2014年英语四级阅读练习及答案讲解(4)

　　还有两个多月的时间2014年6月的英语四级考试就要来了，下面小编为大家整理的2014年英语四级阅读练习及答案讲解，供各位考生参考。

　　Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth)

　　Section B

　　Passage Two

　　It's an annual argument. Do we or do we not go on holiday? My partner says no because the boiler could go, or the roof fall off, and we have no savings to save us. I say that you only live once and we work hard and what's the point if you can't go on holiday. The joy of a recession means no argument next year – we just won't go.

　　Since money is known to be one of the things most likely to bring a relationship to its knees, we should be grateful. For many families the recession means more than not booking a holiday. A YouGov poll of 2,000 people found 22% said they were arguing more with their partners because of concerns about money. What's less clear is whether divorce and separation rates rise in a recession – financial pressures mean couples argue more but make splitting up less affordable. A recent research shows arguments about money were especially damaging to couples. Disputes were characterized by intense verbal aggression, tended to be repeated and not resolved, and made men, more than women, extremely angry.

　　Kim Stephenson, an occupational psychologist, believes money is such a big deal because of what it symbolizes, which may be different things to men and women. "People can say the same things about money but have different conceptions of what it is for," he explains. "They will say it's to save, to spend, for security, for freedom, to show someone you love them" He says men are more likely to see money as a way of buying status and of showing their parents that they've achieved something.

　　"The biggest problem is that couples assume each other knows what is going on with their finances, but they don't. There seems to be more of a taboo about talking about money than talking about death. But you both need to know what you are doing, who is paying what into the joint account and how much you keep separately. In a healthy relationship you don't have to agree about money, but you have to talk about it."

　　62. What does the author say about vacationing?

　　A People enjoy it all the more during a recession

　　B Few people can afford it without working hard

　　C It makes all the hard work worthwhile

　　D It is the chief cause of family disputes

　　63. What does the author mean by saying “money is known… to bring a relationship to its knees” (Line1 Para. 2)?

　　A Money is considered to be the root of all evils

　　B Some people sacrifice their dignity for money

　　C Few people can resist the temptation of money

　　D Disputes over money may ruin a relationship

　　64. The YouGov poll of 2000 people indicates that in a recession _________________.

　　A conflicts between couples tend to rise

　　B it is more expensive for couples to split up

　　C couples show more concern for each other

　　D divorce and separation rates increase

　　65. What does Kim Stephenson believe?

　　A Money is often a symbol of a person’s status

　　B Money means a great deal to both men and women

　　C Men and women spend money on different things

　　D Men and women view money in different ways

　　66. The author suggests at the end of the passage that couples should ________________

　　A put their money together instead of keeping it separately

　　B make efforts to reach agreement on their family budgets

　　C discuss money matters to maintain a healthy relationship

　　D avoid arguing about money matters to remain romantic

　　【讲解答案】

　　Section B

　　62.【解析】[D]主旨题。本篇主要讨论不同的领导者(如instrumental leaders以及expressive leaders)在不同的社会群体中所充当的角色和发挥的功能。所以D为正确答案。A、B、C选项都不能正确概括本文主旨。

　　63.【解析】[C]细节题。A选项的招募(recruitment)和B选项选举程序(election process)都在第一段中作为大群体的领导者产生的方式被明确提到。D选项也在第一段中作为家庭领导者的产生的方式被明确提到。只有C选项没有作为产生领导者的一种方式在本文中被提及。

　　64.【解析】[A]推断题。A选项意思是：某一特定群体的有效领导者，不一定就可以成为另一群体的有效领导者。这正好与第二段的意思相吻合，即领导者没有一个固定的特点，只是符合了一个特定群体需要的人就有可能成为该群体的领导者(It seems...virtually any person may be recognized as a leader if the person has qualities that meet the needs of that particular group)。B选项和C选项的意思与本文无关。D选项意为：许多人想成为领导者，但却很少能拿出证据来证明他们具有这样的资格。显然是对文章意思的曲解。

　　65.【解析】[B]细节题。第二段中“...decades of research have failed to produce consistentevidence that there is any category of ‘natural leaders’”意思是说数十年来的研究并不能找出可靠证据来证明哪些人可以成为“天生领导者”，与B项意思一致。

　　66.【解析】[D]细节题。第三、四段主要讲了两种类型的领导者的区别。其中instrumental leader侧重于群体目标的实现，而expressive leader相对于前者并不侧重于群体目标的实现，而是注重为群体成员提供情感支持，并尽力减少内部纷争。(Expressive leaders are less concerned with the overall goals of the group than with providing emotional support to group members and attempting to minimizetension and conflict among them。)