A
When my friend suggested going to the thrift shop (慈善商店), instantly I thought “I hope no one I know sees me”.It was the same when my cousin commented on my new furniture and Japanese finebonechina bowls and asked where I got them.They were from the local thrift shop but instead I said “from the antique shop”.
Many people in my GreekCypriot community would look down on me if I said I shopped at the thrift shop.They may pity me, consider me a failure.Immigrants sacrificed their families and homes for a better life.Buying a house and having enough money to live comfortably, to educate children and see them also live comfortably, are a big part of the immigrant dream.But has this dream made us materialistic at the cost of our own planet?
Our love for purchasing the latest trendy clothes or furniture, and then donating them when we are tired of them has become normal.I was once like this.But after watching the documentary The True Cost, I learned donated clothes that don't get sold are sent to developing nations, many of them ending up in landfills (垃圾填埋地).In addition, your new dress requires electricity and materials to make.But if you buy a secondhand dress, there's one less dress in a landfill and one less new dress to be made.
A friend introduced me to the thrift shop only a few years ago.My first item was a dress she gifted me.It was lovely and I loved it.Nobody could tell it was secondhand.Then I began to purchase more secondhand branded clothes of high quality.Once I visited a friend and was impressed by how she decorated her apartment.“It's all secondhand,”she said.I couldn't believe it.The truth is that a lot of things sold at the thrift shop are in new or almost new condition.That's when I made the decision to only buy secondhand things.
Selling secondhand things isn't anything new but what the planet needs is more buyers.There is so much excess (过度的) production in the world.So stop feeling ashamed, and let's get shopping.
语篇解读:本文是一篇记叙文。作者结合自身经历劝说人们多去慈善商店购物。
1.What kind of feelings is expressed in Paragraph 1?
A.Pride. B.Embarrassment.
C.Delight. D.Sympathy.
解析:选B 推理判断题。根据第一段可知,作者去慈善商店怕被人看见,在慈善商店买的家具却告诉别人是在古董店买的,说明她认为告诉别人自己在慈善商店买东西会感到尴尬。
2.What are many people in the author's community like?
A.They are probably materialistic.
B.They care about the environment.
C.They think highly of thrift shopping.
D.They look down upon immigrants.
解析:选A 推理判断题。根据第二段中的Many people ...would look down on me ...pity me, consider me a failure.可知,作者社区的人很可能比较看重物质层面的东西。
3.What was the author encouraged to do after visiting her friend's apartment?
A.Watch the documentary The True Cost.
B.Donate more to local charities.
C.Avoid shopping too much.
D.Stop buying new things.
解析:选D 细节理解题。根据倒数第二段中的Once I visited a friend ...“It's all secondhand,”she said ...That's when I made the decision to only buy secondhand things.可知,作者拜访朋友时,觉得她的公寓布置得非常不错,但朋友告诉她自己家的东西都是慈善商店买来的,这让作者下定决心以后只买二手的东西。
4.What's the purpose of the text?
A.To entertain. B.To advertise.
C.To persuade. D.To describe.
解析:选C 写作意图题。根据最后一段可知,作者之所以写此文,是想告诉读者在慈善商店购物的益处,劝说大家也这样做。