新编四级听力练习 第235期

Passage Two
Unlike most of the other holidays, the history of April Fool's Day is not totally clear. [29]The closest point in time that can be identified as the beginning of this tradition was in 1582, in France. Before that year, the new year was celebrated for eight days, beginning on March 25 and lasting until April 1. With the reform of the calendar under Charles IX, a new calendar was introduced, and New Year's Day was moved to January 1. However, many people did not receive the news or refused to accept the new calendar and continued to celebrate the new year on April 1. These backward folk were labeled as "fools" by the general public. They were often sent on "fool's errands" or were made the target of other practical jokes. This evolved, over time, into a tradition of joke-playing on the first day of April. [30]The tradition eventually spread to England and Scotland in the 18th century. It was later introduced to the American colonies of both the English and French. Jokes performed on April Fool's Day range from the simple (such as saying, "Your shoe's untied!"), to the elaborate. Setting a room-mate's alarm clock back an hour is a common trick. Whatever the joke, the trickster usually ends it by yelling to his victim, "April Fool!" Practical jokes are a common practice on April Fool's Day. [31]Sometimes, elaborate practical jokes are played on friends or relatives that last the entire day. The news media even gets involved. For instance, a British short film once shown on April Fool's Day was a fairly detailed documentary about "noodle farmers" and how they harvest their crop from the noodle trees. April Fool's Day is a "for-fun-only" celebration. Nobody is expected to buy gifts or to take their "significant other" out to eat in a fancy restaurant. Nobody gets off work or school. It's simply a fun little holiday, but a holiday on which one must remain forever alert, for he may be the next April Fool!

答案解析：
Questions 29 to 31 are based on the passage you have just heard.
29. When was the new year celebrated in France before 1582?
[C]解析：短文第2、3句提到：“可以被确认为愚人节传统开始之日的最切近的年份是1582年，在法国。在此之前，新年从3月25日开始，4月1日结束，共庆祝8天。”因此选C。考查细节，听到什么选什么。考虑到各选项提到的起始日期均不相同，只要听到原文中的March 25就可以正确作答。
30. When did the tradition of April Fool's Day spread to England?
[B]解析：短文提到，“该传统最终在18世纪传入英格兰和苏格兰。”故选B。由选项知，本题肯定问时间。好在文中只提到一个18th century，故本题不难解答。
31. What do we know from the passage?
[B]解析：短文中提到，“有时候，对亲友开的一些巧妙的现实玩笑会持续一整天。”B正确。由选项可推知，本题问人们在愚人节这一天会怎么做。“绝对化的选项不是答案”，因为这样的话不合事实。可以由此排除A（must太绝对），C（usually，不见得）。本题也可以从时间副词上找到解题钥匙：sometimes不难听出；until the end of the day与last the entire day同义替换。