一般說來,在閱讀中抓住了文章中的中心句,就把握了作者的寫作意圖,解答閱讀理解題就有了方向。
下面,以深圳市一次模擬題的閱讀理解題為例,談談把握好中心句對解好閱讀理解題的重要作用。
Abby Subark is a mother of two from Boston. “For my kids, I’m nervous. I don’t know if they’ll be able to achieve their American dream.” She may be right. More than hard work or education, the best way to get rich in America is to be born rich.
It is the case that somebody who is in the upper third of income, poor scores, in the bottom on tests when they are in eighth grade, is more likely to go to college and finish college than a poor kid with the top scores. That’s what the working person’s children are up against(面臨).
The Economic Policy Institute finds it would take a poor couple with 2 children 9 or 10 generations to achieve middle class status. That’s about 200 years. The hallmark (特征) of American opportunity has always been the ability to do better than your parents. But compared with similar developed countries, the United States ranks fifth out of six for so-called intergenerational mobility (變動).
If you look at the mechanisms (機制) for upward mobility that were so readily available 50 years ago, they are becoming out of reach, like plentiful factory jobs with good wages and affordable education and health care.
White families are twice as likely as blacks to be upwardly mobile. For most people in America today, where you end up depends on where you start.
If you started in the middle-income class, about 40 to 45 percent of what you are making right now is due to the fact that your parents were in the middle-income class. The rest is up to you.
But for the millions of people who find themselves below the poverty line (貧困線) and the millions more who are the working poor, their starting point for the American dream leaves them painfully far away from the middle class.
41. The main idea of the passage is .
A. How the middle class comes about in the U.S.
B. It’s hard to realize the American dream for the poor.
C. Wealth and social status depend on family background.
D. Upward mobility in America is never easy.
43. The underlined sentence “where you end up depends on where you start” most probably means.
A. Your starting point cannot determine your destination.
B. Only a high goal can ensure success.
C. One’s birth has nothing to do with his fate.
D. One’s family lays solid foundation for his future achievements.
44. Why is Abby Subark nervous?
A. Her kids don’t want to compare with other rich kids in achievements.
B. Her kids don’t want to achieve success at all.
C. Her kids can achieve success through hard work and education.
D. Her kids can’t reach their goal without a rich family.
45. What can we infer after reading the passage?
A. Poverty causes people much pain.
B. People below the poverty line can never be in the middle class.
C. Lower starting point makes it hard for people to realize their dream.
D. Poor people’s starting point is too low.
本文主要講述出身富裕的美國孩子更能有機會實現美國夢,而家境貧困的孩子則很難通過自己的努力改變現狀。
通過閱讀,不難發現第一段最后一句“More than hard work or education, the best way to get rich in America is to be born rich.”為全文的中心句。一旦抓住了這個主線, 41、43、44以及45題就迎刃而解,正確答案分別為B、D、D、C。你看,抓住了中心句的效果多神奇!
因此,我們在平常的閱讀訓練中,注意培養尋找、發現文章中心句的能力。惟有把握住中心句,方能窺探作者的種種意圖,為正確選擇答案提供可靠的線索或啟迪。中心句常在什么地方?一般在首尾段,且往往是首尾段的首尾句。
責任編校蔣小青