A
Jeremy from America cannot understand why a lady he met outside the Hyde Park in London said, “Ooh, isn’t it cold? ”, and he thinks of this behaviour as a distinctively English concern about the weather. In fact, the female was just trying to strike up a conversation with Jeremy. Not necessarily a long conversation — just an exchange of greetings. It is not always quite that obvious, but all English weather conversations have a distinctive structure conducted according to unwritten but accepted rules.
The unpredictable nature of our weather ensures that there is always something new to comment on, or perhaps most importantly, agree about. We have already established that weather-speak greetings like “Cold, isn’t it? ” require the response expressing agreement, as in “Yes, isn’t it? ”. It would be very rude to respond with “No, actually it’s quite mild. ” or “It’s pretty hot to me. ” If you deliberately break the rule, you will find that the atmosphere becomes rather tense and awkward. There may be an uncomfortable silence. Most likely, they will either change the subject or continue talking about the weather among themselves politely, if coldly, ignoring your faux pas.
There is, however, one situation in which English weather-speakers are not required to observe the agreement rule at all and that is the male-bonding argument, particularly the pub-argument. In the special environment of the pub, constant disagreement not just on the weather, but on everything else as well is a means of expressing friendship.
While we may spend much of our time complaining about our weather, foreigners are not allowed to criticize it. Indeed, this brings us to the weather as family rule. In this respect, we treat the English weather like a member of our family: one can complain about the behavior of one’s own children or parents, but any blame from an outsider is unacceptable. The weather may be one of the few things about which the English are still unconsciously and unashamedly patriotic (爱国的).
【文章大意】本文是说明文。文章讲述英国人在谈论天气时是按照未成文但被人们普遍接受的规则进行的, 谈论天气是英国人一种独有的情怀。
1. Why did the lady comment on the weather to Jeremy?
A. To build up friendship.
B. To begin a casual chat.
C. To send seasonal greetings.
D. To express dissatisfaction.
【解析】选B。细节理解题。根据第一段中的“In fact, the female was just trying to strike up a conversation with Jeremy. Not necessarily a long conversation — just an exchange of greetings. ”可知, 实际上这名女性只是想与Jeremy搭一下话。不必是长时间的对话, 只是互相问好。因此这位女士对Jeremy评论天气是为了开始一个随便的聊天。
2. What does the underlined phrase “faux pas” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
A. Improper response. B. Careless attitude.
C. Rude interruption. D. Frequent complaint.
【解析】选A。词义猜测题。根据第二段第一句可知, 天气的不可预测性确保我们始终有新的东西可以评论, 或者说最重要的是要达成对天气的共识。由此可知, 人们在谈论天气时, 双方往往会有一致的看法。由第二段倒数二、三句可知, 如果你故意违反规则, 你会发现气氛变得非常紧张和尴尬。可能会有不舒服的沉默。因此说话双方就要做出选择, 即下文的“他们很可能会改变话题, 或者继续礼貌地谈论天气”。如果对话氛围不好的话, 他们自然会忽略你的回应。因此, 这说明你的回应是不合适的, 即违背了人们默认的规则。即画线短语意为“不当的回应”。
3. What is Paragraph 3 mainly about?
A. Male bonding in pubs.
B. Argument about weather.
C. Exception to the agreement rule.
D. Making friends by disagreement.
【解析】选C。 段落大意题。根据第三段中的“There is, however. . . as well is a means of expressing friendship. ”可知, 有一种情况下, 英国谈论天气的人不需要遵守规则, 这是发生在男人小圈子里的, 尤其是在酒吧。在酒吧的特殊环境中, 天气上的不断的分歧和在其他所有方面的分歧都是表达友谊的一种手段。即第三段主要讲的是遵守天气对话规则的例外。
4. What is the best title for this text?
A. Politeness Tips for Foreigners
B. Accepted Rules in Social Life
C. English Politeness in Weather Conversation
D. Hidden Rules of English Weather Conversation
【解析】选D。 标题判断题。通读全文尤其是第一段的“all English weather conversations have a distinctive structure conducted according to unwritten but accepted rules. ”可知, 所有关于天气的对话都是按照未成文但被人们普遍接受的规则进行的。文章接下来具体地对该规则进行了解释, 因此本文的最佳标题是“英国人天气对话的潜规则”。
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【知识拓展】词汇积累
distinctively区别地 ; strike up a conversation with攀谈; not necessarily未必; unpredictable不可预测的; mild温和的; deliberately故意地; tense and awkward紧张并尴尬的; male-bonding argument男人一致认同的论点; unconsciously无意识地; unashamedly不加羞耻地
长难句分析
There is, however, one situation in which English weather-speakers are not required to observe the agreement rule at all and that is the male-bonding argument, particularly the pub-argument.
分析: and连接两个分句, 其中前半句是定语从句, 先行词为situation, 引导词in which。
翻译: 然而, 有一种情形, 在英国谈论天气的人被要求可以不遵守这个一致规则, 这就是男性之间达成一致的一种看法, 尤其体现在酒吧的争论上。
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