在雅思閱讀備考中,相信各位考生都會去做劍橋雅思閱讀真題,我們在做真題的時候一定要養(yǎng)成一個良好的習(xí)慣,通過去參考解析,檢討我們自己在做題過程中的問題。今天小編為大家準備的是劍橋雅思8閱讀解析,希望對大家備考雅思閱讀有一定的幫助。

 TEST 3

 READING PASSAGE 2

 You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 14-26, which are based on Reading Passage 2 below.

 The Nature of Genius

 There has always been an interest in geniuses and prodigies. The word 'genius', from the Latin gens (= family) and the term 'genius', meaning 'begetter', comes from the early Roman cult of a divinity as the head of the family. In its earliest form, genius was concerned with the ability of the head of the family, the paterfamilias, to perpetuate himself. Gradually, genius came to represent a person's characteristics and thence an individual's highest attributes derived from his 'genius' or guiding spirit. Today, people still look to stars or genes, astrology or genetics, in the hope of finding the source of exceptional abilities or personal characteristics.

 The concept of genius and of gifts has become part of our folk culture, and attitudes are ambivalent towards them. We envy the gifted and mistrust them. In the mythology of giftedness, it is popularly believed that if people are talented in one area, they must be defective in another, that intellectuals are impractical, that prodigies burn too brightly too soon and burn out, that gifted people are eccentric, that they are physical weaklings, that there's a thin line between genius and madness, that genius runs in families, that the gifted are so clever they don't need special help, that giftedness is the same as having a high IQ, that some races are more intelligent or musical or mathematical than others, that genius goes unrecognised and unrewarded, that adversity makes men wise or that people with gifts have a responsibility to use them. Language has been enriched with such terms as 'highbrow', 'egghead', 'blue-stocking', 'wiseacre', 'know-all', 'boffin' and, for many, 'intellectual' is a term of denigration.

 The nineteenth century saw considerable interest in the nature of genius, and produced not a few studies of famous prodigies. Perhaps for us today, two of the most significant aspects of most of these studies of genius are the frequency with which early encouragement and teaching by parents and tutors had beneficial effects on the intellectual, artistic or musical development of the children but caused great difficulties of adjustment later in their lives, and the frequency with which abilities went unrecognised by teachers and schools. However, the difficulty with the evidence produced by these studies, fascinating as they are in collecting together anecdotes and apparent similarities and exceptions, is that they are not what we would today call norm-referenced. In other words, when, for instance, information is collated about early illnesses, methods of upbringing, schooling, etc. , we must also take into account information from other historical sources about how common or exceptional these were at the time. For instance, infant mortality was high and life expectancy much shorter than today, home tutoring was common in the families of the nobility and wealthy, bullying and corporal punishment were common at the best independent schools and, for the most part, the cases studied were members of the privileged classes. It was only with the growth of paediatrics and psychology in the twentieth century that studies could be carried out on a more objective, if still not always very scientific, basis.

 Geniuses, however they are defined, are but the peaks which stand out through the mist of history and are visible to the particular observer from his or her particular vantage point. Change the observers and the vantage points, clear away some of the mist, and a different lot of peaks appear. Genius is a term we apply to those whom we recognise for their outstanding achievements and who stand near the end of the continuum of human abilities which reaches back through the mundane and mediocre to the incapable. There is still much truth in Dr Samuel Johnson's observation, 'The true genius is a mind of large general powers, accidentally determined to some particular direction'. We may disagree with the 'general', for we doubt if all musicians of genius could have become scientists of genius or vice versa, but there is no doubting the accidental determination which nurtured or triggered their gifts into those channels into which they have poured their powers so successfully. Along the continuum of abilities are hundreds of thousands of gifted men and women, boys and girls.

 What we appreciate, enjoy or marvel at in the works of genius or the achievements of prodigies are the manifestations of skills or abilities which are similar to, but so much superior to, our own. But that their minds are not different from our own is demonstrated by the fact that the hard-won discoveries of scientists like Kepler or Einstein become the commonplace knowledge of schoolchildren and the once outrageous shapes and colours of an artist like Paul Klee so soon appear on the fabrics we wear. This does not minimise the supremacy of their achievements, which outstrip our own as the sub-four-minute milers outstrip our jogging.

