Of all the changes that have taken place in English-language newspapers during the past quarter-century, perhaps the most far-reaching has been the inexorable decline in the scope and seriousness of their arts coverage.
It is difficult to the point of impossibility for the average reader under the age of forty to imagine a time when high-quality arts criticism could be found in most big-city newspapers. Yet a considerable number of the most significant collections of criticism published in the 20th century consisted in large part of newspaper reviews. To read such books today is to marvel at the fact that their learned contents were once deemed suitable for publication in general-circulation dailies.
We are even farther removed from the unfocused newspaper reviews published in England between the turn of the 20th century and the eve of World War 2, at a time when newsprint was dirt-cheap and stylish arts criticism was considered an ornament to the Publications in which it appeared. In those far-off days, it was taken for granted that the critics of major papers would write in detail and at length about the events they covered. Theirs was a serious business, and even those reviews who wore their learning lightly, like George Bernard Shaw and Ernest Newman, could be trusted to know what they were about. These men believed in journalism as a calling, and were proud to be published in the daily press. “So few authors have brains enough or literary gift enough to keep their own end up in journalism,” Newman wrote, “that I am tempted to define ‘journalism’ as ‘a term of contempt applied by writers who are not read to writers who are’.”
Unfortunately, these critics are virtually forgotten. Neville Cardus, who wrote for the Manchester Guardian from 1917 until shortly before his death in 1975, is now known solely as a writer of essays on the game of cricket. During his lifetime, though, he was also one of England’s foremost classical-music critics, and a stylist so widely admired that his Autobiography (1947) became a best-seller. He was knighted in 1967, the first music critic to be so honored. Yet only one of his books is now in print, and his vast body of writings on music is unknown save to specialists.
Is there any chance that Cardus’s criticism will enjoy a revival? The prospect seems remote. Journalistic tastes had changed long before his death, and postmodern readers have little use for the richly upholstered Vicwardian prose in which he specialized. Moreover, the amateur tradition in music criticism has been in headlong retreat.
1. It is indicated in Paragraphs 1 and 2 that ______.
2. Newspaper reviews in England before WWII were characterized by ______.
3. Which of the following would Shaw and Newman most probably agree on?
4. What can be learned about Cardus according to the last two paragraphs?
5. What would be the best title for the text?
问题1选项
A.arts criticism has disappeared from big-city newspapers
B.English-language newspapers used to carry more arts reviews
C.high-quality newspapers retain a large body of readers
D.young readers doubt the suitability of criticism on dailies
问题2选项
A.free themes
B.casual style
C.elaborate layout
D.radical viewpoints
问题3选项
A.It is writers’ duty to fulfill journalistic goals.
B.It is contemptible for writers to be journalists.
C.Writers are likely to be tempted into journalism.
D.Not all writers are capable of journalistic writing.
问题4选项
A.His music criticism may not appeal to readers today.
B.His reputation as a music critic has long been in dispute.
C.His style caters largely to modern specialists.
D.His writings fail to follow the amateur tradition.
问题5选项
A.Newspapers of the Good Old Days.
B.The Lost Horizon in Newspapers.
C.Mournful Decline of Journalism.
D.Prominent Critics in Memory.
