Since the emergence of Western capitalism in the 18th century, free market capitalism has been the reigning mode in the world’s economy. Based on mass production, external markets, and regulation by supply and demand, this system promotes economic growth and, in theory, wealth for all in the form of material goods. Proponents of capitalism believe that the system brings the greatest happiness to the greatest number of people. Detractors claim that capitalism creates unnecessary growth at the expense of social inequality and environmental degradation.
With the patenting of the steam engine in 1769, mass production became more efficient, and large factory towns proliferated, first in England and then in Europe and America. Manned by a new class of urban wage earners, factories churned out low-cost goods for sale in external markets. The huge profits of private industry fueled the national economies of European countries, and laid the foundations of international trade. The virtues of economic growth seemed unassailable at the time; profits from sales enriched the factory interest on the flow of trade currency brought profit to capital investors, and the increase in factory-produced consumer goods appeared as though it would lead to well-being for the rest of society. The Scottish social philosopher proto-economist Adam Smith, writing in 1776, expressed this 18th-century optimism in his Wealth of Nations, saying that an “invisible hand” of self-interest guided the laissez-faire economy (one with no government interference), preserving checks and balances in the system and offering the fairest compensation to the worker, guaranteeing a happy and prosperous society.
By the middle of the 19th century, the desirability of unchecked economic growth was beginning to come into question. While providing for the growth of government and industry, the capitalist system seemed to have brought few real benefits to the working classes, and to have created more problems than it had solved. Cities in Europe and now America bore a new and quite ugly feature: the slums of the urban workers whose labor was essential to the machinery of capitalism, but whose reward was inadequate to provide a decent standard of living. These ghettoes were centers of overcrowding, poverty, hunger and desperation. Increased food production brought a corresponding rise in population; Great Britain grew from nine million in 1780 to 21 million in 1850; the population of Europe nearly doubled in the same time frame, jumping from 140 million in 1750 to 266 million in 1850. Thus, workers who had left serf-like conditions on farms to work in cities found slavery in another form as wage-earners competing for ill-paying jobs. The appalling work and living conditions fanned the flames of workers’ revolutions which broke out across Europe in 1848.
Karl Marx and Henry David Thoreau, writing in the 1840’s, both attacked the free-market system. [A] It is ironic that Marx, who is popularly regarded as the greatest enemy of capitalism, was actually thinking fairly conventionally about economic growth; Marx agreed with Smith that economic development was desirable and necessary, but disagreed with the distribution of wealth under capitalism. [B] It was Thoreau, when he proposed an agrarian-based economic model based on self-sufficiency and reduced consumption, who most radically dissented with the “free market”. [C] Though few at the time took Thoreau seriously, his observations prefigure many of the ecological concerns of the 21st century—conservation, sustainable resources, recycling, and real cost, for example. [D] Thoreau also argued that large-scale economic development cannot exist without slavery. He advocated an internal-market “natural economy” in which the individual would cultivate only enough land to provide for personal needs, retain economic independence along with the dignity that entailed, and enjoy greater leisure time.
Today, the interrelatedness of the global economy is forcing us to recognize that economic growth does not take place in a vacuum. The free-market economic model has, over the past two hundred years, brought abundant material wealth to many, along with revolutionary improvements in medicine, science and technology. On the other hand, such unwelcome by-products of rampant economic growth as overpopulation, pollution and climate change have brought the world to the brink of an ecological crisis. Now economists and ecologists often find themselves occupying common ground. Indeed it may no longer be possible to look at economic development as an activity divorced from its environmental and human consequences.
1. Which of the following statements is supported in paragraph 2?
2. According to the passage, it was Adam Smith’s argument that（ ）.
3. Which of the following was mentioned as a consequence of people moving from the countryside to the city?
4. According to the passage, why is the commonly held view of Karl Marx ironic?
5. The word rampant is closest in meaning to（ ）.
6. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a benefit that has resulted from free market capitalism?
7. Look at the four squares marked A, B, C, and D that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.
This was an economic system that, in his view, was anything but “free”.
Where would the sentence best fit (A, B, C or D)?
问题1选项
A.In its initial stages, the capitalist free market economy depended on exports.
B.Producing for overseas markets was the second stage in the development of a capitalist free market economy.
C.Export markets were not as critical to the development of a capitalist free market economy as were domestic markets.
D.Governments were active in promoting the expansion of export markets to increase their national wealth.
