题目
Not long ago, 20,000 middle- and high-school students were surveyed (调查). 92 percent of the teenagers admitted having lied to their parents in the previous year, and 73 percent of them call themselves as "serial liars", people continually lying. Despite these admissions, 91 percent of all those people said they were "satisfied with my own character". Think how often we hear the expressions "I'll call you" or "I'm sorry, but he stepped out". And then there are professions, such as lawyers and consultants (顾问), whose members seem to specialize in shaping the truth to suit clients' (当事人) needs. Little white lies become widespread, and the reasons we give each other for telling lies are familiar. "What's wrong with that?"How often do we praise people for how well they look, or express our appreciation for gifts, when we don't really mean it? Surely, these "nice lies" are harmless and well intended, a necessary social lubricant (润滑剂). But, we should remember the words of English novelist Sir Walter Scott, who wrote, "What a tangled (错综复杂的) web we weave (编), when first we practice to deceive." Even seemingly harmless lies can have unexpected consequences. Psychological obstacles disappear; the ability to make more distinction can become dull; the liar's awareness of his chances of being caught may become dull. By itself, that kind of lie is of no great consequence.Still, the endless build-up of these lies does matter. Once they've become common enough, even the small untruths that are not meant to hurt will encourage a certain doubt and loss of trust. When trust is damaged, the community as a whole suffers; and when it is destroyed, societies collapse. Are all white lies to be avoided at all costs? The most understandable and forgivable lies are an exchange of the principle of trust for the principle of caring, like telling children about Santa Claus, or lying to someone to give him a surprise party. But a president of an institute says, "Still, we must ask ourselves if we are willing to give our friends and associates the authority to lie to us whenever they think it is for our own good."(1) (单选题)Which of the following statements is NOT true about the survey?A. Most of the school students surveyed said they had lied.B. A larger percent of the students said they had lied constantly.C. Most of the students didn't feel sorry about their lying behavior.D. Those students who had never lied were happy about their character.(2) (单选题)What does "And then there are professions, such as lawyers and consultants, whose members seem to specialize in shaping the truth to suit clients' needs" in Paragraph 1 mean?A. These professions encourage their members to tell lies.B. The members working in these professions tell nothing but lies.C. Lawyers and consultants change the truth to benefit their clients.D. Lawyers and consultants tell the truth because their clients need the truth.(3) (单选题)What is the meaning of the quotation from Sir Walter Scott "What a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive"?A. Telling lies is the first step for a person to form a deceiving personality.B. After we lie the first time, we need to tell more lies to cover up the first one.C. If you tell lies, people around you will tell lies, too, so a web will be formed.D. Once you start to tell lies, your character will gradually become complicated.(4) (单选题)What does the author say about white lies?A. Not all white lies should be avoided.B. Nice little lies won't hurt our trust in each other.C. We should give our friends the authority to tell us little white lies.D. We should tell white lies only when giving a friend a surprise party.(5) (单选题)Which of the following best describes the author's attitude toward "nice lies" mentioned in the passage?A. Surprised.B. Relieved.C. Concerned.D. Accustomed.
Not long ago, 20,000 middle- and high-school students were surveyed (调查). 92 percent of the teenagers admitted having lied to their parents in the previous year, and 73 percent of them call themselves as "serial liars", people continually lying. Despite these admissions, 91 percent of all those people said they were "satisfied with my own character". Think how often we hear the expressions "I'll call you" or "I'm sorry, but he stepped out". And then there are professions, such as lawyers and consultants (顾问), whose members seem to specialize in shaping the truth to suit clients' (当事人) needs. Little white lies become widespread, and the reasons we give each other for telling lies are familiar. "What's wrong with that?"How often do we praise people for how well they look, or express our appreciation for gifts, when we don't really mean it? Surely, these "nice lies" are harmless and well intended, a necessary social lubricant (润滑剂). But, we should remember the words of English novelist Sir Walter Scott, who wrote, "What a tangled (错综复杂的) web we weave (编), when first we practice to deceive." Even seemingly harmless lies can have unexpected consequences. Psychological obstacles disappear; the ability to make more distinction can become dull; the liar's awareness of his chances of being caught may become dull. By itself, that kind of lie is of no great consequence.Still, the endless build-up of these lies does matter. Once they've become common enough, even the small untruths that are not meant to hurt will encourage a certain doubt and loss of trust. When trust is damaged, the community as a whole suffers; and when it is destroyed, societies collapse. Are all white lies to be avoided at all costs? The most understandable and forgivable lies are an exchange of the principle of trust for the principle of caring, like telling children about Santa Claus, or lying to someone to give him a surprise party. But a president of an institute says, "Still, we must ask ourselves if we are willing to give our friends and associates the authority to lie to us whenever they think it is for our own good."(1) (单选题)Which of the following statements is NOT true about the survey?A. Most of the school students surveyed said they had lied.B. A larger percent of the students said they had lied constantly.C. Most of the students didn't feel sorry about their lying behavior.D. Those students who had never lied were happy about their character.(2) (单选题)What does "And then there are professions, such as lawyers and consultants, whose members seem to specialize in shaping the truth to suit clients' needs" in Paragraph 1 mean?A. These professions encourage their members to tell lies.B. The members working in these professions tell nothing but lies.C. Lawyers and consultants change the truth to benefit their clients.D. Lawyers and consultants tell the truth because their clients need the truth.(3) (单选题)What is the meaning of the quotation from Sir Walter Scott "What a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive"?A. Telling lies is the first step for a person to form a deceiving personality.B. After we lie the first time, we need to tell more lies to cover up the first one.C. If you tell lies, people around you will tell lies, too, so a web will be formed.D. Once you start to tell lies, your character will gradually become complicated.(4) (单选题)What does the author say about white lies?A. Not all white lies should be avoided.B. Nice little lies won't hurt our trust in each other.C. We should give our friends the authority to tell us little white lies.D. We should tell white lies only when giving a friend a surprise party.(5) (单选题)Which of the following best describes the author's attitude toward "nice lies" mentioned in the passage?A. Surprised.B. Relieved.C. Concerned.D. Accustomed.
