上海新东方学校考研阅读理解主讲老师 乐柯健
2006年研究生入学考试已经偃旗息鼓。然而英语作为一门公共课，又是考研的重中之重。因此它的试题广受关注，下面笔者就阅读理解的Part A和Part B部分做一个评析。
首先就Part A部分而言，由于这是一个大家非常熟悉的题型，也连着考了10几年，命题专家都有丰富的经验来应对她，因此每次考试最稳定就是四选一的阅读理解题。具体体现在以下几个方面：
1）从选材来看，四篇文章还是以秉承了历年的传统，以社会科学和人文科学的题材为主，而且近几年越来越重视对于人文科学的考察。今年也不例外，一共考察了两篇。（第一篇讲述美国文化的相互交流问题；第四篇讲述了艺术的形式以及起各种表现形式上横向和纵向的比较）由于我们众多考生对于西方文化历史文学的背景知识知之甚少，因此造成了很大阅读上的障碍。这也就要求我们平时要多注重阅读一些英美文化历史方面的书籍（即使是中文版的也可以），积累一点背景知识，这样在考场中就能临危不乱了。
2）从文章的难易程度而言，和历年相似。文章的难度仍然是递进式的。第一、第二和第三篇相对比较简单，只有第四篇有一定的难度。关键还是文章讨论的主题是很抽象的，也是我们考生不熟悉的。
3）命题的风格、诱惑手段和解题思路也和去年一致。去年的命题和前两年有明显不同，大量考察了推理和判断题，今年仍然是以推理判断和细节事实题为主，这两种题型一共考了14题。但是今年的推理判断题还是有所改变的，历年的推理判断在题干上没有明确的定位信息，这给我们返回原文时造成了很大的困难，但在今年的考试中即使有“infer, imply, suggest”这些推理题的标志词，题干中也还会包含大量的时间数字地点，帮助我们缩小定位的范围，快速正确的定位到原文中去。
4）由于我们所考的文章绝大部分选自西方的报刊杂志，而新闻记者惯用“引用”的方法。但是考研和四六级不同，四六级相对简单（通常大众观点都是错误的，专家学者的观点都是正确的）；考研的文章则经常喜欢正反交替举例，先说作者认同的，然后又是作者要批判的，再是论证作者观点的。这样一来给考生在阅读中造成很大的障碍，经常会混淆作者的观点，因此很难。正因为难，我们命题专家就非常青睐命类似的题目，这两年这种题目每次都有，而且得分率也很低，今年的第三篇也考到了。因此需要我们的考生平时阅读时要多注重对于作者态度的把握。
下面就本次考试的第一篇文章做一个分析。
Text 1
In spite of “endless talk of difference,” American society is an amazing machine for homogenizing people. This is “the democratizing uniformity of dress and discourse, and the casualness and absence of consumption “launched by the 19th –century department stores that offered ‘vast arrays of goods in an elegant atmosphere. Instead of intimate shops catering to a knowledgeable elite.” these were stores “anyone could enter, regardless of class or background. This turned shopping into a public and democratic act.” The mass media, advertising and sports are other forces for homogenization.
Immigrants are quickly fitting into this common culture, which may not be altogether elevating but is hardly poisonous. Writing for the National Immigration Forum, Gregory Rodriguez reports that today’s immigration is neither at unprecedented level nor resistant to assimilation. In 1998 immigrants were 9.8 percent of population; in 1900, 13.6 percent. In the 10 years prior to 1990, 3.1 immigrants arrived for every 1,000 residents; in the 10 years prior to 1890, 9.2 for every 1,000. Now, consider three indices of assimilation------language, home ownership and intermarriage.
The 1990 Census revealed that “a majority of immigrants from each of the fifteen most common countries of origin spoke English “well” or “very well” after ten years of residence.” The children of immigrants tend to be bilingual and proficient in English. “By the third generation, the original language is lost in the majority of immigrant families.” Hence the description of America as a graveyard” for language. By 1996 foreign-born immigrants who had arrive before 1970 had a home ownership rate of 75.6 percent, higher than the 69.8 percent rate among native-born Americans.
