Question

13．Some people seem easy to understand：their character appears obvious on first meeting．Appearances，however，can be deceptive．For thirty years now I have been studying my fellowmen．I don't know very much about them．I shrug my shoulders when people tell me that their first impressions of a person are always right．I think they must have small insight or great vanity．For my own part I find that the longer I know people，the more they puzzle me．
I read in this morning's paper that Edward Hyde Burton had died．He was a merchant and he had been in business in Japan for many years．Once he gave me a great surprise．Unless I had heard the story from his own lips，I'd never have velieved that he was capable of such an action．He was always neatly and quietly dressed in accordance with his age and position．He didn't talk much，but what he said was sensible．Tou couldn't imagine he'd possible raise his voice in anger．Here was a man who attracted you because you felt in him a real love for his fellows．He'd tell with point a good and spicy story，and in his youth he'd been something of an athete．He was a rich man and he'd made every penny himself．I suppose one thing that made you like him was that he was so weak； he arounsed your instinets（本能）of protection．You felt he couldn't bear to hurt a fly．
    One afternoon Burton told me a"funny"story in a quiet，dry humour：
"There was a namesake（同名人）of mine，who was the best bridge player I ever met．He  seemed to  have a fantastic instinct about the cards．I used to play with him a lot．"
"He was handsome in a way with curly hair and pink-and-white cleeks．Women thought a lot of him．There was no harm in him，he was only wild．Pf course he drank too much．He won a good deal of my money by card-playing．"
"One day he came to me when he went broke．He came to see me in my office and asked me for a job．I asked him how old he was．
"'Thirty-five'，he said．"
"'And what have you been doing hitherto？'I asked him．
"'Well，nothing very much，'he said．
"'I'm afraid I can't do anything for you just yet，'I said．'Come back and see me in another thirty-five years，and I'll see what I can do．'
"He didn't move．He went rather pale．He hesitated for a moment and then he told me that he had had bad luck at cards for some time．He hadn't been willing to stick to bridge，he'd been playing poker，and he'd got trimmed．He hadn't a penny．He'd pawned everything he had．He couldn't pay his hotel bill and they wouldn't give him any more credit．He was down and out．If he couldn't get something to do he'd have to commit suicide．
"I looked at him for a bit．I could see now that he was all to pieces．He'd been drinking more than usual and he looked fifty．The girls wouldn't have thought so much of him if they'd seen him then．
"I got some glimmering of what he was driving at．I've known too many men who were little tin gods at their university．
"Suddenly I had an idea．"Pausing in his story，Burton turned to me．"When I was young I swam over three miles round the beacon（灯塔）and landed at the river of Tarumi．It's rather difficult on account of the currents round the beacon．Well，I told my young fellow about it and I said that if he'd do it I'd give him a job．
"I could see he was rather taken aback．He was not in good condition for sports．He looked at me for a moment and then he nodded．"
"I told him I'd drive round to the river at half past twelve and meet him．
"Done，"he said．
"I wished him good luck and he left me．I had a lot of work to do that morning and I only just managed to the creek at Tarumi at half past twelve．But I needn't have hurried；he never turned up．
"Did he funk it at the last moment？"I asked．
"No，he didn't funk it．He started all right．But of course he'd ruined his constitution by drink．The currents round the beacon were more than he could manage．We didn't get the body for about three days
I didn't say anything for a moment or two．I was a trifle shocked．Then I asked．
"When you made him that offer of a job，did you know he'd be drowned？'
    He looked at me with his kind blue eyes，smiling．"Well，I hadn't got a vacancy in my office at the moment．"

55．The author believesC．
A．some people are too easy to understand
B．appearance is just opposite to the quality
C．first impressions can be misleading
D．his fellowmen are not understandable
56．For some time，Edward Burton impressed the author most with hisD．
A．age and position                                  
B．wealth and ability
C．sensibility and humor           
D．kindness and weakness
57．The underlined words"he was all to pieces"may meanB．
A．he was mad and wild             
B．he was completely down
C．he was sick and dirty           
D．he was totally drunk
58．We can infer from Burton's story that his namesakesA．
A．never saw through his trick     
B．annoyed him by playing cards
C．could not do any job well       
D．intended to cheat him with a lie
59．We learned from the story that Edward BurtonB．
A．knew the young man would kill himself
B．arranged the end of his namesake's life
C．did much for the poor fellowman
D．killed his card-friend by mistake
60．Edward Burton could be described as a（n）Dperson．
A．innocent      
B．smart         
C．careless      
D．evil．

Answer 1

分析 本文主要讲述了作者不相信人的第一印象，对作者而言，他认识别人越久越能看出他们的真实性格，并举了爱德华先生的例子，说明如果不是爱德华亲自给他讲了那个故事他不会相信爱德华先生会作出那样的事，通过这篇文章告诉我们不要轻信对人的第一印象．

解答 55．C  细节理解题，由第一段Some people seem easy to understand：their character appears obvious on first meeting．Appearances，however，can be deceptive．及For my own part I find that the longer I know people，the more they puzzle me．可知对于作者来说第一印象可能会误导自己，故选C．
56．D  理解推断题，由第二段I suppose one thing that made you like him was that he was so weak； he arounsed your instinets（本能）of protection．You felt he couldn't bear to hurt a fly．可知爱德华会使你本能地去保护他，所以他很虚弱，而他不忍心伤害一只苍蝇可以看出他的善良，故选D．
57．B  细节理解题，根据I could see now that he was all to pieces．He'd been drinking more than usual and he looked fifty．The girls wouldn't have thought so much of him if they'd seen him then．可以看出他比以前喝的还多，看起来像五十多岁，由此可知他已经完全失望了，故选B．
58．A   细节理解题，根据No，he didn't funk it．He started all right．But of course he'd ruined his constitution by drink．The currents round the beacon were more than he could manage．We didn't get the body for about three days可以看出与爱德华同名的人最终去了灯塔，没有看出这个条件是爱德华测试他的计谋，故选A．
59．B  细节理解题，由最后一段 He looked at me with his kind blue eyes，smiling．"Well，I hadn't got a vacancy in my office at the moment．"可知爱德华最后给了与他同名的人工作，故选B．
60．D  细节理解题，根据It's rather difficult on account of the currents round the beacon．Well，I told my young fellow about it and I said that if he'd do it I'd give him a job．及But of course he'd ruined his constitution by drink．The currents round the beacon were more than he could manage．We didn't get the body for about three days．可知爱德华明知灯塔附近的激流与他同名的人对付不了还开出这个条件体现了爱德华的邪恶计谋，故选D．

点评 本文考察学生的故事类阅读理解，抓住题干关键词，采用寻读的方法查找细节，能根据已知结果推测导致结果的可能原因．