Section C: Reading Comprehension

Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.

Passage One

The United States is facing a housing crisis: Affordable housing is inadequate, while luxury homes abound, and homelessness remains a persistent problem. Despite this, popular culture and the housing industry market happiness as living with both more space and more amenities. Big houses are advertized as a reward for hard work and diligence, turning housing from a basic necessity into a luxury.

This is reflected in our homes. The average single-family home built in the United States before 1970 was less than 1,500 square feet in size. By 2016, the average size of a new, single-family home was 2,422 square feet. What's more, homes built in the 2000s were more likely than earlier models to have more of all types of spaces; bedrooms, bathrooms, living rooms, dining rooms, recreation rooms and garages.

There are consequences of living big. As middle-class houses have grown larger, two things have happened. First, large houses take time to maintain, so cleaners and other low-wage service workers are required to keep these houses in order. Second, once-public spaces, where people from diverse backgrounds used to come together, have increasingly become privatized, leading to a reduction in the number of public facilities available to all, and a reduced quality of life for many. Take swimming pools. While in 1950, only 2,500 U.S. families owned pools, by 1999 this number was 4 million. At the same time, public municipal pools were often closed, leaving low-income people nowhere to swim.

The trend for bigger housing thus poses ethical questions. Should Americans accept a system in which the middle and upper classes enjoy a luxurious lifestyle, using the low-wage labor of others? Are we willing to accept a system in which an increase in amenities purchased by the affluent means a reduction in amenities for the poor?

I believe neither is acceptable. We must change the way we think: living well does not need to mean having more private spaces; instead, it could mean having more public spaces. A better goal than building bigger houses for some is to create more publicly accessible spaces and amenities for all.

46. What are big houses promoted to be in the United States?

A) A luxury for the homeless.

B) A reward for industriousness.

C) An abundant source of comforts.

D) An absolute necessity for happiness.

47. What is one of the consequences of living big?

A) Many Americans' quality of life has become lower.

B) People from diverse backgrounds no longer socialize.

C) People no longer have access to public swimming pools.

D) Many Americans' private life has been negatively affected.

48. What questions arise from living big?

A) Questions related to moral principles.

B) Questions having to do with labor cost.

C) Questions about what lifestyle to promote.

D) Questions concerning housing development.

49. What kind of social system does the author think is unacceptable?

A) One in which the wealthy exploit the low-wage laborers building their houses.

B) One in which the rich purchase amenities at an increasingly unjustifiable price.

C) One in which the upper classes deprive the lower classes of affordable housing.

D) One in which the affluent enjoy a more comfortable life at the expense of the poor.

50. What does the author advocate for people to live well?

A) Finding ways to turn private spaces into public ones.

B) Building more houses affordable to those less affluent.

C) More public spaces created for everyone to enjoy.

D) All amenities made accessible to the rich and the poor alike.

Passage Two

Most of us in the entrepreneurial community are blessed — or cursed — with higher-than-average ambition. Ambitious people strongly desire accomplishments and are willing to take more risks and spend more effort to get them.

Overall, this is a positive quality, especially for people trying to build their own businesses. Apparently, if you're more naturally driven to set goals, you are more likely to succeed.

Actually, this isn't always the case. In fact, in some cases, extreme ambition may end up doing more harm than good.

One major side effect of excessive ambition is the tendency to focus too determinedly on one particular vision or end goal. This is problematic because it hinders your ability to adapt to new circumstances, which is vital if you want to be a successful entrepreneur. If a new competitor emerges to threaten your business, you may need to change direction, even if that means straying from your original vision. If you have too much ambition, you'll find this hard, if not impossible.

Few people are successful when they try to build their first brand. Unfortunately, for the most ambitious entrepreneurs, a failure is seen as disastrous, and impossible to recover from.

It's a clear departure from the intended plan toward the intended goal. For people with limited ambition, however, failure is viewed as something closer to reality. Remember, failure is inevitable, and every failure you survive is a learning experience.

Ambitious people tend to be more materialistically successful than their non-ambitious counterparts. However, they're only slightly happier than their less-ambitious counterparts, and tend to live significantly shorter lives. This implies that even though ambitious people are more likely to achieve conventional “success,” such success means nothing for their health and happiness - and if you don't have health and happiness, what else could possibly matter?

Clearly, some amount of ambition is good for your motivation. Without any ambition, you wouldn't start your own business, set or achieve goals and get far in life. But an excess of ambition can also be dangerous, putting you at risk of burnout, stubbornness and even a shorter life.

51. What does the author think of most entrepreneurs?

A) They are more willing to risk their own lives.

B) They are more ambitious than ordinary people.

C) They achieve greater nonconventional success.

D) They have more positive qualities than most of us.

52. What does the author imply by saying “this isn't always the case” (Line 1, Para. 3)?

A) Ambitious people may not have a greater chance of success.

B) Ambitious people may not have more positive qualities.

C) Entrepreneurs' ambition does as much good as harm.

D) Entrepreneurs are more naturally driven to success.

53. What does the author say is of extreme importance for one to become a successful entrepreneur?

A) Holding on to one's original vision.

B) Being able to adapt to new situations.

C) Focusing determinedly on one particular goal.

D) Avoiding radical change in one's career direction.

54. How do the most ambitious entrepreneurs regard failure in their endeavor?

A) It will awaken them to reality.

B) It is a lesson they have to learn.

C) It means the end of their career.

D) It will result in a slow recovery.

55. What does the author advise us to do concerning ambition?

A) Distinguish between conventional success and our life goal.

B) Follow the example of the most ambitious entrepreneurs.

C) Avoid taking unnecessary risks when starting a business.

D) Prioritize health and happiness over material success.