第1题:B
第2题:A
第3题:D
第4题:A
第5题:C
第1题:
【选项释义】
It is indicated in Paragraphs 1 and 2 that ________. 第1段和第2段表明________。
A. arts criticism has disappeared from big-city newspapers A. 艺术评论已经从大城市的报纸上消失了
B. English-language newspapers used to carry more arts reviews B. 英语报纸过去具有更多的艺术评论
C. high-quality newspapers retain a large body of readers C. 高质量的报纸拥有大量的读者
D. young readers doubt the suitability of criticism on dailies D. 年轻读者怀疑日报上的评论是否合适
【答案】B
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据第一段内容“在过去四分之一世纪中,英语报纸上所发生的最有影响力的变化的可能是艺术报道的范围和严肃性的不可阻挡的下降(inexorable decline in the scope and seriousness of their arts coverage)”,和第二段内容“对于40岁以下的普通读者来说,很难想象这样一个时代,即大多数大城市的报纸上都能找到高质量的艺术评论。然而,在20世纪出版的大量最重要的批评文集中,很大一部分是由报纸评论组成的(consisted in large part of newspaper reviews)。如今读到这样的书的人不禁会对下面这个事实感到惊讶:这些评论之前竟然被认为适合在面向大众的日报上刊登。”,从中可知,这两段讨论的主要是英语报纸的艺术评论,从第一段中的inexorable decline in the scope and seriousness of their arts coverage(艺术报道的范围和严肃性的不可阻挡的下降)和第二段中的consisted in large part of newspaper reviews(很大一部分是由报纸评论组成的)可以看出,文章前两段是在强调以前的报纸关于艺术评论的数量很多,B项“英语报纸过去具有更多的艺术评论”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“艺术评论已经从大城市的报纸上消失了”,原文只是说decline,没有说消失,该项属于曲解原文;
C项“高质量的报纸拥有大量的读者”没有提到,属于无中生有;
D项“年轻读者怀疑日报上的评论是否合适”,从第二段最后一句中的marvel at the fact(感到惊讶)可知,marvel是大为惊讶的意思,常含赞叹之意,表明读者其实是赞同这些评论可以在报纸上刊登,该项中的doubt与marvel意思相反,该项属于反向干扰。
第2题:
【选项释义】
Newspaper reviews in England before WWII were characterized by ________. 二战前英国的报纸评论以________为特征。
A. free themes A. 自由主题
B. casual style B. 随意体
C. elaborate layout C. 精心布局
D. radical viewpoints D. 激进的观点
【答案】A
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干定位至第三段第一句“我们甚至远离了20世纪初到第二次世界大战前夕在英国发表的无重点的报纸评论(the unfocused newspaper reviews)……”,从中可知英国二战前的报纸评论是以unfocused为重点,而unfocused的意思是“not concentrated at one point or upon one objective(不专注于一点或一个目标)”,也就是说主题没有唯一性,A项“自由主题”中的free的英文解释是unrestricted,是unfocused的同义替换,故该题选择A项符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
B项“随意体”,根据第三段二、三句“在那些遥远的日子里,主要报纸的评论家们详尽地(in detail and at length)报道他们所报道的事件是理所当然的。他们的工作是严肃的(a serious business)……。”可知,英国二战前的报纸评论的主题虽然是unfocused,但是内容非常详尽且严肃,与B项中的casual相反,故该项属于反向干扰;
C项“精心布局”中layout并没有提到,该项属于无中生有;
D项“激进的观点”没有提到,该项属于无中生有。
第3题:
【选项释义】
Which of the following would Shaw and Newman most probably agree on? 肖和纽曼最可能同意下面哪个选项?
A. It is writers’ duty to fulfill journalistic goals. A. 实现新闻目标是作家的职责。
B. It is contemptible for writers to be journalists. B. 作家当记者是可耻的。
C. Writers are likely to be tempted into journalism. C. 作家们很可能受到引诱而从事新闻业。
D. Not all writers are capable of journalistic writing. D. 不是所有的作家都具备新闻写作的能力。
【答案】D
【考查点】细节事实题。
【解题思路】根据第三段最后一句“纽曼写道:很少有作家有足够的头脑或文学天赋把自己的目标放在新闻事业上(few authors have brains enough or literary gift enough to keep their own end up in journalism)……”可知,很少有作家具备新闻写作的头脑和文学天赋,D项“不是所有的作家都具备新闻写作的能力”中的not all与文中的few同义替换,故该题选择D项符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“实现新闻目标是作家的职责”和C项“作家们很可能受到引诱而从事新闻业”没有提到,这两项属于无中生有;
B项“作家当记者是可耻的”,根据倒数第二句“这些人相信新闻工作是一种职业,并以在日报上发表文章为荣”可知,该项与原文相反,属于反向干扰。
第4题:
【选项释义】
What can be learned about Cardus according to the last two paragraphs? 根据最后两段可以了解到关于卡德斯的什么信息?
