Question

Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that generally things turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may well be successful atwork and in love.

But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example，you may fail to obtain a new job，another chance will come around soon), Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams in your face. That's bitter reality.

Now a book has been published which confirms what we pessimists(悲观者）have suspected all along. It's called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better. ”

So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on a date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” and “ Don’t count your chickens until they hatch. “ To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien，the American comedian says, ”Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”

There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.

1.What is the passage mainly about?

A．A book that has recently been published.

B．The dangers of being too optimistic.

C．How to become successful in life.

D．The benefits of defensive pessimism.

2.The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” in paragraph 4 means     .

A．it is quite simple to understand             B．there is no real proof

C．it’s not a dangerous thing to do            D．the cost is not so high

3.The writer would probably describe himself as          .

A．an optimist        B．a defeatist         C．a realist           D．a scientist

4.Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?

A．“Every cloud has a silver lining.”           B．“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”

C．“Whatever will be, will be.”              D．“The glass is half full not half empty.”

 

Answer 1

【答案】

1.D

2.A

3.C

4.B

【解析】

试题分析：文章主要表示的是乐观和悲观各有优缺点，不要太在乎。

1.主旨大意题。文章在第一段提出了人应该乐观一点会更好，接着主要讨论了要做一个有意识的悲观者，因为这样的悲观者才会对以后的事情做好充分的准备，会有详细的计划和安排。那样才能有更好的结果。故D正确。

2.推理题。谚语This is not rocket science.中的rocket science指困难的事情，指那些很难以理解的事情。本句话的意思就是指这很好理解，不是那么难以理解的事物。故A正确。

3.推理题。根据第二段的最后三句：当上帝关上一扇门的时候，他会为你打开另外一扇门。但是实际上并不是总是如此，说明他对待一切是很现实的。以及文章后几段的内容可在C正确。

4.推理题。根据文章倒数第二段3,4行There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,”说明该谚语就是指那些表示谨慎的谚语，故B项符合那些pessimists (悲观者）的特点。故B正确。

考点：考查议论文

点评：此类阅读理解首先要能基本读懂文章，然后再根据问题，在文章中去找到相应的依据，研究相关信息句给出准确的答案。特别是对一些长句难句的理解要细致。