President Coolidge's statement, “The business of America is business,” still points to an important truth today that business institutions have more prestige in American society than any other kind of organization, including the government. Why do business institutions possess this great prestige?
One reason is that Americans view business as being more firmly based on the ideal of competition than other institutions in society. Since competition is seen as the major source of progress and prosperity by most Americans, competitive business institutions are respected. Competition is not only good in itself; it is the means by which other basic American values such as individual freedom, equality of opportunity, and hard work are protected.
Competition protects the freedom of the individual by ensuring that there is no monopoly of power. In contrast to one, all-powerful government, many businesses compete against each other for profits. Theoretically, if one business tries to take unfair advantage of its customers, it will lose to competing business which treats its customers more fairly. Where many businesses compete for the customers' dollar, they cannot afford to treat them like inferiors or slaves.
A contrast is often made between business, which is competitive, and government, which is a monopoly. Because business is competitive, many Americans believe that it is more supportive of freedom than government, even though government leaders are elected by the people and business leaders are not. Many Americans believe, then, that competition is as important as, or even more important than, democracy in preserving freedom.
Competition in business is also believed to strengthen the idea of equality of opportunity. Competition is seen as an open and fair race where success goes to the swiftest person regardless of his or her social class background. Competitive success is commonly seen as the American alternative to social rank based on family background. Business is therefore viewed as an expression of the idea of equality of opportunity rather than the aristocratic idea of inherited privilege.
1. The statement “The business of America is business” probably means “（ ）”.
2. Americans believe that they can realize their personal values only （ ）.
3. Who can benefit from business competition?
4. Government is believed to differ strikingly from business in that government is characterized by （ ）.
5. It can be inferred from the passage that the author believes （ ）.
问题1选项
A.The business institutions in America are concerned with commerce
B.Business problems are of great importance to the American government
C.Business is of primary concern to Americans
D.America is a great power in world business
问题2选项
A.when given equality of opportunity
B.through doing business
C.by protecting their individual freedom
D.by way of competition
问题3选项
A.Honest businessmen
B.Both businessmen and their customers
C.People with ideals of equality and freedom
D.Both business institutions and government
问题4选项
A.its absolute control of power
B.its function in preserving personal freedom
C.its role in protecting basic American values
D.its democratic way of exercising leadership
问题5选项
A.Americans are more ambitious than people in other countries
B.in many countries success often depends on one's social status
C.American businesses are more democratic than those in other countries
D.businesses in other countries are not as competitive as those in America
第1题:C
第2题:D
第3题:B
第4题:A
第5题:B
1.【试题解析】语义推测题。题干意思是“句子‘The business of America is business’可能是什么意思？”。第一段truth today that business institutions have more prestige in American society than any other kind of organization, including the government.（真相就是在美国社会商业机构比包括政府在内的其他任何类型的组织有更多的威望）说明美国人很关注商业。因此The business of America is business表达的意思是“商业是美国人第一关心的”。A选项“美国商业机构关注的是商业”，这个选项逻辑没问题，但是比较片面；B项“商业问题对美国政府很重要”和D项“美国是全球商业的强国”没提到。故该题选C。
2.【试题解析】细节事实题。题干意思是“美国人相信他们只有怎样才能实现他们的个人价值？”。第二段最后一句Competition is not only good in itself; it is the means by which other basic American values such as individual freedom, equality of opportunity, and hard work are protected.（竞争不仅本身是良好的，它还是一种保护手段，其他基本的美国人价值观都是受它的保护，如个人自由、机会均等和努力工作等），由此可知美国人是可以通过竞争实现他们的个人价值。B项“通过做生意”没有提到，A项“给予平等的机会”和C项“保护个人自由”都是包括在竞争的保护机制里面，最终还是通过竞争才能实现自己的价值。因此D选项正确。
3.【试题解析】细节事实题。题干意思是“商业竞争对谁有利？”。第三段第三句if one business tries to take unfair advantage of its customers, it will lose to competing business which treats its customers more fairly.（如果一个商业机构试图不公平地利用它的顾客，它就会输给那些对待顾客更公平的竞争对手），由此推断出竞争不仅有利于顾客的利益，也有利于公平对待客户的商业机构。A项“诚实的商人”不够全面；C项“拥有平等和自由理想的人们”和D项“商业机构和政府”中的政府均未提及。因此B选项“商人和顾客”正确。
4.【试题解析】判断推理题。题干意思是“人们认为政府与商业有显著的不同，因为政府的特点是什么？”。第四段第一句A contrast is often made between business, which is competitive, and government, which is a monopoly.（竞争的商业和政府的垄断总是经常拿来对比），可以推断出政府和商业竞争相比，政府的垄断是权利上的操控，B项“保护个人自由的功能”这是竞争的特点；C项“保护美国基本价值观方面的作用”没有提到；D项“行使领导的民主方式”，只提到了政府的垄断，没有提到民主。因此A选项“对权利的绝对控制”正确。
5.【试题解析】推理判断题。题干意思是“从这篇文章可以推断出作者相信什么？”。最后一段第三句Competitive success is commonly seen as the American alternative to social rank based on family background.（竞争的成功被美国人视为基于家庭背景而产生的社会地位的替代），即美国是不依靠家庭背景决定社会地位，从而推断出，相反其他国家就要依靠社会地位。A项“美国人比其他国家的人更具野心”、C项“美国商业比其他国家更民主”和D项“其他国家的商业不像美国商业一样有竞争性”没有提到。因此B选项“许多国家的成功取决于一个人的社会地位”正确。
