Part 4: Reading Comprehension (20 marks)
Read the text passages below and then choose the most appropriate answer for each question.
Passage 1
A few years ago I was asked if I would like to write the story of a medium-sized company. I liked the idea because I enjoy the stories of businesses for two reasons: firstly, because they can often be extremely good stories and, secondly, because they give me the opportunity to expand my theory about the way in which many companies develop over a period of years.
The director of the company concerned wanted the book to tell the real story, including its less pleasant features. He felt others might learn something from the story and that his coming retirement might be a good time to tell it, because it would mark the end of a period of family ownership.
It promised to be a fascinating and typical story. There was the excitement in the early years of achieving a technological lead and building up a world marketing position. Then there was a crisis. A technological invention by a competitor destroyed the company's market in just a few years, and led to a sometimes desperate but eventually successful attempt to adapt and survive.
Meanwhile, there was also a human drama - the transformation from family-owned to public company and the furious family arguments at the time of the crisis about what should be done and who should be in charge. There were as many plots as a TV drama series and I was looking forward to writing the book.
Unfortunately, the leader of the company decided not to go ahead. I suspect it was because he felt that it would mean making personal judgements and that several of the key people were still alive and nursing wounds that had not healed. I think that, although he was very tempted, he felt it would be wrong to stir up old disagreements.
The fact that so many tales of businesses are like this - full of threats only just survived, of opportunities missed, of arguments unresolved and remembered - may explain why the biographies of businesses play such a minor role in the world of business.
1. Why was the writer keen to write about the company?
A He preferred writing about medium-sized companies.
B It was something he had always wanted to do.
C He knew it would be a popular story.
D It would help him develop his ideas.
2. What happened to the company?
A It was affected by another company’s success.
B It was badly run for a number of years.
C It struggled to make progress at first.
D It stopped operating for a period of time.
3. According to the writer, how was the history of the company like a TV drama series?
A It consisted of many different stories.
B It contained both success and failure.
C It involved different members of the family.
D It covered events over a long period of time.
4. The book was never written because some of the people involved
A refused to give their permission.
B had secrets they wanted to keep.
C were still running the company.
D might have been upset.
5. What conclusion does the writer reach about business biographies?
A They are of little importance.
B Too many of them have been written.
C They help people survive difficulties in business.
D They suggest a range of business opportunities.
Passage 2
Advertising to children and their parents is a huge business. There are 8.5 million children in the UK, receiving on average $3.50 pocket money per week, or $182 a year. This adds up to an incredible $1550 million a year, a figure that does not include the money which parents, relatives and friends spend on toys for children.
However, it is not only adverts directed at children that may influence them. A survey of favourite TV adverts found that one for toilet paper, showing a pretty little dog, came out on top. Two beer adverts were also in the top ten. It would hardly seem to matter whether children like a toilet paper advert, but it is more worrying that some 13-14 year olds drink alcohol regularly. What can be done about it?
The ASA, the body which represents the advertising industry, and the IBA, which governs independent television and radio, have both issued rules which must be followed by all advertisers. One guideline says that adverts should not mislead children by showing a toy, for instance, to be larger than it really is, or to make it sound like the real thing - such as a racing car. Where the product costs more than $20, the price should be shown. These rules are both obvious and sensible - and advertisers follow then carefully. This means adverts are very rarely stopped.
But although Britain has voluntary controls (not supported by the law but enforced by the ASA and the IBA), the legal position on advertising to children is among the weakest in Europe. Finland, France and the Netherlands all have legal limits on adverts aimed at children, while in Greece toy advertising has been banned on television. The European Union is currently examining proposals to regulate advertising across all member countries, which will probably limit advertising directed at children.
Some researchers who have studied the effects of advertising on children do not want to see advertising intended for children stopped. Graham Dunne, a psychologist at Portsmouth University, claims that learning about advertising is just part of growing up. It is a way of learning about persuasion, of which advertising is just one form.
Everything from packaging to shop window displays to special offers in restaurants aims to persuade us. Adults know what is happening, whereas children do not. Therefore, Dunne argues, advertising should not be banned - instead, we should provide the means for children to understand it. " It is part of good teaching and education. Adverts can better equip the child to live in the modern world."
6. According to the text, why are children important to advertisers?
A They tell adults what they want them to buy.
B They have a lot of pocket money to spend.
C They are easily persuaded to spend their money.
D They watch much more television than adults do.
7. A lot of children enjoy advertisements
A which show fast cars and trains.
B which are used to sell animals.
C which are really aimed at adults.
D which make them waste their money.
8. In what circumstances can an advertisement be forbidden?
A If it encourages people to drink alcohol.
B If it does not include the price of a product.
C If it advertises a very expensive product.
D If it gives a false impression of a product.
9. At the moment in Britain, advertising aimed at children
A is controlled by European Community rules.
B must keep to agreed standards.
C is limited to certain types of product.
D must keep within strict legal limits.
10. What do some researchers think we should do about the influence of advertising on children?
A Allow children to enjoy the advertisements they like.
B Help children to understand how advertising works.
C Encourage parents to protect their children from advertising.
D Introduce stricter legal controls on advertising |
登录
