2014年北京成人学位英语冲刺试题及答案三
Many a young person tells me he wants to be a writer. I always encourage such people, but I also explain that there’’s a big difference between "being a writer" and writing. In most cases these individuals are dreaming of wealth and fame, not the long hour alone at a typewriter. "You’’ve got to want to write," I say to them, "not want to be a writer".
The reality is that writing is a lonely, private and poor-paying affair. For every writer kissed by fortune there are thousands more whose longing is never rewarded. When I left a 20-year career in the U.S. Coast Guard to become a freelance(自由栏目 )writer, I had no prospects at all. What I did have was a friend who found me my room in a New York apartment building. It didn’’t even matter that it was cold and had no bathroom. I immediately bought a used manual typewriter and felt like a genuine writer.
After a year or so, however, I still hadn’’t gotten a break and began to doubt myself. It was so hard to sell a story that I barely made enough to eat. But I knew I wanted to write, I had dreamed about it for years. I wasn’’t going to be one of those people who die wondering: What if ? I would keep putting my dream to the test even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure. This is the shadowland of hope, and anyone with a dream must learn to live there.
11. The passage is meant to______.
A warn young people of the hardships that a successful writer has to experience
B advise young people to give up their idea of becoming a professional writer
C show young people it’s unrealistic for a writer to pursue wealth and fame
D encourage young people to pursue a writing career
答案:A
这道题考察考生对文章的整体把握能力。作者在开头便点明写作和成为作家是不同的，指出 很多年轻人的想法是不成熟的。接下来又以亲身经历说明成为作家的艰辛。
12. What can be concluded from the passage?
A Genuine writers often find their work interesting and rewarding.
B A writer’s success depends on luck rather than on efforts.
C Famous writers usually live in poverty and isolation.
D The chances for writer to become successful are small
答案:D
一个作家成功的比率是非常小的。在文章的第二段中提到For every writer kissed by fortune there are thousands more whose longing is never rewarded．虽然有一些可以得到财富，但上千的作家的努力却得不到回报。说明作家成功是非常困难的。
13. Why did the author begin to doubt himself after the first year of his writing career?
A He wasn’t able to produce a single book.
B He hadn’t seen aching for the better.
C He wasn’t able to have a rest for a whole year.
D He though that he lacked imagination.
答案:B
作者在从事写作的年怀疑自己是应为他没有看到情况比一开始有所好转。
14. …people who die wondering: What if ?(Para-3) refers to "those_____".
A who think too much of the dark side of life
B who regret giving up their career halfway
C who think a lot without making a decision
D who are full of imagination even upon death
答案:C
因为这些人总去问what if，说明他们总是犹豫不决，对自己的未来举棋不定，做不出终决定。
15. Shadowland in the last sentence refers to_____.
A the wonderland on often dreams about
B the bright future that one is looking forward to
C the state of uncertainty before one’s final goal is reached
D a world that exists only in one’s imagination
答案:C
这道题考察对词汇的理解。shadowland是指一种在目标实现前的不确定状态。
责编：cll