短篇阅读
What little scholarship has existed on Ernest Hemingway--considering his stature—has focused on trying to unmask the man behind the bravura. Ultimately, most of these works have done little more than to show that Hemingway the myth and Hemingway the man were not too dissimilar (Hemingway lived to hunt big game so should we be surprised at his virility, not to mention that of many of the author's--chiefly male-protagonists). In the last few years, several biographies have reversed this trend, focusing on Hemingway near the end of his life: isolated and paranoid, the author imagined the government was chasing him (he was not completely wrong on this account). Ironically, the hunter had become the hunted, and in that sense, these latest biographers have provided—perhaps unwittingly—the most human portrait of the writer yet.
1. It can be inferred from the passage that the author considers the latest Hemingway biographies a departure from traditional biographies in that these latest biographies
A. focus on a much overlooked aspect of the writer's body of work
B. depict Hemingway in a manner that is at odds with the myth of Hemingway
C. claim that Hemingway was similar to several of his chief protagonists in his books
D. suggest that Hemingway lacked the virility many associated with him
E. do not attempt to explore the link between Hemingway the man and Hemingway the myth
答案：A
解析：题干问作者认为最新的海明威传记相对于传统传记的不同点。根据文章第三句话，我们知道，过去几年里一些最新传记反了传统，开始专注海明威晚年生活。我们由此推出，最新传记专注了传统传记忽视的地方，对应选项A中：focus…overlooked aspect…writer’s…work.
2. With which of the following would the author of the passage agree?
A. The prevalence of scholarship on Hemingway is commensurate with his renown as a writer.
B. The latest Hemingway biographies consciously intended to show Hemingway’s vulnerabilities.
C. Until recently, Hemingway biographies had shown a similar trend.
答案：B
解析：题干问文章作者会同意的事实是什么。根据文章第三句话，我们知道，在最新传记中，海明威晚年生活孤独多疑，政府也可能在追杀他。我们由此推出，最新海明威传记表现了海明威的弱点，对应选项B中：…latest Hemingway biographies…show…vulnerabilities.
长篇阅读
The work of English writer Aphra Behn (1640–1689) changed markedly during the 1680s, as she turned from writing plays to writing prose narratives. According to literary critic Rachel Carnell, most scholars view this change as primarily motivated by financial considerations: earning a living by writing for the theatre became more difficult in the 1680s, so Behn tried various other types of prose genres in the hope of finding another lucrative medium. In fact, a long epistolary scandal novel that she wrote in the mid-1680s sold quite well. Yet, as Carnell notes, Behn did not repeat this approach in her other prose works; instead, she turned to writing shorter, more serious novels, even though only about half of these were published during her lifetime. Carnell argues that Behn, whose stage productions are primarily comedies, may have turned to an emerging literary form, the novel, in a conscious attempt to criticize, and subvert for her own ends, the conventions and ideology of a well-established form of her day, the dramatic tragedy.
Carnell acknowledges that Behn admired the skill of such contemporary writers of dramatic tragedy as John Dryden, and that Behn’s own comic stage productions displayed the same partisanship for the reigning Stuart monarchy that characterized most of the politically oriented dramatic tragedies of her day. However, Carnell argues that Behn took issue with the way in which these writers and plays defined the nature of tragedy. As prescribed by Dryden, tragedy was supposed to concern a heroic man who is a public figure and who undergoes a fall that evokes pity from the audience. Carnell points out that Behn’s tragic novels focus instead on the plight of little-known women and the private world of the household; even in her few novels featuring male protagonists, Behn insists on the importance of the crimes these otherwise heroic figures commit in the domestic sphere. Moreover, according to Carnell, Behn questioned the view promulgated by monarchist dramatic tragedies such as Dryden’s: that the envisioned “public” political ideal—passive obedience to the nation’s king—ought to be mirrored in the private sphere, with family members wholly obedient to a male head of household. Carnell sees Behn’s novels not only as rejecting the model of patriarchal and hierarchical family order, but also as warning that insisting on such a parallel can result in real tragedy befalling the members of the domestic sphere.
According to Carnell, Behn’s choice of literary form underscores the differences between her own approach to crafting a tragic story and that taken in the dramatic tragedies, with their artificial distinction between the public and private spheres. Behn’s novels engage in the political dialogue of her era by demonstrating that he good of the nation ultimately encompasses more than the good of the public figures who rule it.
