托福考前练习题 带解析

　　But neither the human imitative instinct nor a penchant for fantasy by itself leads to anautonomous theater. Therefore, additional explanations are needed. One necessary conditionseems to be a somewhat detached view of human problems. For example, one sign of thiscondition is the appearance of the comic vision, since comedy requires sufficientdetachment to view some deviations from social norms as ridiculous rather than as seriousthreats to the welfare of the entire group. Another condition that contributes to thedevelopment of autonomous theater is the emergence of the aesthetic sense. For example,some early societies ceased to consider certain rites essential to their well-being andabandoned them, nevertheless, they retained as parts of their oral tradition the myths thathad grown up around the rites and admired them for their artistic qualities rather than for theirreligious usefulness.

　　Paragraph 1:　In seeking to describe the origins of theater, one must rely primarily onspeculation, since there is little concrete evidence on which to draw. The most widelyaccepted theory, championed by anthropologists in the late nineteenth and early twentiethcenturies, envisions theater as emerging out of myth and ritual. The process perceived bythese anthropologists may be summarized briefly. During the early stages of its development, asociety becomes aware of forces that appear to influence or control its food supply and well-being. Having little understanding of natural causes, it attributes both desirable andundesirable occurrences to supernatural or magical forces, and it searches for means to winthe favor of these forces. Perceiving an apparent connection between certain actionsperformed by the group and the result it desires, the group repeats, refines and formalizesthose actions into fixed ceremonies, or rituals.

　　1. The word "championed" in the passage is closest in meaning to

　　○Changed

　　○Debated

　　○Created

　　○Supported

　　2. The word "attributes" in the passage is closest in meaning to

　　○Ascribes

　　○Leaves

　　○Limits

　　○Contrasts

　　3. According to paragraph 1, theories of the origins of theater

　　○Are mainly hypothetical

　　○Are well supported by factual evidence

　　○Have rarely been agreed upon by anthropologists

　　○Were expressed in the early stages of theater's development

　　4. According to paragraph 1, why did some societies develop and repeat ceremonial actions?

　　○To establish a positive connection between the members of the society

　　○To help society members better understand the forces controlling their food supply

　　○To distinguish their beliefs from those of other societies

　　○To increase the society's prosperity

　　Paragraph 2:Stories (myths) may then grow up around a ritual. Frequently the myths includerepresentatives of those supernatural forces that the rites celebrate or hope to influence.Performers may wear costumes and masks to represent the mythical characters orsupernatural forces in the rituals or in accompanying celebrations. As a people becomes moresophisticated, its conceptions of supernatural forces and causal relationships may change. Asa result, it may abandon or modify some rites. But the myths that have grown up around therites may continue as part of the group's oral tradition and may even come to be acted outunder conditions divorced from these rites. When this occurs, the first step has been takentoward theater as an autonomous activity, and thereafter entertainment and aesthetic valuesmay gradually replace the former mystical and socially efficacious concerns.

　　5. The word "this" in the passage refers to

　　○The acting out of rites

　　○The divorce of ritual performers from the rest of society

　　○The separation of myths from rites

　　○The celebration of supernatural forces

　　6. The word "autonomous" in the passage is closest in meaning to

　　○Artistic

　　○Important

　　○Independent

　　○Established

　　7. According to paragraph 2, what may cause societies to abandon certain rites?

　　○Emphasizing theater as entertainment

　　○Developing a new understanding of why events occur.

　　○Finding a more sophisticated way of representing mythical characters

　　○Moving from a primarily oral tradition to a more written tradition

　　Paragraph 5:In addition to exploring the possible antecedents of theater, scholars have alsotheorized about the motives that led people to develop theater. Why did theater develop, andwhy was it valued after it ceased to fulfill the function of ritual? Most answers fall back on thetheories about the human mind and basic human needs. One, set forth by Aristotle in thefourth century B.C., sees humans as naturally imitative-as taking pleasure in imitatingpersons, things, and actions and in seeing such imitations. Another, advanced in the twentiethcentury, suggests that humans have a gift for fantasy, through which they seek to reshapereality into more satisfying forms than those encountered in daily life. Thus, fantasy or fiction(of which drama is one form) permits people to objectify their anxieties and fears, confrontthem, and fulfill their hopes in fiction if not fact. The theater, then, is one tool whereby peopledefine and understand their world or escape from unpleasant realities.