bad memory made him famous. John Smith was so forgetful that he sometimes forget what he was talking about in the middle of a sentence. His wife had to constantly remind him about his meetings, his classes – even his meals! Once he forgot he had eaten breakfast twice, at home and at school. His wife liked to remind her neighbors, “If John didn’t have his head tied on. He would forget that too!” Since Smith was a professor at a well-known university, his forgetfulness was often an embarrassment. It wasn’t that he was not clever, as some critical people tended to say, but just very, very absent-minded.One hot summer day, Professor Smith decided to take his children to a seaside town about a three-hour train ride away. To make the trip more interesting for his young children, he kept the name of the town a secret. However, by the time they arrived at the station, Smith forgot the name of the town he was planning to visit. Luckily, a friend of his happened to be in the station. He offered to take care of the children while Smith hurried back home to find out where he was going.The professor’s wife was surprised to see him again so soon.“Oh, my dear, I forgot the name the town.”“What? You forgot the name? Maybe one day you will forget my name! Now I’ll write the name of that town on a piece of paper, and you put it in your pocket and please, please don’t forget where you put it.”Satisfied that she had solved the problem, she sent her husband off again. Ten minutes later she was astonished to see him outside the house for the third time.“What is the matter now?”“As you told me, I didn’t forget where I put the name of that town, but I forgot where I left our children!”Task2: Talk based on a given topicDirections: Describe a teacher of yours whom you find unusual.Task3: Role-playDirections: Many high school graduates in China are going overseas for their college education. A friend of yours is graduating this year and would like to ask for your advice on whether it is a good idea for a high school graduate to go abroad to study.Student A: You think this friend should go by all means, and you should try to convince your partner. Remember you should start the conversation.Student B: You think this friend should finish college in China before thinking about going abroad, and you should try to convince your partner. Remember your partner will start the conversation.2002年口试真题Task I: Retell a storyWhenever Mr. Smith goes to West Gate, he stays at the Grand Hotel. In spite of its name, it is really not very grand, but it is cheap, clean and comfortable. Since he knows the manager well, he never has to go to the trouble of reserving a room. The fact is that he always gets the same room. It is situated at the far end of the building and overlooks a beautiful bay. On his last visit, Mr. Smith was told that he could have his usual room, but the manager added apologetically that it might be a little noisy. “So great was the demand for rooms”, the manager said, “that the hotel has decided to build a new wing.” Mr. Smith said he did not mind. It amused him to think that the dear old Grand Hotel was making an effort to live up to its name (behave in accordance with). During the first day, Mr. Smith hardly noticed the noise at all. The room was a little dusty, but that was natural. The following afternoon, he borrowed a book from the hotel library and went upstairs to read. No sooner had he sat down that he heard someone hammering loudly at the wall. At first, he paid no attention. But after a while, he began to feel very uncomfortable. His clothes were slowly covered with fine white powder. Soon there was so much dust in the room that he began to cough. The hammering was now louder than ever and bits of plaster were coming away from the walls. It looked as though the whole building was going to fall. Mr. Smith went immediately to complain to the manager. They both returned to the room, but everything was rather quiet. As they stood there looking at each other, Mr. Smith felt rather embarrassed for having dragged the manager all the way up the stairs for nothing. All of a sudden, the hammering began again and a large brick landed on the floor. Looking up, they saw a sharp metal tool had forced its way through the wall, making a very large hole right above the bed.Task II. Talk based on the given requirementDescribe an embarrassing situation in which you got very angry.Task III. Role-playThe geology department of a major university is planning to admit 30 male and 5 female students. However, the results of the college entrance examination show that by average, of all the applicants, females have scored higher than most males. Should the department stick to its original plan?Student A: You think the department should still stick to the original plan, and you should try to convince your partner. Remember you should start the conversation.Student B: You DON’T think the department should stick to the original plan, and you should try to convince your partner. Remember your partner will start the conversation.Task I: Retell a storyJust as Jane was joyfully expecting her first child, her active, energetic mother began losing her battle with the brain disease. For ten years, the fiercely independent and courageous mother had fought, but none of the surgeries or treatments had been successful. At only 55, she became totally disabled, unable to speak, walk, eat or dress on her own. As the mother grew closer and closer to death, the baby grew closer and closer to life. Jane was afraid that her mother and her baby would never know each other. Her fear seemed well founded. A few weeks before her due date, her mother lapsed into a deep coma. The doctors did not hold out any hope. It was useless to put in a feeding tube, they said, for Mother would never awaken. So Jane brought Mother to her own bed in her own house. As often as she could, she sat besides her mother, talking about the baby moving inside her. On February 3rd, 1989, at about the same time Jane began to feel birth pains, Mother opened her eyes. Jane called home, “Mum, listen, my baby is coming! You’re going to have a new grandchild. Do you understand?”