A. His music criticism may not appeal to readers today. A. 他的音乐评论也许对今天的读者没有吸引力。
B. His reputation as a music critic has long been in dispute. B. 他作为音乐评论家的声誉长期以来饱受争议。
C. His style caters largely to modern specialists. C. 他的风格很大程度上迎合了现代专家的口味。
D. His writings fail to follow the amateur tradition. D. 他的作品没有遵循业余的传统。
【答案】A
【考查点】细节事实题。
【解题思路】根据最后一段第三句“早在他(卡德斯)去世之前,新闻的口味就已经发生了很大的变化,后现代主义读者对他所擅长的华丽的维多利亚式散文已经不感兴趣了(have little use for)”可知,新闻业的品味已经改变,读者不再需要卡德斯所擅长的风格,也就是说今天的读者对卡德斯的音乐评论不感兴趣,A项“他的音乐评论也许对今天的读者没有吸引力”中的not appeal to是have little use for的同义替换,故该题选择A项符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
B项“他作为音乐评论家的声誉长期以来饱受争议”,原文没有提到他的名声有争议,该项属于无中生有;
C项“他的风格很大程度上迎合了现代专家的口味”,新闻业口味的改变使得读者对卡德斯的风格并不敢兴趣,同样也不会迎合专家的口味,该项属于反向干扰;
D项“他的作品没有遵循业余的传统”,根据文章最后一句“音乐批评的业余传统已经在急速退却”可知,原文并没有提到卡德斯的作品是否遵循业余传统,该项属于无中生有。
第5题:
【选项释义】
What would be the best title for the text? 这篇文章最好的标题是什么?
A. Newspapers of the Good Old Days. A. 报纸行业过去的黄金岁月。
B. The Lost Horizon in Newspapers. B. 报纸行业消失的视野。
C. Mournful Decline of Journalism. C. 新闻业的悲哀衰落。
D. Prominent Critics in Memory. D. 记忆中的杰出评论家。
【答案】C
【考查点】主旨大意题。
【解题思路】首先定位第一段,该段点明了文章的主题“在过去四分之一世纪中,英语报纸上所发生的最有影响力的变化可能是艺术报道的范围和严肃性的不可阻挡的下降”,第二段承接第一段的内容,然后第三段首句指出“不幸的是,这些批评实际上被遗忘了”,言语之间是作者对报纸评论堕落的惋惜之情,最后第四段前两句提到“卡德斯的批评有可能重新流行吗?前景似乎很遥远。”,再次点明了作者所讨论的中心,即报纸行业的堕落,所以C项“新闻业的悲哀衰落”符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A项“报纸行业过去的黄金岁月”和B项“报纸行业消失的视野”没有表达出作者对报纸行业的惋惜之情,这两项属于曲解原文;
D项“记忆中的杰出评论家”,本文的中心不是怀恋过去,而是批判现在的堕落,该项属于曲解原文。
【文章来源】《社评杂志》(Commentary Magazine)2007
【参考译文】
过去的25年,在英文报纸发生的所有变化中,或许最具有深远意义的就是其文艺报道的范围在缩小,严肃性在减弱,势头不可阻挡。
年龄在40岁以下的普通读者很难想象那样一个能够在大部分的大城市报纸上找到高质量文艺评论的时代。然而,在大量20世纪出版的最重要的评论集中,有相当一部分是由报纸评论组成的。如今读到这样的书,会惊讶于这样一个事实:它们的学术内容曾经被认为适合发表在普通发行的日报上。
我们与20世纪初至二战前夕在英国出版的、没有重点的报纸评论相去甚远,那时新闻用纸非常便宜,时尚的文艺评论被认为是其所在出版刊物的点缀。在那些遥远的日子里,人们理所当然地认为,主流报纸的评论家会详细充分地记录他们所报道的事件。他们从事的是严肃的事业,即使是像萧伯纳和欧内斯特•纽曼这样以轻松活泼方式显露自己知识的评论家,也可以相信他们知道自己在做什么。这些人相信新闻工作是一种使命,并为自己的作品在日报上发表而感到自豪。纽曼写道:“很少有作家有足够的头脑或文学天赋来维持自己在新闻行业的发展,因此我很想把‘新闻’定义为‘一种被不被阅读的作家用来鄙视那些被阅读的作家的术语’。”
不幸的是,这些批评家实际上被遗忘了。内维尔•卡德斯从1917年到1975年去世前不久一直为曼彻斯特卫报撰稿,现在只以写关于板球运动的随笔为人所知。然而,在他的一生中,他也是英国最重要的古典音乐评论家之一,而且是一位广受赞誉的文体家,以至于他的《自传》(1947年)成为畅销书。1967年,他被封为爵士,成为首位获此殊荣的音乐评论家。然而,他的书现在只有一本在印刷,而他大量的音乐著作除了专家外都不为人知。
卡杜斯的批评有可能复兴吗?前景似乎很遥远。早在他去世之前,新闻品味就已经发生了变化,后现代读者对他所擅长的维多利亚时代的华丽散文没什么兴趣。此外,音乐评论的业余传统也在急速衰退。