Part A: Reading Comprehension

Directions: Read the following text. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on the ANSWER SHEET. (40 points)

Text 4

“The Heart of the Matter,” the just-released report by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS), deserves praise for affirming the importance of the humanities and social sciences to the prosperity and security of liberal democracy in America. Regrettably, however, the report’s failure to address the true nature of the crisis facing liberal education may cause more harm than good.

In 2010, leading congressional Democrats and Republicans sent letters to the AAAS asking that it identify actions that could be taken by “federal, state and local governments, universities, foundations, educators, individual benefactors and others” to “maintain national excellence in humanities and social scientific scholarship and education.” In response, the American Academy formed the Commission on the Humanities and Social Sciences. Among the commission’s 51 members are top-tier university presidents, scholars, lawyers, judges, and business executives, as well as prominent figures from diplomacy, filmmaking, music and journalism.

The goals identified in the report are generally admirable. Because representative government presupposes an informed citizenry, the report supports full literacy; stresses the study of history and government, particularly American history and American government; and encourages the use of new digital technologies. To encourage innovation and competition, the report calls for increased investment in research, the crafting of coherent curricula that improve students’ ability to solve problems and communicate effectively in the 21st century, increased funding for teachers and the encouragement of scholars to bring their learning to bear on the great challenges of the day. The report also advocates greater study of foreign languages, international affairs and the expansion of study abroad programs.

Unfortunately, despite 2½ years in the making, “The Heart of the Matter” never gets to the heart of the matter: the illiberal nature of liberal education at our leading colleges and universities. The commission ignores that for several decades America’s colleges and universities have produced graduates who don’t know the content and character of liberal education and are thus deprived of its benefits. Sadly, the spirit of inquiry once at home on campus has been replaced by the use of the humanities and social sciences as vehicles for publicizing “progressive,” or left-liberal propaganda.

Today, professors routinely treat the progressive interpretation of history and progressive public policy as the proper subject of study while portraying conservative or classical liberal ideas—such as free markets and self-reliance—as falling outside the boundaries of routine, and sometimes legitimate, intellectual investigation.

The AAAS displays great enthusiasm for liberal education. Yet its report may well set back reform by obscuring the depth and breadth of the challenge that Congress asked it to illuminate.

36. According to Paragraph 1, what is the author’s attitude toward the AAAS’s report?

[A]

Critical. 

[B]

Appreciative. 

[C]

Contemptuous. 

[D]

Tolerant. 

37. Influential figures in the Congress required that the AAAS report on how to

[A]

define the government’s role in education. 

[B]

safeguard individuals’ rights to education. 

[C]

retain people’s interest in liberal education. 

[D]

keep a leading position in liberal education. 

38. According to Paragraph 3, the report suggests

[A]

an exclusive study of American history. 

[B]

a greater emphasis on theoretical subjects. 

[C]

the application of emerging technologies. 

[D]

funding for the study of foreign languages. 

39. The author implies in Paragraph 5 that professors are

[A]

supportive of free markets. 

[B]

conservative about public policy. 

[C]

biased against classical liberal ideas. 

[D]

cautious about intellectual investigation. 

40. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

[A]

Ways to Grasp “The Heart of the Matter” 

[B]

Illiberal Education and “The Heart of the Matter” 

[C]

The AAAS’s Contribution to Liberal Education 

[D]

Progressive Policy vs. Liberal Education 

Answers & Explanations (答案与深度解析)

试题精解

36. [A] Critical.
【解析】态度题。第一段首句虽然对报告进行了表扬（deserves praise），但紧接着用“Regrettably, however...”进行了强烈转折，指出报告未能解决真正的危机，甚至“may cause more harm than good（可能弊大于利）”。后文四、五、六段均在批判报告“避重就轻”，忽视了校园里的非自由主义倾向。因此，作者对该报告的态度是“批判的（Critical）”。

37. [D] keep a leading position in liberal education.
【解析】细节题。第二段第一句指出，国会要求 AAAS 确定采取哪些行动来“maintain national excellence in humanities and social scientific scholarship and education（保持在人文和社会科学学术与教育方面的国家卓越地位）”。其中“maintain national excellence（保持国家卓越地位）”完美同义替换为 D 选项的“keep a leading position（保持领先地位）”。

38. [C] the application of emerging technologies.
【解析】细节题。第三段第二句提到，报告鼓励“the use of new digital technologies（使用新的数字技术）”。C 选项的“the application of emerging technologies（新兴技术的应用）”正是对其的同义替换。A 选项的 exclusive（排他的）过于绝对；B、D 选项曲解了原文中增加研究投入和扩大海外学习项目的本意。

39. [C] biased against classical liberal ideas.
【解析】推理题。第五段指出，如今的教授通常把左翼“进步派”的阐释视为正当的研究课题，而将保守主义或“古典自由主义思想（classical liberal ideas）”描绘成超出了常规乃至合法的学术调查边界。这充分说明教授们对古典自由主义思想存在“偏见（biased against）”，将其排斥在主流学术之外。故选 C。

40. [B] Illiberal Education and “The Heart of the Matter”
【解析】主旨题。本文是一篇对 AAAS 报告《The Heart of the Matter》（问题的核心）的批判文章。作者的核心观点在第四段点明：“The Heart of the Matter” never gets to the heart of the matter: the illiberal nature of liberal education（《问题的核心》从未触及问题的真正核心：即文理教育中的非自由主义本质）。选项 B 准确提炼了文章探讨的两个核心对象及其冲突关系，是最佳标题。

考研核心句型与长难句

【长难句剖析】

1. 讽刺性的文字游戏：
"Unfortunately, despite 2½ years in the making, 'The Heart of the Matter' never gets to the heart of the matter: the illiberal nature of liberal education at our leading colleges and universities."
【解析】作者在这里玩了一个精妙的双关文字游戏：报告名叫《问题的核心》(The Heart of the Matter)，但作者讽刺它“从未真正触及问题的核心(never gets to the heart of the matter)”。冒号后的内容是作者给出的“真正的核心”——打着自由教育旗号的“非自由本质”(illiberal nature of liberal education)。

2. 宾语从句与定语从句的嵌套：
"The commission ignores that for several decades America’s colleges and universities have produced graduates who don’t know the content and character of liberal education and are thus deprived of its benefits."
【解析】ignores 后接 that 引导的宾语从句。宾语从句中，who 引导定语从句修饰 graduates，说明这些毕业生的特点：不了解文科教育的内容和性质，从而被剥夺了其益处。

3. while 表对比的复杂句式：
"Today, professors routinely treat the progressive interpretation of history... as the proper subject of study while portraying conservative or classical liberal ideas... as falling outside the boundaries of routine... intellectual investigation."
【解析】句子的核心结构是 treat A as B while portraying C as D (把A视为B，同时把C描绘成D)。这里深刻对比了美国高校中左翼（progressive）和右翼/古典自由派（conservative/classical liberal）在学术待遇上的巨大差异。