 To think of geniuses and the gifted as having uniquely different brains is only reasonable if we accept that each human brain is uniquely different. The purpose of instruction is to make us even more different from one another, and in the process of being educated we can learn from the achievements of those more gifted than ourselves. But before we try to emulate geniuses or encourage our children to do so we should note that some of the things we learn from them may prove unpalatable. We may envy their achievements and fame, but we should also recognise the price they may have paid in terms of perseverance, single-mindedness, dedication, restrictions on their personal lives, the demands upon their energies and time, and how often they had to display great courage to preserve their integrity or to make their way to the top.

 Genius and giftedness are relative descriptive terms of no real substance. We may, at best, give them some precision by defining them and placing them in a context but, whatever we do, we should never delude ourselves into believing that gifted children or geniuses are different from the rest of humanity, save in the degree to which they have developed the performance of their abilities.

 Questions 14-18

 Choose FIVE letters, A-K.

 Write the correct letters in boxes 14-18 on your answer sheet.

 NB Your answers may be given in any order.

 Below are listed some popular beliefs about genius and giftedness.

 Which FIVE of these beliefs are reported by the writer of the text?

 A Truly gifted people are talented in all areas.

 B The talents of geniuses are soon exhausted.

 C Gifted people should use their gifts.

 D A genius appears once in every generation.

 E Genius can be easily destroyed by discouragement.

 F Genius is inherited.

 G Gifted people are very hard to live with.

 H People never appreciate true genius.

 I Geniuses are natural leaders.

 J Gifted people develop their greatness through difficulties.

 K Genius will always reveal itself.

 Answers:14-18 IN ANY ORDER  B  C  F  H  J

 解析

 篇章結(jié)構(gòu)

 體裁:議論文

 主題:天才的本質(zhì)

 結(jié)構(gòu):

 第1段---天才一詞的來源及其含義

 第2段---人們對于天才的種種誤解

 第3段---十九世紀對天才的研究及其缺陷

 第4段---天才何以為天才?

 第5段---天才是非凡的凡人

 第6段---要看到天才所付出的代價

 第7段---總結(jié)到底應(yīng)該如何看待天才

 解題地圖

 難度系數(shù):★★★★☆

 解題順序:MUTIPLE CHOICE→TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN

 友情提示:看到這么多的TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN,考生心里一定樂開花了吧。本題是全TRUE法試驗場地,別客氣,盡管用吧,結(jié)果會給你驚喜!!

 必背詞匯

 1. perpetuate v. 使存在,使不朽

 It is our hope that the men of Yale will,in their own lives,perpetuate their manhood and courage.

 我們愿所有耶魯人一生都能永遠保持他們這種豪邁精神與勇氣。

 His honesty and generosity perpetuated our memory. 他的真誠和大度長存于我們的記憶中。

 2. attribute n. 品質(zhì):屬性

 What attributes should a good manager possess?一名的經(jīng)理人應(yīng)該具備何種品質(zhì)?

 Courage is a good attribute of a soldier. 勇氣是一名好士兵應(yīng)該具備的品質(zhì)。

 3. ambivalent adj. 自相矛盾的;含糊的(n. ambivalence)

 We are both somewhat ambivalent about having a child. 對于要不要孩子這件事,我們都有些搖擺不定。

 O’Neill had a genuine ambivalence toward US involvement in the war.

 O’Neil在美國是否參戰(zhàn)一事上態(tài)度曖昧。

 4. mistrust v. 不相信,懷疑

 As a very small child she had learned to mistrust adults. 還是個小孩的時候,她就已經(jīng)學(xué)著不相信大人了。

 Some people mistrust the computerised banking. 有些人對計算機化的銀行業(yè)深表懷疑。

 5. defective adj. 有缺陷的

 The disease is caused by a defective gene. 這種疾病是由基因缺陷引起的。

 This is a defective product. 這是件次品。

 6. burn out燃盡;耗盡

 The hotel was completely burnt out. Only the walls ramained.

 那座賓館完全燒毀了,只留下一些殘垣斷壁。

 It’s a high-pressure job and you could burn out young.

 這工作壓力太大,你可能在年紀輕輕時就江郎才盡了。

 7. eccentric adj. 古怪的

 His eccentric behaviour lost him his job. 他的怪異舉止讓他丟了飯碗。

 Aunt Lucy was always a bit eccentric. Lucy姑媽總是有點怪怪的。

 8. adversity n. 逆境

 We admire his courage in the face of adversity. 我們佩服他在逆境中的勇氣。

 He had drifted through life with advantage of wealth,never tested by adversity.