Answers & Explanations

Passage One: The Consequences of Living Big

46. B。解析：题干问在美国大房子被宣传为什么。定位第一段最后一句：Big houses are advertized as a reward for hard work and diligence（大房子被宣传为对努力工作和勤奋的奖励）。对应 B 选项 (A reward for industriousness 对勤劳/勤奋的奖励，industriousness 是 diligence 的同义替换)。

47. A。解析：题干问住大房子的后果之一是什么。定位第三段：once-public spaces... have increasingly become privatized, leading to a reduction in the number of public facilities available to all, and a reduced quality of life for many（曾经的公共空间越来越私有化，导致所有人可用的公共设施数量减少，许多人的生活质量下降）。对应 A 选项 (Many Americans' quality of life has become lower 许多美国人的生活质量变低了)。

48. A。解析：题干问住大房子引起了什么问题。定位第四段首句：The trend for bigger housing thus poses ethical questions（更大住房的趋势因此提出了伦理道德问题）。ethical（伦理的，道德的）等同于 moral principles，对应 A 选项 (Questions related to moral principles 与道德原则相关的问题)。

49. D。解析：题干问作者认为哪种社会体系是不可接受的。定位第四段：Should Americans accept a system in which the middle and upper classes enjoy a luxurious lifestyle, using the low-wage labor of others? Are we willing to accept a system in which an increase in amenities purchased by the affluent means a reduction in amenities for the poor?（中上层阶级利用他人的低薪劳动力享受奢华生活...富人购买的设施增加意味着穷人设施的减少...我们愿意接受这样的系统吗？）第五段接着说 I believe neither is acceptable（我认为这两者都不可接受）。对应 D 选项 (One in which the affluent enjoy a more comfortable life at the expense of the poor 富人以牺牲穷人为代价享受更舒适的生活的体系)。

50. C。解析：题干问作者提倡人们如何才能过上好生活。定位最后一段最后一句：A better goal than building bigger houses for some is to create more publicly accessible spaces and amenities for all（一个比为少数人建大房子更好的目标是，为所有人创造更多向公众开放的空间和便利设施）。对应 C 选项 (More public spaces created for everyone to enjoy 创造更多的公共空间供所有人享受)。

Passage Two: Ambition and the Entrepreneur

51. B。解析：题干问作者怎么看待大多数企业家。定位第一段第一句：Most of us in the entrepreneurial community are blessed — or cursed — with higher-than-average ambition（我们创业圈里的大多数人都有着高于平均水平的雄心壮志——这既是祝福也是诅咒）。对应 B 选项 (They are more ambitious than ordinary people 他们比普通人更有雄心)。

52. A。解析：题干问第三段第一句“情况并不总是如此”暗示了什么。第二段说如果你天生更有动力设定目标，你就更可能成功（more likely to succeed）。紧接着第三段开头说“情况并不总是如此”（Actually, this isn't always the case），并解释极端的雄心可能会弊大于利。这说明雄心勃勃的人不一定有更大的成功机会，对应 A 选项 (Ambitious people may not have a greater chance of success 雄心勃勃的人可能不会有更大的成功机会)。

53. B。解析：题干问要成为一名成功的企业家，什么极其重要。定位第四段第二句：...hinders your ability to adapt to new circumstances, which is vital if you want to be a successful entrepreneur（...阻碍了你适应新环境的能力，而如果你想成为成功的企业家，这至关重要）。对应 B 选项 (Being able to adapt to new situations 能够适应新情况/环境)。

54. C。解析：题干问最有雄心的企业家如何看待他们努力过程中的失败。定位第五段最后一句：...for the most ambitious entrepreneurs, a failure is seen as disastrous, and impossible to recover from（...对于最有雄心的企业家来说，失败被视为灾难性的，且不可能恢复）。既然不可能恢复，就意味着这会导致职业生涯的终结，对应 C 选项 (It means the end of their career 这意味着他们职业生涯的结束)。

55. D。解析：题干问作者关于雄心给我们的建议是什么。定位倒数第二段末尾和最后一段：if you don't have health and happiness, what else could possibly matter?（如果没有健康和幸福，其他还有什么重要的呢？）并且最后指出过度雄心有导致倦怠和缩短寿命的危险（putting you at risk of burnout... and even a shorter life）。对应 D 选项 (Prioritize health and happiness over material success 将健康和幸福置于物质成功之上)。

核心搭配与高分句型

【核心搭配与高频短语】

• inadequate / abound：不足的 / 大量存在（Affordable housing is inadequate, while luxury homes abound）
• a reward for：对...的奖励（a reward for hard work and diligence）
• keep in order：保持整洁/有秩序（required to keep these houses in order）
• at the expense of：以牺牲...为代价（at the expense of the poor）
• be blessed / cursed with：有幸拥有 / 不幸遭受...的诅咒（are blessed — or cursed — with... ambition）
• do more harm than good：弊大于利（may end up doing more harm than good）
• stray from：偏离，走离（straying from your original vision）
• put at risk of：使处于...的危险中（putting you at risk of burnout）

【亮点句型解析】

• While 引导的对比从句：
  "Affordable housing is inadequate, while luxury homes abound, and homelessness remains a persistent problem."
  （经济适用房不足，而豪华住宅比比皆是，无家可归仍然是一个持续存在的问题。）`while` 表示强烈的对比关系（而/然而），非常适合用于描述社会现象中的两极分化，是四级写作中极具张力的句型。
• If..., you'll find this hard, if not impossible (带有条件插入语的句型)：
  "If you have too much ambition, you'll find this hard, if not impossible."
  （如果你有太多的野心，你会发现这很困难，甚至是不可能的。）`if not impossible` 作为一个条件插入语，在语气上起到了递进强调的作用，意思是“如果说不是不可能的话，那至少也是极其困难的”，非常地道的高级表达。