问题2选项
A.a capitalist free market economy needed some government regulation
B.workers were unfairly taken advantage of in a capitalist free market economy
C.a capitalist free market economy could be left to regulate itself
D.capitalist free market economies needed to be balanced by other kinds of economic systems
问题3选项
A.The quality of life for many of them was improved.
B.Conflict occurred between different racial and ethnic groups.
C.The living conditions of the workers did not improve.
D.The migration of laborers away from the countryside seriously hurt agricultural productivity.
问题4选项
A.He was an early opponent of free market capitalism.
B.He thought capitalism was unfair.
C.He agreed with some capitalist principles.
D.He reflected the views of Thoreau.
问题5选项
A.rational
B.moderate
C.regulated
D.unrestrained
问题6选项
A.Better health care.
B.An expanding population.
C.Scientific progress.
D.Material abundance.
问题7选项
A.A
B.B
C.C
D.D
第1题:A
第2题:C
第3题:C
第4题:C
第5题:D
第6题:B
第7题:C
第1题:
【选项释义】
Which of the following statements is supported in paragraph 2? 在第二段中，以下哪个说法得到了支持？
A. In its initial stages, the capitalist free market economy depended on exports. A. 在其初始阶段，资本主义自由市场经济依赖于出口。
B. Producing for overseas markets was the second stage in the development of a capitalist free market economy. B. 为海外市场生产是资本主义自由市场经济发展的第二个阶段。
C. Export markets were not as critical to the development of a capitalist free market economy as were domestic markets. C. 出口市场对资本主义自由市场经济的发展并不像国内市场那样关键。
D. Governments were active in promoting the expansion of export markets to increase their national wealth. D. 各国政府积极推动出口市场的扩大，以增加国家财富。
【考查点】推理判断题
【解题思路】由题干可以定位到文章第二段第二句：Manned by a new class of urban wage earners, factories churned out low-cost goods for sale in external markets.（城市居民打工族开始出现，工厂批量生产出低价商品，销往海外。），说明工厂产出低价商品在海外市场销售，由此可知外销市场一开始在自由市场经济体制下就是发展的基础。因此A选项“在其初始阶段，资本主义自由市场经济依赖于出口”正确。
【干扰项排除】
B、C选项根据解析可知不符合原文信息，属于曲解原文；
D选项，原文没有说到政府在整个经济发展过程里所扮演的角色，属于无中生有。
第2题:
【选项释义】
According to the passage, it was Adam Smith’s argument that _____. 根据文章，_____是亚当·斯密的观点。
A. a capitalist free market economy needed some government regulation A. 资本主义的自由市场经济需要一些政府监管
B. workers were unfairly taken advantage of in a capitalist free market economy B. 在资本主义自由市场经济中，工人被不公平地利用了
C. a capitalist free market economy could be left to regulate itself C. 资本主义自由市场经济可以让其自行调节
D. capitalist free market economies needed to be balanced by other kinds of economic systems D. 资本主义自由市场经济需要由其他类型的经济体系来平衡
【考查点】推理判断题
【解题思路】由题干可以定位到文章第二段最后一句：…an “invisible hand” of self-interest guided the laissez-faire economy…（……他认为有一只由自我利益操控的“看不见的手”指引着自由经济……），说明亚当•史密斯认为个人利益就像一只隐形的手，可以指引自由市场经济，也就是说自由市场经济不需要政府的干预，可以自我调节。因此C选项“资本主义自由市场经济可以自行调节”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项，根据解析可知，自由市场经济不需要政府的监管，与文章信息相反，属于反向干扰；
B选项，由原文offering the fairest compensation to the worker（为工人提供最公平的补偿）可知，这样的体系也将为工人带来最公平的待遇，所以不符合原文信息，属于曲解原文；
D选项，由原文可知，史密斯的理论并未提及其他的经济体系，属于无中生有。
第3题:
【选项释义】
Which of the following was mentioned as a consequence of people moving from the countryside to the city? 以下哪项被提到是人们从农村迁往城市的结果？
A. The quality of life for many of them was improved. A. 他们中许多人的生活质量得到改善。
B. Conflict occurred between different racial and ethnic groups. B. 不同种族和民族群体之间发生了冲突。