1. The passage is primarily concerned with
A. tracing how Behn’s view of the nature of tragedy changed over time
B. explaining one author’s view of Behn’s contribution to the development of an emerging literary form
C. differentiating between the early and the late literary works of Behn
D. contrasting the approaches to tragedy taken by Behn and by Dryden
E. presenting one scholar’s explanation for a major development in Behn’s literary career
答案：D
解析：题干问文章主旨，文章介绍了文学评论家Carnell的观点，他认为Aphra Behn放弃戏剧转向小说的原因是要批判戏剧的本质，所以选择E：…scholar’s explanation…development…Behn’s…career.
2. The passage suggests that Carnell sees Behn’s novels featuring male protagonists as differing from dramatic tragedies such as Dryden’s featuring male protagonists in that the former
A. depict these characters as less than heroic in their public actions
B. emphasize the consequences of these characters’ actions in the private sphere
C. insist on a parallel between the public and the private spheres
D. are aimed at a predominantly female audience
E. depict family members who disobey these protagonists
答案：B
解析：题干问的是描述男主人公，Behn的小说不同于戏剧悲剧的地方在哪里，定位到文章第二段“even in her few novels…commit in the domestic sphere.”，这句话是说Behn很少有关于男主人公的小说，即使有也就是在强调这些人在家庭里犯下的罪行，所以选择B：…consequences…actions…private sphere.
3. The passage suggests that Carnell believes Behn held which of the following attitudes about the relationship between the private and public spheres?
A. The private sphere is more appropriate than is the public sphere as the setting for plays about political events.
B. The structure of the private sphere should not replicate the hierarchical order of the public sphere.
C. Actions in the private sphere are more fundamental to ensuring the good of the nation than are actions in the public sphere.
D. Crimes committed in the private sphere are likely to cause tragedy in the public sphere rather than vice versa.
E. The private sphere is the mirror in which issues affecting the public sphere can most clearly be seen.
答案：B
解析：题干问Carnell认为Behn对私人领域和公共领域的态度是什么，定位到文章第二段“Moreover, according to Carnell,…obedient to a male head of household”，这句话是说Carnell的观点是，Behn质疑所谓的家庭也要和公共领域一样做到完全服从男性户主，所以选择B：…private…not replicate…order…public sphere.
4. It can be inferred from the passage that the “artificial distinction” refers to the
A. practice utilized in dramatic tragedies of providing different structural models for the public and the private spheres
B. ideology of many dramatic tragedies that advocate passive obedience only in the private sphere and not in the public sphere
C. convention that drama ought to concern events in the public sphere and that novel ought to concern events in the private sphere
D. assumption made by the authors of conventional dramatic tragedies that legitimate tragic action occurs only in the public sphere
E. approach taken by the dramatic tragedies in depicting male and female characters differently, depending on whether their roles were public or private
答案：C
解析：题干问根据文章可以推测出“人为区分”是指什么，定位到文章第二段“According to Carnell, Behn’s choice of literary form…between the public and private spheres.”，这句话是说Behn选择小说是为了强调自己和戏剧悲剧作家的不同，区别在于小说是写私人领域，而戏剧是写公共领域，所以选择C： convention…drama…public…and novels…private…
逻辑阅读
For more than fifty years, many evolutionary biologists posited that early fish such as Eusthenopteron developed limbs as a result of the need to drag themselves across short distances when their watery habitats dried up during periods of drought. However, new fossil evidence suggests that this hypothesis is incorrect. Fossilized remains of Acanthostega, a primitive fish, reveal that even though the animal had rudimentary limbs, it could not walk on land. Acanthostega lacked ankles, which means that its limbs couldn’t support its weight; furthermore, its ribs were too short to prevent the organism’s chest cavity from collapsing once the animal left water.
Which of the following would most strengthen the author’s argument?
A. The fossilized remains of the Acanthostega are the earliest known evidence of early fish.
B. The modem descendants of Acanthostega are not able to drag themselves across short distances on land.
C. Biologists have found that some aquatic species can successfully drag themselves across land even though these species do not possess ankles.
D. Any animal with a collapsed chest cavity is not able to survive long enough to travel even a short distance across land.
E. Some evolutionary biologists believe that the new fossils are not from Acanthostega.
答案：D
原文大意：许多生物学家假设很久以前的鱼长出四肢是为了在陆地上移动很小的距离，但是作者认为最新化石表明即使有四肢也无法在陆地上移动，一是因为没有脚踝不能支持身体重量，二是因为肋骨太短不能防止上岸后胸腔塌陷。
解析：题干要求选出最可以支持作者结论的选项。我们可以发现作者的观点和第二个原因之间有逻辑漏洞，那就是胸腔塌陷是否一定会无法在路上移动，选项D填补了这个逻辑漏洞。
以上就是小编为大家准备的12月3日GRE阅读机经啦，祝大家可以取得理想的成绩。