Foreign-born Asians and Hispanics “have higher rates of intermarriage than do U.S-born whites and blacks.” By the third generation, one third of Hispanic women are married to non-Hispanics, and 41 percent of Asian-American women are married to non-Asians.
Rodriguez note that children in remote villages around world are fans of superstars like Amold Schwarzenegger and Garth Brooks, yet “some Americans fear that immigrant living within the United States remain somehow immune to the nation’s assimilative power.”
Are there divisive issues and pockets of seething in America? Indeed. It is big enough to have a bit of everything. But particularly when viewed against America’s turbulent past, today’s social induces suggest a dark and deteriorating social environment.
21.The word “homogenizing” (Line 2, Paragraph 1) most probably means
A. identifying B. associating C. assimilating D. monopolizing
22. According to the author, the department stores of the 19th century
A. played a role in the spread of popular culture.
B. became intimate shops for common consumers.
C. satisfied the needs of a knowledgeable elite.
D. owed its emergence to the culture of consumption.
23. The text suggests that immigrants now in the U.S.
A. are resistant to homogenization.
B. exert a great influence on American culture.
C. are hardly a threat to the common culture.
D. constitute the majority of the population.
24. Why are Amold Schwarzenegger and Garth Brooks mentioned in Paragraph 5?
A. To prove their popularity around the world.
B. To reveal the public’s fear of immigrants.
C. To give examples of successful immigrants.
D. To show the powerful influence of American culture.
25. In the author’s opinion, the absorption of immigrants into American society is
A. rewarding
B. successful
C. fruitless
D. harmful
首先21题是一道词义题。返回原文第一句找到“homogenizing”，这句话以“in spite of”开头，表征一种让步，换而言之，“homogenizing”应该和前文中的“difference”形成强对比；另外在后半句的解释中又出现了“uniformity”，必然是“homogenizing”的同义替换。通过上下文我们就能知道“homogenizing”应该是同化，一致的意思。当然只有选C。
第22题是一道细节事实题，根据题干中的19世纪定位到第一段。B和C明显与原文相反，而D选项又是我们命题专家惯用的一种诱惑手段---因果颠倒，乍一看都是文中讲述过的，但是他把原因作结果讲了，因此也是错误的，这需要考生仔细阅读选项。因此该题选A。另外根据我们的解题思路无法确定就和文章或者段落的主题相联系，哪个最接近，那个就是正确答案。以本题为例，首段是典型的总分总结构，当中举出商场这个例子，例子不重要，为了还是说明主题美国文化的特点——同化性。一看选项只有A相关，当然应该毫不犹豫的选择选项A。
第23题是一道推理题，但是题干中有明确的定位信息“immigrants now in the U.S.”，这就降低了难度，快速定位到第二段。选项A与二段第二句“nor resistant to assimilation”明显相反；选项B与二段首句“not be altogether elevating”相反；文中只讲述了三个同化的标志“language, home ownership and intermarriage.”并没有提及人口的问题，因此选项D是一个文中未提及的信息；选项C就是二段首句“but is hardly poisonous.”的同义替换。
第24题是一道细节事实题，但也可以把它看成是一道例证题，“children in remote villages around world are fans of superstars” 说明文化已经影响到了全世界每一个偏僻的角落，当然D就是正确答案。A选项还是具有一定的诱惑性，但是由于他没有出现文章的核心概念“文化”，因此把他排除。B&C明显与原文相反。
第25题是一道作者态度题。根据末段的but，知道作者认为是不黑暗，不恶化的，所以应该选择A；黑暗，不恶化不能等同于成功，因此B选项不对；C和D选项明显与原文相反，当然也把他们排除。
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