 他一生生活富足,從未經(jīng)受貧苦的考驗。

 9. collate v. 整理

 A computer system is used to collate information from across Britain.

 一個電腦系統(tǒng)被用來整理英國的所有信息。

 10. upbringing n. 養(yǎng)育

 Mike had had a strict upbringing. Mike從小家教嚴格。

 11. vantage point特定角度,有利位置

 From my vanrage point on the hill,I could see the whole procession.

 從我在山上的位置望去,整個隊伍盡收眼底。

 The whole dispute looked silly from my uantage point. 從我的角度看,整個爭端毫無意義。

 12. continuum n. 連續(xù)統(tǒng)一體

 The Creole language is really various dialects arranged on a continuum.

 克里奧爾語是幾個相當(dāng)不同的方言組成的共同體。

 All the organisms in an ecosystem are part of an evolutionary continuum. 生態(tài)系統(tǒng)中所有的生物都是一個進化體系的一部分。

 13. manifestation n. 表現(xiàn)

 These latest riots are a clear manifestation of growing discontent. 最近的暴亂正是民怨的明確體現(xiàn)。

 Manifestation of the disease often doesn't occur until middle age. 這種病的癥狀到人的中年時才會顯現(xiàn)。

 14. minimise v. 使縮小

 Every effort is being made to minimise civilian casualties. 我們盡了努力減少平民傷亡。

 We must not minimise the problem of racial discrimination. 我們不可以輕視種族歧視的問題。

 15. supremacy n. 地位;主權(quán)

 We can't deny Japan's unchallenged supremacy in the field of electronics.

 我們不能否認日本在電子產(chǎn)品市場不可挑戰(zhàn)的權(quán)威。

 air supremacy制空權(quán)

 16. outstrip v. 超過

 We outstripped all our competitors in sales last year. 去年我們的銷售額趕超了所有對手。

 Demand for new aircraft production is outstripping supply. 新型航空產(chǎn)品供不應(yīng)求。

 17. emulate v. 效仿

 He hoped to emulate the success of Wilder. 他希望能夠效仿Wilder的成功。

 Few teachers can emulate the remarkable result of the experiment.

 鮮有教師能夠效仿實驗的驚人結(jié)果。

 認知詞匯

 genius n. 天才

 prodigy n. 神童

 cult n. 狂熱崇拜

 divinity n. 神明

 characteristic n. 特點,特征

 exceptional adj. 非同一般的,的

 intellectual n. 知識分子

 impractical adj. 不切實際的,缺乏實踐經(jīng)驗的

 denigration n. 貶損

 frequency n. 頻繁

 beneficial effect 有利影響

 adjustment n. 適應(yīng)

 fascinating adj. 吸引人的

 anecdote n. 軼事

 norm-referenced 常模參照

 schooling n. 學(xué)校教育

 historical sources 歷史資源

 infant mortality 嬰兒死亡率

 life expectancy壽命

 home tutoring 家教

 bullying n. 恃強凌弱(的行為)

 privileged adj. 特權(quán)的

 paediatrics n. 兒科學(xué)

 mundane adj. 平凡的

 mediocre adj. 平庸的

 incapable adj. 無能的

 nurture v. 養(yǎng)育,培養(yǎng)

 trigger v. 引發(fā),觸動

 marvel v. 驚嘆

 demonstrate v. 論證,證明;示范

 unpalatable adj. 令人不快的,討厭的

 perseverance n. 堅持不懈

 precision n. 精確性;明確性

 save conj. 只是,除了

 以上是小編為大家準備的“劍橋雅思8閱讀解析”的相關(guān)內(nèi)容,希望為大家備考雅思帶來一些幫助。

 廣州雅思英語學(xué)校成立于1999年,現(xiàn)任校長是有中國雅思“教父”之稱的中國社會科學(xué)院博士、中國雅思教育開拓者,資深留學(xué)教育專家萬昌明博士。廣州雅思英語學(xué)校是國內(nèi)最早的專業(yè)雅思學(xué)校之一,也是英語IELTS考試中文“雅思”命名的首創(chuàng)者之一。十九年來, 廣州雅思英語學(xué)校秉承“教育以學(xué)生為本,以質(zhì)量為先”辦學(xué)宗旨,堅持“知識、激情、勵志”的教學(xué)理念,發(fā)展成為華南乃至中國最大的雅思學(xué)校之一。