C. The living conditions of the workers did not improve. C. 工人的生活条件没有改善。
D. The migration of laborers away from the countryside seriously hurt agricultural productivity. D. 劳动者离开农村的迁移严重损害了农业生产力。
【考查点】事实细节题
【解题思路】由题干可以定位到文章第三段倒数第二句：Thus, workers who had left serf-like conditions on farms to work in cities found slavery in another form as wage-earners competing for ill-paying jobs.（这样导致以前工作在牧场的农奴似的人民现在发现自己依旧在工厂里如奴隶一般工作，领着可怜巴巴的薪水。），说明原来在乡下过着奴役般生活的人们移居到城市，结果仍然受到压迫，生活一点也没有改善。因此C选项“工人的生活条件没有改善”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项，根据解析可知与原文表述的意思相反，属于反向干扰；
B、D选项在文中没有提及，属于无中生有。
第4题:
【选项释义】
According to the passage, why is the commonly held view of Karl Marx ironic? 根据文章，为什么普遍认为卡尔•马克思的观点是讽刺性的？
A. He was an early opponent of free market capitalism. A. 他是自由市场资本主义的早期反对者。
B. He thought capitalism was unfair. B. 他认为资本主义是不公平的。
C. He agreed with some capitalist principles. C. 他同意一些资本主义原则。
D. He reflected the views of Thoreau. D. 他反映了梭罗的观点。
【考查点】事实细节题
【解题思路】由题干可以定位到文章第四段第二句：It is ironic that Marx, who is popularly regarded as the greatest enemy of capitalism, was actually thinking fairly conventionally about economic growth; Marx agreed with Smith that economic development was desirable and necessary, but disagreed with the distribution of wealth under capitalism.（这是非常讽刺的，被人们认为是资本主义宿敌的马克思对于经济增长持相当传统的观念；马克思同意史密斯的观点，即经济增长是为人们所需要且必须的，但是他认为财富分配并没有达到应有的公平。），说明马克思一般被认定是资本主义的反对者，但具有讽刺意味的是，他对资本主义的看法却是传统的；他只是反对财富分配的方式，而非全面否定经济发展的价值。因此C选项“他同意一些资本主义原则”正确。
【干扰项排除】
A选项，原文没有说到是早期的反对者，属于过度推断；
B、D选项在文中没有提及，属于无中生有。
第5题:
【选项释义】
The word rampant is closest in meaning to _____. rampant这个词与_____，意思最接近。
A. rational A. 理性的
B. moderate B. 适度的
C. regulated C. 规定的
D. unrestrained D. 不受约束的
【考查点】词汇推断题
【解题思路】由题干关键词“rampant”可以定位到文中最后一段第三句：On the other hand, such unwelcome by-products of rampant economic growth as overpopulation, pollution and climate change have brought the world to the brink of an ecological crisis.（另外，人口过剩、污染和气候变化等不受欢迎的……经济增长的副产品已经把世界带到生态危机的边缘。），人口过剩、污染和气候变化都是消极影响，可推知“rampant”在文中是指“迅猛的，猖獗的”的意思。因此D选项“不受约束的”正确。
【干扰项排除】A、B、C选项不能根据文中信息推理出来。
第6题:
【选项释义】
Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a benefit that has resulted from free market capitalism? 以下哪项没有被提到是自由市场资本主义带来的好处？
A. Better health care. A. 更好的医疗服务。
B. An expanding population. B. 人口的扩大。
C. Scientific progress. C. 科学的进步。
D. Material abundance. D. 物质的丰富。
【考查点】事实细节题
【解题思路】由题干可以定位到文章第五段第二句：The free-market economic model has, over the past two hundred years, brought abundant material wealth to many, along with revolutionary improvements in medicine, science and technology.（在过去的两百年里，自由市场经济模式给许多人带来了丰富的物质财富，以及医学、科学和技术方面的革命性进步。），说明自由市场资本主义带来的好处有物质财富、医学进步、科技发展，所以A选项“更好的医疗服务”，C选项“科学的进步”，D选项“物质的丰富”都属于自由市场资本主义带来的好处，排除A，C，D。B选项由原文可知，人口过多是自由市场资本主义带来的危害，因此本题选B。
【干扰项排除】A、C、D选项根据解析可知不符合题意。
第7题:
【选项释义】
Look at the four squares marked A, B, C, and D that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage. 请看标有A、B、C、D的四个方格，它们表示可以在这段话中添加以下句子。
This was an economic system that, in his view, was anything but “free”. 在他看来，这是一个完全不“自由”的经济体系。
Where would the sentence best fit (A, B, C or D)? 这句话最适合放在哪里（A、B、C或D）？
【考查点】推理判断题
【解题思路】题干中的句子This was an economic system that, in his view, was anything but “free”.（在他的观念里，这是一套完全不自由的经济系统。）讲的是某个人强烈反对自由市场经济体系的看法，C处前文说到梭罗反对“自由市场”，那么下文应该进一步解释说明文意，提供更多证据。因此该句放在C处最合适。
