Question

The Peales were a famous family of American artists. Charles Willson Peale is best remembered for his portraits of leading figures of the American Revolution. He painted portraits of Franklin and Jefferson and over a dozen of George Washington. His life-size portrait of his sons Raphaelle and Titian was so realistic that George Washington reportedly once tipped his hat to the figures in the picture.

    Charles Willson Peale gave up painting in his middle age and devoted his life to the Peale museum, which he founded in Philadelphia. The world’s first popular museum of art and natural science mainly covered paintings by Peale and his family as well as displays of animals in their natural settings. Peale found the animals himself and found a method to make the exhibits more lifelike. The museum’s most popular display was the skeleton (骷髅) of a huge, extinct elephant, which Peale unearthed on a New York farm in 1801.

    Three of Peale’s seventeen children were also famous artists. Paphaelle Peale often painted still lives of flowers, fruit, and cheese. His brother Rembrandt studied under his father and painted portraits of many noted people, including one of George Washington. Another brother, Rubens Peale, painted mostly landscapes and portraits.

    James Peale, the brother of Charles Willson Peale, specialized in miniatures (小画像). His daughter Sarah Miriam Peale was probably the first professional female portrait painter in America.

1.What is the main topic of the passage?

A. The life of Charles Willson Peale.                     B. Portraits in the 18th century.

C. The Peale Museum.                                                      D. A family of artists.

2.The underlined word “unearthed” is closest in meaning to“ ______”.

A. showed                   B. dug up                  C. invented              D. looked over

3.Which of the following is NOT the child of Charles Willson Peale?

A. Titian Peale.          B. Rubens Peale.      C. Raphaelle Peale. D. Sarah Miriam Peale.

4.The author’s attitude toward the Peales is in general _______.

A. puzzled                   B. excited                  C. admiring                         D. disappointed

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.D

2.B

3.D

4.C

【解析】

试题分析：这篇文章讲的是一个艺术之家。家庭的成员和他们主要的艺术成就。

1.主旨题：从第一段的句子：The Peales were a famous family of American artists.可知这篇文章讲的是一个艺术之家。选D

2.猜词题：从这句话The museum’s most popular display was the skeleton (骷髅) of a huge, extinct elephant, which Peale unearthed on a New York farm in 1801.可知大象的骷髅是从纽约的一个农场挖掘出来的。选B

3.细节题：从倒数第二段的句子：Three of Peale’s seventeen children were also famous artists. Paphaelle Peale …. His brother Rembrandt ….Another brother, Rubens Peale, 可知没有D项，而最后一段可知Sarah Miriam Peale.是 Charles Willson Peale的侄女。选D。

4.作者态度题：从第一段的词：best，realistic等词，可知作者对这个艺术之家是很敬佩的，选C

考点：考查文化类短文

点评：这篇文章讲的是一个艺术之家。家庭的成员和他们主要的艺术成就。考查较为全面合理，要求考生在阅读时，把握大意，注意细节。要迅速抓住要抓住文章的中心思想，还有相关细节。关键是找出原文的根据，认真核查题支和原文的异同。带着问题，再读全文，找出答题所需要的依据，完成阅读。