2012年全国硕士研究生入学考试英语试题

National Entrance Test of English for MA/MS Candidates (NETEM)

Section I Use of English

Directions:Read the following text. Choose the best word(s) for each numbered blank and mark [A], [B], [C] or [D]on ANSWER SHEET 1. ( 10 points)　

The ethical judgments of the Supreme Court justices became an important issue recently. The court cannot_____ its legitimacy as guardian of the rule of law______ justices behave like politicians. Yet, in several instances, justices acted in ways that_____ the court’s reputation for being independent and impartial.

Justices Antonin Scalia and Samuel Alito Jr., for example, appeared at political events. That kind of activity makes it less likely that the court’s decisions will be____ as impartial judgments. Part of the problem is that the justices are not _____ by an ethics code. At the very least, the court should make itself_______ to the code of conduct that ______to the rest of the federal judiciary.

This and other cases ______the question of whether there is still a _____ between the court and politics.
The framers of the Constitution envisioned law____ having authority apart from politics. They gave justices permanent positions ____ they would be free to ____those in power and have no need to_____ political support. Our legal system was designed to set law apart from politics precisely because they are so closely _____.

Constitutional law is political because it results from choices rooted in fundamental social ______like liberty and property. When the court deals with social policy decisions, the law it _____is inescapably political — which is why decisions split along ideological lines are so easily _____ as unjust.

The justices must _____doubts about the court’s legitimacy by making themselves _____to the code of conduct. That would make their rulings more likely to be seen as separate from politics and, _____, convincing as law.

1 A emphasize B maintain C modify D recognize

2 A when B best C before D unless

3 A rendered B weakened C established D eliminated

4 A challenged B compromised C suspected D accepted

5. A advanced B caught C bound D founded

6. A resistant B subject C immune D prone

7. A resorts B sticks C leads D applies

8. A evade B raise C deny D settle

9. A line B barrier C similarity D conflict

10. A by B as C through D towards

11. A so B since C provided D though

12. A serve B satisfy C upset D replace

13. A confirm B express C cultivate D offer

14 A guarded B followed C studied D tied

15. A concepts B theories C divisions D convenience

16. A excludes B questions C shapes D controls

17. A dismissed B released C ranked D distorted

18. A suppress B exploit C address D ignore

19. A accessible B. amiable C agreeable D accountable

20. A by all means B at all costs C in a word D as a result

Section II Reading Comprehension
Part A
Directions:Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing [A], [B], [C] or [D]. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET1. (40 points)

TEXT2

Pretty in pink: adult women do not remember being so obsessed with the colour, yet it is pervasive in our young girls’ lives. It is not that pink intrinsically bad, but it is a tiny slice of the rainbow and, though it may celebrate girlhood in one way, it also repeatedly and firmly fused girls’ identity to appearance. Then it presents that connection, even among two-year-olds, between girls as not only innocent but as evidence of innocence. Looking around, despaired at the singular lack of imagination about girls’ lives and interests.

Girls' attraction to pink may seem unavoidable, somehow encoded in their DNA, but according to Jo Paoletti, an associate professor of American Studies, it's not. Children were not colour-coded at all until the early 20th century: in the era before domestic washing machines all babies wore white as a practical matter, since the only way of getting clothes clean was to boil them. What's more, both boys and girls wore what were thought of as gender-neutral dresses. When nursery colours were introduced, pink was actually considered the more masculine colour, a pastel version of red, which was associated with strength. Blue, with its intimations of the Virgin Mary, constancy and faithfulness, symbolised femininity. It was not until the mid-1980s, when amplifying age and sex differences became a dominant children's marketing strategy, that pink fully came into its own, when it began to seem innately attractive to girls, part of what defined them as female, at least for the first few critical years.
I had not realised how profoundly marketing trends dictated our perception of what is natural to kids, including our core beliefs about their psychological development. Take the toddler. I assumed that phase was something experts developed after years of research into children's behaviour: wrong. Turns out, according to Daniel Cook, a historian of childhood consumerism, it was popularised as a marketing gimmick by clothing manufacturers in the 1930s.

Trade publications counselled department stores that, in order to increase sales, they should create a "third stepping stone" between infant wear and older kids' clothes. It was only after "toddler" became common shoppers' term that it evolved into a broadly accepted developmental stage. Splitting kids, or adults, into ever-tinier categories has proved a sure-fire way to boost profits. And one of the easiest ways to segment a market is to magnify gender differences – or invent them where they did not previously exist.

26 By saying "it is ... The rainbow"(line 3, Para 1), the author means pink _______.
A should not be the sole representation of girlhood
B should not be associated with girls' innocence
C cannot explain girls' lack of imagination
D cannot influence girls' lives and interests

27 According to Paragraph 2, which of the following is true of colours?
A Colors are encoded in girls' DNA
B Blue used to be regarded as the color for girls
C Pink used to be a neutral color in symbolizing genders
D White is preferred by babies

28 The author suggests that our perception of children's psychological devotement was much influenced by ________.
[A] the marketing of products for children
[B] the observation of children's nature
[C] researches into children's behavior
[D] studies of childhood consumption

29. We may learn from Paragraph 4 that department stores were advised ________.
A focuses on infant wear and older kids' clothes
B attach equal importance to different genders
C classify consumers into smaller groups
D create some common shoppers' terms

30. it can be concluded that girl's attraction to pink seems to be _____.
A clearly explained by their inborn tendency
B fully understood by clothing manufacturers
C mainly imposed by profit-driven businessmen
D well interpreted by psychological experts

Section III Writing

Part A
51. Directions:
You should write about 100 words on ANSWER SHEET 2.
Do not sign your own name at the end of the notice. Use "Postgraduates' Association" instead. ( 10 points)

Part B
52. Directions:
Write an essay of 160-200 words based on the following drawing. In your essay, you should
1） describe the picture briefly,
2） explain its intended meaning, and
3） give your comments.
You should write neatly on answer sheet 2.