“Yes”, Mother answered. What a wonderful word---the first clear word she has spoken in months! By the time Jane brought her son home, her mother was sitting in her chair, dressed and ready to welcome the baby. For two weeks, Mother clucked, smiled and helped the new-born baby. And she quietly became unconscious and after visits from all her children, was finally free of the pain. For Jane, memories of her son’s birth will always be bitter-sweet, but it was at this time that she learned an important truth about living: while both joy and sorrow pass quickly and often come together at the same time, love has the power to overcome both and love can last forever.Task II. Talk based on the given requirementTell a story that illustrates the need for love.Task III. Role-playStudent A: You will be traveling later this week and you are wondering about the advantages and safety of flying. Recent news reports of air crashes have made you nervous and youcannot decide if it is safe to travel by airplane. You turn to your friend for adviceabout whether you should go by air or by train. He/She tried to persuade you to take aflight by listing some advantages. Eventually, you refuse to accept his/her opinionand make your own decision.Student B: One of your friends is taking a trip later this week and he/she is undecided about whether to travel by air or by train. Not knowing what to do, your friend comes toyou for advice. You try to persuade your friend to take a flight in spite of reports ofair crashes. Eventually, you fail to convince him/her and your friend buys a trainticket instead.Task I: Retell a storyWhen she was 22 years old, Pat Jones decided that she wanted to travel around the world and see as many foreign places as she could while she was still young. When she finished college at home in Britain, Pat chose to visit Latin America first, so she managed to get a job as an English teacher in a secondary school in Berlivia. Pat spoke a little Spanish, so she was able to communicate with her students even though they did not know much English. A sentence she had once read somewhere stuck in her mind, “If you dream in a foreign language, it means that you have already really mastered it.”Pat repeated this sentence to her students and she hoped that someday she would dream in Spanish and they would dream in English. One day, Tim, one of the worst students in her class, came up to her and explained in Spanish that he had not done his homework. He said that he had gone to bed early and had slept badly. Pat was quite angry with him, for she did not think that his explanation had anything to do with his homework. But Tim told her that he dreamt all night and his dream was in English. “In English!”Pat thought. She was greatly surprised since Tim was such a bad student. She was also secretly jealous---her dreams were still not in Spanish. But she decided to encourage her student and asked him to tell her about his dream. “Ah, all the people in my dream spoke English,” Tim said, “and all the signs were in English. All the newspapers and magazines and all the TV programs were in English!”“But that’s wonderful!”said Pat. “What did all the people say to you?” she asked. “I’m sorry, Miss Jones. That’s why I slept so badly all through the night. I didn’t understand a word they said. It was a nightmare!” Tim answered.Task II. Talk based on the given requirementDescribe one of the most unpleasant dreams you’ve ever had.Task III. Role-playStudent A: Nowadays higher education is getting more and more expensive. To quite a number of families it has become a big financial burden. You try to discuss this problem with student B. You think that parents should pay tuition for their children since college students do not yet have any regular income. Remember, you will initiate the conversation.Student B: Nowadays higher education is getting increasingly expensive. To quite a number of families it has become a big financial burden. You discuss this problem with A. You think it is unfair to put this burden on parents since college students are already adults. Students themselves should find ways to pay their tuitions. Your partner will initiate the conversation.Task I: Retell a storyA little girl whose parents had died lived with her grandmother and slept in an upstairs bedroom. One night there was a fire in the house and the grandmother died while trying to rescue the child. The fire spread quickly and the first floor of the house was soon engulfed in flames. Neighbors called the fire department then stood hopelessly by, unable to enter the house because flames blocked all the entrances. The little girl appeared at an upstairs window, crying for help. Just as words spread among the crowd that the firefighters would be delayed a few minutes because they were all at another fire, suddenly a man appeared with a ladder, put it up against the side of the house and disappeared inside. When he reappeared, he had the little girl in his arms. He delivered the child to the waiting arms below then disappeared into the night. An investigation revealed that the child had no living relatives and weeks later a meeting was held in the town hall to determine who would take the child into their home and bring her up. A teacher said she would like to raise the child. She pointed out that she could ensure her a good education. A farmer offered her an upbringing on his farm. He pointed out that living on the farm was healthy and satisfying. Others spoke, giving their reasons why it was to the child’s advantage to live with them. Finally, the town’s richest resident rose and said, “I can give this child all the advantages that you have mentioned here plus money and everything tha t money can buy.” Throughout all this, the child remained silent, her eyes on the floor. “Does anyone else want to speak?” asked the meeting chairman. A man came forward from the back of the hall. He walked slowly and appeared to be in pain. When he got to the front of the room, he stood directly in front of the little girl and held out his arms. His hands and arms were terribly scarred. The child cried out, “This is the man who rescued me!” With a leap, she threw her arms around the man’s neck. She buried her face in his shoulder and sobbed for a few moments. Then she looked up and smiled at him.Task II. Talk based on the given requirementPlease tell us one incident in which someone was trying to help others despite the danger to his own safety.Task III. Role-playStudent A: The manager of a world-famous hotel wants to recruit a new member as the hotel’s bellboy, offering him a salary of 3,000 yuan per month. Many university graduates are competing for the position. As a sophomore in the university, you think that they are applying for a job unworthy for their talents. Try to persuade your partner that you are right. Remember you will initiate the conversation.Student B: The manager of a world-famous hotel wants to recruit a new member as the hotel’s bellboy, offering him a salary of 3,000 yuan per month. Many university graduates are competing for the position. As a sophomore in the university, you think that it is courageous for them to make such a decision and they have made the correct choice. Try to persuade your partner that you are right. Remember your partner will initiate the conversation.。