Question

Who do you think breaks the law in our society? If you believe that only tough guys commit crimes, you may have to think again. Unlike in the movies, we can’t divide the world into bad guys and model citizens. Real life is much more complex. In the same way that diseases range from the common cold to fatal forms of cancer, crimes vary in degree. For example, smoking in an elevator will inconvenience people, but much less than threatening them with a gun.

In addition to breaking the law themselves, people tolerate various levels of crime. Why can we tolerate some crimes? It may be that, by seeing others do something, we accept it more easily. For instance, most people will find it easier to speed on a highway when everybody else is driving over the speed limit. When people celebrate a sports championship, if they see someone breaking store windows, they might start breaking windows themselves or even steal from the store. So the people around us influence how much law-breaking we can tolerate.

We must also wonder whether seeing violence on television or reading about it in the newspapers every day makes us tolerate crime more than we should. We become used to seeing blood on the news on television, or in full color in newspapers and magazines. Because we see thousands of dead people on TV, maybe we just try to ignore the situation behind the violence.

If so many citizens tolerate violence and crime, or even commit crimes themselves, it may simply be because of the human mind. Our minds may not care about specific laws. Instead, our minds may have a system of values that usually prevents us from hurting other people to improve our own lives. Yet, when it comes to respecting the rights of a mass of anonymous (不知名的) individuals, we might not be so responsible. While most people would not steal a wallet containing $50, they may not mind cheating on taxes, because cheating on taxes does not hurt any one person. It hurts society, but “society” remains an abstract idea that is not as real as a neighbor or a friend’s friend.

When we realize that so many people have misunderstandings of law-breaking, it is not surprising that so many people tolerate crimes, or even break laws, including me. But how could we improve the level of honesty in our society? Would strict laws help make our society better? Probably not. Honesty will have to come from social pressure: in the family, at school, on the job, each and every one of us can encourage honesty by showing which behavior is unacceptable. And teaching respect should become everyone’s responsibility.

1.According to the author, “Real life is much more complex.” probably means       .

A. there is a wide range of people and crimes in the real life

B. smoking in an elevator goes against laws in the real life

C. there are much more crimes than diseases in the real life

D. some model citizens sometimes break laws in the real life

2.What does the author think of the people who cheat on taxes?

A. They take no notice of the human mind.

B. They break the laws unaccepted in their minds.

C. They aren’t concerned about some particular laws.

D. They hurt other people to improve their own lives.

3.People tolerate violence and crime because       .

A. their behavior is the same as that of most other people

B. they pay no attention to the truth behind the crimes

C. most unlawful acts are not harmful to the individual

D. they hold mistaken beliefs about law-breaking

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage?

A. To discuss whether laws are strict enough.

B. To remind people to behave with honesty.

C. To show people the importance of education.

D. To explain why many people have criminal records.

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.A

2.Ｃ

3.Ｄ　

4.B

【解析】

試題解析：文章敘述了在現實生活中出現的各種各樣的犯罪以及人們對與犯罪的認知態(tài)度以提醒人們要誠信做人.

1.A句意猜測題。根據本句的前后文：你認為誰在我們的社會中是違法的？如果你認為只有粗暴的人犯罪，你可能要再想想。與電影不同，我們不能把世界分成壞蛋和好人。真實的生活要復雜得多。在疾病的范圍從普通的感冒到致命的癌癥一樣，犯罪的程度也不同。例如，在電梯里吸煙會給人帶來不便，但遠低于用搶來威脅他們，這些內容說明真實生活的復雜指的是在現實生活中有各種各樣的人會犯罪，所以A正確。

2.C細節(jié)推理題。根據第四段If so many citizens tolerate violence and crime, or even commit crimes themselves, it may simply be because of the human mind. Our minds may not care about specific laws如果如此多的公民容忍暴力和犯罪，甚至自己也犯罪，這可能是因為人的思想。我們的頭腦不關心具體的法律，下文就以the people who cheat on taxes為例來說明這一點，所以C正確。

3.D細節(jié)推理題。根據最后一段When we realize that so many people have misunderstandings of law-breaking, it is not surprising that so many people tolerate crimes, or even break laws, including me當我們意識到這么多人對違法的誤解，以致許多人容忍犯罪，這并不奇怪，甚至違反法律，包括我，可以判斷D正確。

4.B主旨大意題，根據最后一段Would strict laws help make our society better? Probably not. Honesty will have to come from social pressure: in the family, at school, on the job, each and every one of us can encourage honesty by showing which behavior is unacceptable. And teaching respect should become everyone’s responsibility. 嚴格的法律會使我們的社會更好嗎？可能不會。誠實將不得不來自社會上的壓力在家庭，在學校，在工作上，我們每一個人可以通過顯示哪些行為是不可接受的來鼓勵誠實。教授誠實是每一個人的責任，所以寫作意圖是：提醒人們要誠信做事，所以B正確。：

考點：考查社會生活類短文閱讀。