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 1
King Juan Carlos of Spain once insisted “kings don’t abdicate, they die in their sleep.” But embarrassing scandals and the popularity of the republican left in the recent Euro-elections have forced him to eat his words and stand down. So, does the Spanish crisis suggest that monarchy is seeing its last days? Does that mean the writing is on the wall for all European royals, with their magnificent uniforms and majestic lifestyle?
The Spanish case provides arguments both for and against monarchy. When public opinion is particularly polarised, as it was following the end of the Franco regime, monarchs can rise above “mere” politics and “embody” a spirit of national unity.
It is this apparent transcendence of politics that explains monarchs’ continuing popularity as heads of state. And so, the Middle East excepted, Europe is the most monarch-infested region in the world, with 10 kingdoms (not counting Vatican city and Andorra). But unlike their absolutist counterparts in the Gulf and Asia, most royal families have survived because they allow voters to avoid the difficult search for a non-controversial but respected public figure.
Even so, kings and queens undoubtedly have a downside. Symbolic of national unity as they claim to be, their very history—and sometimes the way they behave today—embodies outdated and indefensible privileges and inequalities. At a time when Thomas Piketty and other economists are warning of rising inequality and the increasing power of inherited wealth, it is bizarre that wealthy aristocratic families should still be the symbolic heart of modern democratic states.
The most successful monarchies strive to abandon or hide their old aristocratic ways. Princes and princesses have day-jobs and ride bicycles, not horses (or helicopters). Even so, these are wealthy families who party with the international 1%, and media intrusiveness makes it increasingly difficult to maintain the right image.
While Europe’s monarchies will no doubt be smart enough to survive for some time to come, it is the British royals who have most to fear from the Spanish example.
It is only the Queen who has preserved the monarchy’s reputation with her rather ordinary (if well-heeled) granny style. The danger will come with Charles, who has both an expensive taste of lifestyle and a pretty hierarchical view of the world. He has failed to understand that monarchies have largely survived because they provide a service—as non-controversial and non-political heads of state. Charles ought to know that as English history shows, it is kings, not republicans, who are the monarchy’s worst enemies.
21. According to the first two Paragraphs, King Juan Carlos of Spain
22. Monarchs are kept as heads of state in Europe mostly
23. Which of the following is shown to be odd, according to Paragraph 4?
24. The British royals “have most to fear” because Charles
25. Which of the following is the best title of the text?
全文翻译
西班牙国王胡安·卡洛斯曾坚称"国王不会退位，他们会在睡梦中死去"。但令人尴尬的丑闻以及最近欧洲选举中共和主义左翼的拥戴迫使他自食其言并退位了。那么，西班牙的危机是否表明君主制正在走向末日？这是否意味着所有欧洲王室——连同他们华丽的制服和尊贵的生活方式——都面临厄运？
西班牙的案例为支持和反对君主制都提供了论据。当舆论特别两极分化时——正如佛朗哥政权结束后的情况——君主可以超越"纯粹的"政治，并"体现"一种国家统一的精神。
正是这种表面上的政治超越性，解释了君主作为国家元首的持续受欢迎程度。因此，除中东以外，欧洲是世界上君主最多的地区，有十个王国（不包括梵蒂冈和安道尔）。但与海湾和亚洲的专制君主不同，大多数王室之所以存活下来，是因为它们让选民避免了寻找一位无争议但受尊敬的公众人物的艰难过程。
即便如此，国王和王后无疑也有不利的一面。尽管他们宣称自己是国家统一的象征，但他们的历史——有时还包括他们今天的行为方式——体现了过时且不可辩护的特权和等级制度。在托马斯·皮凯蒂和其他经济学家正对日益加剧的不平等和继承财富日益增长的力量发出警告之际，富裕的贵族家庭仍然作为现代民主国家的象征核心，这简直是怪诞的。
最成功的君主制努力抛弃或隐藏其旧贵族方式。王子和公主有日常工作，骑自行车，不骑马（或坐直升机）。即便如此，这些是与全球1%的人一起聚会的富裕家庭，而媒体的侵扰性使得保持正确形象变得越来越困难。
尽管欧洲的君主制无疑会足够聪明，在未来一段时间内继续存在，但英国王室最有理由对西班牙的例子感到恐惧。
只有女王以其相当平凡（如果说富足的话）的祖母风格保持了君主制的声誉。危险将来自查尔斯，他既有昂贵的生活品味，也有相当等级化的世界观。他未能理解君主制之所以大多存活下来，是因为它们提供了一种服务——作为无争议和非政治的国家元首。查尔斯应该知道，正如英国历史所表明的那样，君主制的最大敌人是国王，而不是共和主义者。
Answers & Explanations (答案与深度解析)
试题精解
21. [D] ended his reign in embarrassment.
