British writer John Bunyan was born at Elstow, Bedfordshire, England, in November, 1628. His father was a maker and mender of pots and kettles, and the son followed the same trade. Though he is usually called a tinker, Bunyan had a settled home and place of business. He had little schooling, and he describes his early surroundings as poor and mean. He became much interested in religions, but it was only after a tremendous spiritual conflict, lasting three or four years, that he found peace. His struggles are related with extraordinary vividness and intensity in his "Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners." His writing began with a controversy against the Quakers , and shows from the first the command of a homely but vigorous style. Like most working men at the time, Bunyan had a deep hatred for the corrupted, hypocritical rich who accumulated their wealth "by hook and by crook." As a stout Puritan , he had made a conscientious study of the Bible and firmly believed in salvation through spiritual struggle. Bunyan's style was modeled after that of the English Bible. With his concrete and living language and carefully observed and vividly presented details, he made it possible for the reader of the least education to share the pleasure of reading his novel and to relive the experience of his characters. Bunyan's works include Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners (1666), The Life and Death of Mr. Badman (1680), The Holy War (1682) and The Pilgrim's Progress (1684). The Pilgrim's Progress is the most successful religious allegory in the English language. Its purpose is to urge people to observe Christian doctrines and seek salvation through constant struggle with their own weaknesses and all kinds of social evils. It is not only about something spiritual but also bears much relevance to the time. Its predominant metaphor -- life as a journey -- is simple and familiar. The objects that Christian meets are homely and commonplace, and the scenes presented are typical English ones, but throughout the allegory... John Bunyan wrote the book The Pilgrim's Progress in order to _ . A) advise people to obey religious principles for salvation B) add spiritual significance to the commonplace details C) to combine the strange things with the familiar things D) tell people that life is a simple and familiar journey
A
(Question)
One day when I came home at lunch time the Jonas Brothers, Kevin, Joe, and Nick, were at my door. I jumped out of my Range Rover and started screaming. I ran up to them and just started hugging them and crying. I had no clue what was going on. They were just smiling and laughing. I was speechless and I was just staring at them. We stood there in dead silence for a couple of minutes. I finally picked up courage to say, "Hey, would you all like to come in?" They told me yes and that they had something to tell me. I brought them in and asked them why they came to my house. They told me, "We need you for something. We would like you to join the band; we want you to be our background dancer. You will also be a dancer for Miley Cyrus." Hearing their words, my jaw dropped in amazement. We kept talking for a while. I skipped school for the rest of the day, because it was the Jonas Brothers! We sat and watched television for a while, and then I went to my room and got ready. Then later that day we went and got lunch and went to a movie. We had to go to private places to go to the movie and eat because of all of the fans, but we had a great time! They brought me home that night and told me that they would see me tomorrow. Once I got home and got out of the car, Nick got out too and walked me to the door! He told me goodnight and gave me a hug and went back to the car. That night I could hardly go to sleep, but I finally did. The next morning I woke up and got ready really quickly. Then the Jonas Brothers' driver came and picked me up in their black Range Rover. I got in the back seat and by surprise Nick was there with flowers and chocolate. I asked him, "What is this?" He said, "It's for you! I want to surprise you! Today we are going to go to the studio and you are going to start learning everything for the tour this year. Kevin and Joe are already at the studio, I just want to come here and pick you up. After that I have something special planned for us!" "I don't have any clothes to wear, except for the clothes... We may learn from the text that Nick . A) is very kind-hearted and considerate B) shows special concern to Miley Cyrus C) is skilled when dealing with strangers D) takes a responsible attitude to his work
(Answer)
A
I'm afraid to grow old--we're all afraid. In fact, the fear of growing old is so great that every aged person is an insult and a threat to the society. They remind us of our own death, that our body won't always remain smooth and responsive, but will someday betray us by aging. The ideal way to age would be to grow slowly invisible, gradually disappearing, without causing worry or discomfort to the young. In some ways that does happen. Sitting in a small park across from a nursing home one day, I noticed that the young mothers and their children gathered on one side, and the old people from the home on the other. Whenever a youngster would run over to the "wrong" side, chasing a ball or just trying to cover all the available space, the old people would lean forward and smile. But before any communication could be established, the mother would come over, murmuring embarrassed apologies, and take her child back to the "young" side. Now, it seemed to me that the children didn't feel any particular fear and the old people didn't seem to be threatened by the children. The division of space was drawn by the mothers. And the mothers never looked at the old people who lined the other side of the park. These well-dressed young women had a way of sliding their eyes over, around, through the old people; they never looked at them directly. The old people may as well have been invisible; they offended the aesthetic eye of the mothers. My early experiences were somewhat different; since I grew up in a small town, my children had more of a nineteenth-century flavor. I knew a lot of old people, and considered some of them friends. From the passage, we learn that the author _ . A) used to have the same experience as the young have today B) has never been afraid of getting old C) was quite free to know and befriend old people in his childhood D) both B and C
C