Ⅰ. 阅读理解
People possess the same physical organs for sensing the world: we have eyes for seeing, ears for hearing, noses for smelling. But does everyone really sense the world in exactly the same way?
Two linguists, Edward Sapir and Benjamin Whorf, didn’t think so. They believed that people’s perception(感知) of the world depends very much on the language they speak. They believed that language is essentially like a pair of eyeglasses; it influences the way we “see” the world. Take a rainbow for example. We see six colors in it. But is that all? Do you see any others? In many cultures, speakers of different languages might tell you there are more than six colors, or they might tell you there are less!
The two linguists went to Mexico to investigate this perception of color, comparing the difference between English speakers and the people in Mexico. The Mexicans use one word for the two words English uses for blue and green. They label blue and green as one color. So, they saw five colors in a rainbow.
Another famous example shows how language can be a reflection of concepts important to a particular culture. Americans and the British use only a few terms to describe snow: snow, sleet, freezing rain, and a few others. Eskimos, on the other hand, have many words to describe snow. Snow that is falling, on the ground, in blocks, and snow that makes wavy patterns—each are explained through separate words. Snow is an important part of Eskimo life and its culture. Thus it is necessary that Eskimos have the vocabulary to specifically describe it.
Language influences thought, but it doesn’t determine what concepts we’re able to think of. If we don’t have a particular word in our language, it just takes more time and more words for us to describe that concept. It is a problem of translation, not of our ability to be able to imagine the concept.
【文章大意】本文是说明文。两个语言学家经过研究发现人们对事物的感知依赖于他们说的不同语言。不同语言对某些事物的描述是不一样的, 导致人们对同一事物的认识有所差异。这给翻译造成一定困难, 但不影响人们对概念的理解。
1. How does the author describe the impact of language on people’s perception?
A. By giving examples.
B. By raising questions.
C. By doing experiments.
D. By listing numbers.
【解析】选A。写作方法题。根据第二段中“Take a rainbow for example. ”可知作者通过举例子说明了语言对人们感知的影响。故选A。
2. Why do Mexicans only see five colors in a rainbow?
A. They can’t tell blue and green.
B. They are mostly color-blind.
C. Their language is underdeveloped.
D. They use one word for two of the colors.
【解析】选D。细节理解题。根据第三段中“The Mexicans use one word for the two words English uses for blue and green. ”可知, 在墨西哥语中, 蓝色和绿色是一个词表达的, 所以他们在彩虹中看到的是五种颜色。故选D。
3. What can we infer from the fourth paragraph?
A. Eskimos live on snow.
B. American people don’t like snow.
C. Language is related to specific life and culture.
D. Language differences lie in different weather.
【解析】选C。推理判断题。根据第四段中“Snow is an important part of Eskimo life and its culture. Thus it is necessary that Eskimos have the vocabulary to specifically describe it. ”可推知, 语言与人们的生活和文化是有联系的。故选C。
4. What is the conclusion of the study?
A. Language impacts the concept we think of.
B. Language affects the way we think, not the idea.
C. Everyone senses the world in the same way.
D. Everyone has the ability to translate languages.
【解析】选B。主旨大意题。根据最后一段中“Language influences thought, but it doesn’t determine what concepts we’re able to think of. ”可知, 语言影响着人们的思维(方式), 但无法决定人们所能思考的内容。故选B。
【知识拓展】佳词积累
1. possess v. 拥有; 控制
2. depend on 取决于, 依赖
3. essentially adv. 本来; 本质上
4. label v. 贴标签于
5. reflection n. 反射; 映像
6. describe v. 描写
7. specifically adv. 特别地