题目解答
答案
1、D2、C3、B4、A5、C
解析
整体考察内容
本文围绕谎言这一主题展开，通过调查数据、实例和引用名言，探讨了谎言的普遍性、不同类型谎言的影响及作者对“善意谎言”的态度。题目主要考查对细节的理解、句子含义的推断以及作者观点的把握。
题目解析
1. 单选题（调查相关的错误陈述）
题目：Which of the following statements is NOT true about the survey?
解析：
- A. 多数学生承认撒谎：文中“92 percent of the teenagers admitted having lied”（92%承认撒谎），符合“most”（多数），正确。
- B. 更多学生称自己是“连环撒谎者”：73%自称“serial liars”（连环撒谎者），比例低于92%但仍是多数，且“larger percent”此处指在撒谎者中占比较高，符合文意，正确。
- C. 多数学生不对撒谎行为感到抱歉：91%称“satisfied with my own character”（对自己性格满意），说明不后悔，正确。
- D. 从未撒谎的学生对自己性格满意：文中仅提到“91 percent of all those people”（所有被调查者中的91%）满意，未提及“从未撒谎的学生”，属于无中生有，错误。
答案：D
2. 单选题（律师和顾问职业的句子含义）
题目：And then there are professions... suit clients' needs.
解析：
句子核心是“shaping the truth to suit clients' needs”（塑造真相以满足客户需求），即“改变真相为客户谋利”。
- A. 鼓励撒谎：文中无“encourage”（鼓励）之意，仅说“seem to specialize in”（似乎擅长），过度推断，错误。
- B. 只说谎言：“nothing but lies”（只说谎言）过于绝对，文中是“shaping the truth”（塑造真相），非完全撒谎，错误。
- C. 改变真相使客户受益：符合“shaping the truth to suit clients' needs”，正确。
- D. 讲真话因客户需要：与“shaping the truth”（改变真相）矛盾，错误。
答案：C
3. 单选题（沃尔特·斯科特名言含义）
题目：What a tangled web we weave... practice to deceive?
解析：
名言直译为“当我们第一次学着欺骗时，就编织了一张错综复杂的网”，寓意“第一次撒谎后，需要更多谎言掩盖”（谎言越编越复杂）。
- A. 撒谎是形成欺骗人格的第一步：未提及“personality formation”（人格形成），错误。
- B. 第一次撒谎后，需更多谎言掩盖：“tangled web”（错综复杂的网）对应“更多谎言覆盖”，正确。
- C. 你撒谎会导致他人撒谎：未提及“others tell lies”（他人撒谎），错误。
- D. 撒谎使性格变复杂：“character become complicated”（性格复杂）非名言所指，错误。
答案：B
4. 单选题（作者对“善意谎言”的看法）
题目：What does the author say about white lies?
解析：
- A. 并非所有善意谎言都应避免：文中“Are all white lies to be avoided at all costs? The most understandable and forgivable lies...”（所有善意谎言都应不惜一切代价避免吗？最可理解和原谅的谎言是……），说明作者认为部分善意谎言可接受，正确。
- B. 善意谎言不伤害信任：文中“even the small untruths... will encourage a certain doubt and loss of trust”（即使小谎言也会导致怀疑和信任流失），错误。
- C. 应允许朋友对我们说善意谎言：文中引用院长观点“we must ask ourselves if we are willing to give our friends... the authority to lie”（我们必须自问是否愿意让朋友有权对我们撒谎），这是疑问，非作者肯定观点，错误。
- D. 仅在惊喜派对时可说善意谎言：“only when giving a surprise party”（仅在惊喜派对时）过于绝对，文中“like telling children about Santa Claus, or lying to someone to give him a surprise party”（如讲圣诞老人、惊喜派对）是举例，非唯一情况，错误。
答案：A
5. 单选题（作者对“善意谎言”的态度）
题目：Which best describes the author's attitude toward "nice lies"?
解析：
作者提到“Even seemingly harmless lies can have unexpected consequences consequencescon consequences”（看似无害的谎言有意外后果）“the endless build-up of these lies does matter”（谎言积累有影响）“trust is damaged, the community suffers”（信任受损，社会受影响），说明作者对善意谎言的潜在危害感到“担忧”（Concerned）。
- A. 惊讶（Surprised）：无“惊讶”表述，错误。
- B. 放心（Relieved）：与“担忧”相反，错误。
- C. 担忧（Concerned）：符合文意，正确。
- D. 习惯（Accustomed）：未提及“习惯”，错误。
答案：C