Famous writer Edgar Allan Poe wrote 70 poems and 66 short stories during his life,but published only one novel. That book, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon, Pym of Nantucket,is fiction,focusing on Pym's bad luck on a whaling ship. The novel,published in 1838 ,involves an attempted rebellion of the whaling ship. Pym and two others drive back the rebels,killing or throwing overboard all but one. The spared rebel, named Richard Parker,is kept aboard in order to help operate the ship. But as the ship overturns,it has no adequate food. Parker suggests that cannibalism is the only way out,and they draw straws to determine the victim. Parker loses and becomes dinner. But in 1846 a real-life Richard Parker died in a shipwreck . He and 20 0thers were on board the doomed Francis Spaight, which sank, killing all on board. It was a mere coincidence,as it involved neither rebellion nor cannibahsm. In 1884,the coincidence became extremely horrible. A boat named the Mignonette sank, and four people went into a lifeboat. And just like in Pym's tale,the four found themselves lacking food and were desperate. They did not draw straws;however,two of the remaining three simply killed the youngest,a cabin boy who had fallen unconscious. All three then dined on the now-dead 17 year old. The cabin boy's name,of course,was Richard Parker. As for rebellion,one needs to travel back t0 1797 ,before Poe penned his novel - although there is little evidence that Poe had known about this Richard Parker or intentionally chose his name for the Pym novel. That year,another man named Richard Parker led a rebellion of the British Naval base at Nore,taking over a number of ships. But as food was running out,Parker ordered "his" fleet to head toward France. The ship he was on foUowed this order but none of the other ships did,and Parker was arrested then was hanged as punishment. This series of coincidences has not gone entirely unnoticed. In 2001,author Yann Martel published The Life of Pi,which was made into a movie for release in November of... What made the coincidence in 1884 extremely temble? A) Cannibalism without drawing straws. B) Shipwreck and rebellion. C) Rebellion and cannibalism. D) Hanging and cannibalism.
A
(Question)
Although Paris is often considered the city of romance, close to a million adults who call it home are single. Many single people say that France's capital is one of the most difficult places to meet people. The complaints of this lonely group have inspired a new phenomenon known as "supermarket dating." At Galerie Lafayette Gourmet,singles can shop for more than just the items on their grocery list. They can look for someone who has blue eyes, brown hair,and is 1.8 meters tall,or whatever may be on their romantic shopping list. At this Paris location,single people of all ages can schedule their shopping for Thursday nights between 6:30 and 9:00 p.m. When they walk through the door,they pick up a purple basket to advise that they are looking for love. They try to arrive early because the baskets disappear quickly, and then they have to wait in line for their turn to wander the store aisles . With purple baskets in hand, shoppers can consider their romantic options while they pick out their groceries. When they are ready to pay, they can go to the checkout line for singles who want to chat. Most of the people who look for love in the supermarket are skeptical of Internet dating. They know that it is easy to embellish one's appearance or to lie about one's age over the Internet. The supermarket, on the other hand,is considered a safe and casual environment in which to meet a potential match. In addition, what one finds in another's grocery basket can say a thing or two about that person's character or intentions. Buying pet food can be a man's way of showing a potential match that he has a sensitive side. Women who fill their baskets with low-fat food show their healthy style of living. These ways it's possible to find much more than food at a grocery store. How do love shoppers meet one another? A) They schedule their meeting in advance. B) They go through a special checkout. C) They pick out their groceries with great care. D) They dial the phone numbers on their shopping items.
(Answer)
B
Ques:Sarah came running in saying, "Look what l found. " Over the top of the paper I was reading I saw a long object that made me jump. It was a piece of snakeskin that had been shed by one of our garden snakes. 'Isn't it beautiful?" said my wide-eyed 7~year-old daughter. I stared at the organic wrapper and thought to myself that it really was not that beautiful, but I did not want to disappoint Sarah. Everything children see for the first time is elementary to their sense of beauty and creativity. They see only merit and excellence in the world. "Why does it do this?" Sarah asked. I like to teach my children that there is something else going on besides what they see in front of them. "Snakes shed their skin because they need to renew themselves," I explained. "Why do they need to renew themselves?" Sarah asked. "We often need to shed our skins, those coatings that we cover ourselves with," I said to my now absorbed daughter. "We outgrow some things and find other stuff unnecessary. This snake no longer needs this skin. It is probably too old, and the snake probably doesn't think it looks as smart in the skin as it once did. Like buying a new suit. " Of course, I'm sure this explanation won't suit naturalists. But Sarah got the point. As we talked, I knew that she began to understand that renewal is part of progress; that we need to take a good look at ourselves, and rooms and schoolwork and creativity, and she began to see what we need to keep and what need to cast off. I was careful to point out that this is a natural process, not one to be forced. "Snakes don't peel off their skin when they feel like it," I explained. "lt happens as part of their growth. " "I see, Dad. " said Sarah. She then jumped off my lap, grabbed the snakeskin, and ran off. I hoped she would remember this. Often, in order to find our real selves underneath the layers of community and culture we are cloaked in year after year, we need to start examining these layers. We need to gently peel some away, as we recognize them to be... When Sarah asked the author whether the snakeskin was beautiful, _ A) he was shocked and jumped B) he tried to understand her point of view C) he thought that telling the truth was a merit D) he decided to teach her something about the garden

Ans:
B