【解析】细节题。第一段提到，西班牙国王胡安·卡洛斯曾坚称国王不会退位（kings don’t abdicate），但“embarrassing scandals（令人尴尬的丑闻）”迫使他自食其言并“stand down（退位/下台）”。这说明他在尴尬中结束了统治（ended his reign in embarrassment）。A、B、C 均为捏造信息。
22. [C] owing to their undoubted and respectable status.
【解析】细节题。第三段最后一句解释了欧洲大部分王室能幸存下来的原因：“because they allow voters to avoid the difficult search for a non-controversial but respected public figure”（因为他们让选民免于去艰难寻找一位无争议但受人尊敬的公众人物）。这说明君主作为一种毋庸置疑且受人尊敬的身份（undoubted and respectable status），满足了选民对国家元首的期待。故选 C。
23. [B] The role of the nobility in modern democracies.
【解析】细节题。第四段末尾明确指出：“it is bizarre that wealthy aristocratic families should still be the symbolic heart of modern democratic states.”（在现代民主国家中，富有的贵族家庭仍处于象征性的核心地位，这很奇怪）。bizarre 是 odd 的同义替换。B 选项“贵族在现代民主国家中的角色（The role of the nobility in modern democracies）”精准概括了这一荒诞现象。
24. [A] fails to adapt himself to his future role.
【解析】推理题。最后一段分析了查尔斯的问题：他生活奢侈、等级观念强，并且“failed to understand that monarchies have largely survived because they provide a service—as non-controversial and non-political heads of state”（未能理解君主制存活是因为其提供了非争议、非政治的国家元首服务）。这说明查尔斯未能适应他未来作为君主应扮演的角色（fails to adapt himself to his future role）。故选 A。
25. [C] Carlos, a Lesson for All European Monarchs
【解析】主旨题。文章第一段以卡洛斯国王的退位引出话题，询问这是否预示着全欧洲王室的危机；接着分析了欧洲君主制的优缺点；最后一段则将卡洛斯的教训具体应用到英国王室（特别是查尔斯）的未来上。全文就是以卡洛斯为切入点，探讨其退位对欧洲其他君主的启示/教训（a Lesson for All European Monarchs）。C 选项最符合文章逻辑框架。
考研核心句型与长难句
【长难句剖析】
1. 地道习语的运用：
"But embarrassing scandals... have forced him to eat his words and stand down. ... Does that mean the writing is on the wall for all European royals...?"
【解析】这里运用了两个极其生动的习语：eat one's words 意为“收回前言/自食其言”；the writing is on the wall 典出《圣经》，意为“厄运临头的预兆”。这两个习语生动地描绘了卡洛斯国王的窘境和整个欧洲王室的潜在危机。
"But embarrassing scandals... have forced him to eat his words and stand down. ... Does that mean the writing is on the wall for all European royals...?"
【解析】这里运用了两个极其生动的习语：eat one's words 意为“收回前言/自食其言”；the writing is on the wall 典出《圣经》，意为“厄运临头的预兆”。这两个习语生动地描绘了卡洛斯国王的窘境和整个欧洲王室的潜在危机。
2. 强调句与同位语：
"It is this apparent transcendence of politics that explains monarchs’ continuing popularity as heads of state."
【解析】典型的 It is... that... 强调句型，强调主语 this apparent transcendence of politics（这种明显的对政治的超越），说明这是君主能够持续受欢迎的核心原因。
"It is this apparent transcendence of politics that explains monarchs’ continuing popularity as heads of state."
【解析】典型的 It is... that... 强调句型，强调主语 this apparent transcendence of politics（这种明显的对政治的超越），说明这是君主能够持续受欢迎的核心原因。
3. as 引导的让步状语从句（倒装）：
"Symbolic of national unity as they claim to be, their very history... embodies outdated and indefensible privileges and inequalities."
【解析】as 引导让步状语从句时，常把表语（Symbolic of national unity）提前，构成部分倒装。意为“尽管他们自称是国家统一的象征，但他们本身的历史...却体现了过时的特权。”
"Symbolic of national unity as they claim to be, their very history... embodies outdated and indefensible privileges and inequalities."
【解析】as 引导让步状语从句时，常把表语（Symbolic of national unity）提前，构成部分倒装。意为“尽管他们自称是国家统一的象征，但他们本身的历史...却体现了过时的特权。”