2014年6月大学英语四级复习题及答案(第五套)_第3页

　　No one expressed this attitude more strongly than Noah Webster (1758?1843).

　　Born near Nartford, Connecticut, he received his education at Yale College and later began to practise law. But business in this profession was slow, and he was forced to turn to teaching. As a teacher, he soon discovered that the English school　books then in use were unsatisfactory, and the American Revolution reduced the supply of such books as there were. Webster therefore began to work on three simple　books on English, a spelling book, a grammar, and a reader, and these were the first books of their kind to be published in this country. The success of the first　part was surprisingly great. It was soon issued again under the title THE AMERICAN SPELLING BOOK, and in this form about 80 million copies were sold during the　next hundred years. From a profit of less than one cent a copy, Webster got most of his income for the rest of his life. Not only did the little book have great influence on many generations of school children, but it also had the effect or turning its author's attention to questions of language. In 1806 he produced a small dictionary,and this was followed by his greatest work, AN AMERICAN DICTIONARY OF　THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, published in two volumes in1828. In both of these works and in many smaller writings he had one purpose: to show that the Englsih language　in his country was a truly American thing, developing in its own special way and deserving to be considered from an independent, American point of view. As he　himself wrote,“ It is not only important, but in a degree necessary, that the people of this country should have an AMERICAN DICTIONARY of the English language; for, although the body of the language is the same as in England…some differences exist…. No person in this country will be satisfied with the English definitions of the words congress, senate, assembly, court, and so forth, for although these are words　used in England, yet they are applied in this country to express ideas which they do not express in that country.” By giving American meanings and American pronunciation, by adopting a number of American spellings, and especially by introducing quotations from American authors beside those from English literature, he was able, to a great extent, to justify the title of his work. If, after a hundred　years, some people still doubt the existence of a separate American language,　his efforts, nevertheless, have left a lasting mark on the language of his country.

　　? 31.Webster first tried to earn his living in the field of ____.

　　? A) education C) law

　　? B) journalism D) medicine

　　? 32.Webster earned most of his money from the sale of his ____.

　　? A) dictionary of 1828 C) grammar

　　? B) spelling book D) reader

　　? 33.Apparently Webster published his first books while he was a　____.

　　? A) teacher C) lawyer

　　? B) student D) doctor

　　? 34.This article could be entitled ____.

　　? A) Noah Webster and American English Spelling

　　? B) Noah Webster, the author of An American Dictionary of the English Language

　　? C) Noah Webster

　　? D) Noah Webster and American English Grammar

　　? 35.According to the article, Webster ____.

　　? A) had created American English and its usages

　　? B) had discovered American English and improved it

　　? C) had tried his best and left a milestone on the language of his country

　　? D) had left a language which was not used in England.