翻译考试历年中级口译真题(17)_第5页

Questions 21～25
       Great  emotional  and  intellectual  resources  are  demanded  in  quarrels;  stamina  helps,  as does a capacity for obsession. But no one is born a good quarreller; the craft must be learned.

       There are two generally recognised apprenticeships. First, and universally preferred, is a long childhood spent in the company of fractious siblings. After several years of rainy afternoons, brothers and sister  develop a sure feel for the tactics of attrition and the niceties of strategy so necessary in first-rate quarrelling.

     The only child, or the child of peaceful or repressed households, is likely to grow up failing to understand that quarrels, unlike arguments, are not about anything, least of all the pursuit of truth. The apparent subject of a quarrel is a mere pretext; the real business is the quarrel itself.

      Essentially, adversaries in a quarrel are out to establish or rescue their  dignity. Hence the elementary principle: anything may be said. The unschooled, probably no less quarrelsome by inclination than anyone else, may spend an hour with knocking heart, sifting the consequences of calling this old acquaintance a lying fraud. Too late! With a cheerful wave the old acquaintance has left the room.

      Those who miss their first apprenticeship may care to enrol in the second, the bad marriage. This can be perilous for the neophyte; the mutual intimacy of spouses makes them at once more vulnerable and more dangerous in attack. Once sex is involved, the stakes are higher all round. And there is an  unspoken rule that  those who love,  or  have loved, one another  are granted a licence for unlimited beastliness such as is denied to mere sworn enemies. For all that, some of our most tenacious black belt quarrellers have come to it late in lie and mastered every throw, from the Grushing Silence to the Gloating Apology, in less than ten years of marriage.

      A quarrel may last years among brooding types with time on their hands, like writers, half a lifetime is not uncommon. In its most refined form, a quarrel may consist of the participants not talking  to  each  other.  They  will  need  to  scheme  laboriously  to  appear  in  public  together  to register their silence.

      Brief, violent quarrels are also known as rows. In all cases the essential ingredient remains the  same;  the  original  must  be  forgotten  as  soon  as  possible.  From  here  on,  dignity,  pride, self-esteem   honour    are  the  crucial  issues, which    is why    quarrelling,  like  jealousy,  is an all-consuming business, virtually a profession. For the quarreler's very sefl-hood is on the line. To  lose  an  argument  is  a  brief  disappointment,  much  like  losing  a  game  of tennis, but  to be crushed in a quarrel...rather bite off your tongue and spread it at your opponent's feet.

21. Unschooled quarrelers are said to be at disadvantage because_________.
    A. their insults fail to offend their opponent
    B. they reveal their nervousness to their opponent
    C. they suffer from remorse for what they've said
    D. they are apprehensive about speaking their minds
22. According to the writer, quarrels between married couples may be_________.
    A. physically violent                           B. extremely frequent
    C. essentially trivial                          D. sincerely regretted
23. When quarreling, both children and married couples may__________.
    A. be particularly brutal                      B. use politeness as a weapon
    C. employ skillful maneuvers                   D. exaggerate their feelings
24. The difference between a quarrel and an argument is said to be that__________.
    A. the former involves individual egos
    B. the former concerns strong points of view
    C. the latter has well-established rules
    D. the latter concerns trivial issues
25. In the passage as a whole, the writer treats quarreling as if it were__________.
    A. a military campaign                         B. a social skill              
    C. a moral evil                                   D. a natural gift

Questions 26～30
      When an  individual  enters  the  presence  of  others, they commonly seek   to  acquire information about him or to bring into play information about him already possessed. They will be interested in  his general  socio-economic  status, his conception  of  self, his attitude towards them, his competence and his trustworthiness. Although  some of this information  seems to be sought  almost  as  an  end  in  itself,  there  are  usually  quite  practical  reasons  for  acquiring  it. Information    about   the  individual  helps  to  define  the   situation,  enabling   others  to  know    in advance what he will expect of them and what they may expect of him. Informed in these ways, the others will know how best to act in order to call forth a desired response from him.

      For  those present, many  sources of information become accessible and many carriers (or“sign-vehicles”) become available for  conveying this information. If unacquatinted with the individual, observers can glean clues from his conduct and appearnce which allow them to apply their  previous  experience  with  individuals  roughly  similar  to  the  one  before  them  or,  more important, to apply untested stereotypes to him. They can also assume from past experience that only individuals of a particular kind are likely to be found in a given social setting. They can rely on what the individual  says about himself or  on  documentary evidence he provides as to who and what he is. If prior to the interaction, they can rely on assumptions as to the persistence and generality of psychological traits as a means of prediciting his present and future behaviour

      However,  during  the period  in  which  the  individual  is  in  the  immediate  presence  of the others, few events may occur which directly provide the others with the conclusive information they will need if they are to direct wisely their  own activity. Many crucial facts lie beyond the time and place of interaction to lie concealed within it. For example,“true”or real attitudes, beliefs and emotions of the individual can be ascertained only indirectly, through his avowals or through what appears to be involuntary expressive behaviour. Similarly, if the individual offers the others a product or  service, they will often find that  during the interaction there will be no time and place immediately available for eating the pudding that the proof can be found in. They will be forced to accept some e vents as conventional or natural signs of something not directly available to the senses.

26. In paragraph 2, what does the underlined word “ them”in“ ...which allow them to apply  their previous experience with individuals...”refer to?
    A. beliefs                                          B. emotions
    C. individuals                                    D. observers
27. The expression“untested stereotypes”(paragraph 2) means_________.
    A. unstable mental characteristics
    B. the capacity not proved by a person's earning power
    C. fixed views that have not been questioned
    D. areas of information not available
28.  When people meet someone they generally want to find out all of  the following EXCEPT_____.
    A. his general socio-economic status
    B. his general attitude towards life
    C. his future behaviour
    D. key information about his education
29.  Which of  the following  is NOT  true about  the points given by the author about self-presentation?
      A.  Key factors in self-presentation are to do with personality,  characteristics and socio-economic status.
      B. People carry sign-vehicles—such as appearance and conduct—that give information about them.
      C. Self-presentation may mask deeper realities
      D. Self-presentation is important for successful interpersonal communication.
30. According to the passage, how can people find out about another person's“real”beliefs and attitudes?
      A. By studying crucial facts               B. by talking with the person.
      C. Only directly.                               D. Only indirectly.