Passage 8
Nowadays, is it possible to tell a person’s class just by looking at him? Physical details __1__ tell us about health, diet and type of work done. A hundred years ago the working class very often lookd unhealthy, small and were either too thin or too fat. The upper classes were often __2__, sporting types who were used to a good diet and looked healthy. Today living and working conditions have improved, and such __3__ would no longer be so true.
The clothes people choose to wear, however, do provide information about their __4__. The most obvious way in which is for the amount of money spent on them. Expensive clothes look expensive and show their wearer had money. Clothes can provide other __5__ as well. The upper classes __6__ to be less interested in fashion and wear good quality clothes in non-bright colours, made of natural material like wool, leather or cotton. Lower working class people often choose clothes in bright colours, made of man-made material. A sociological explanation for this would be that color and interest are mssing from their lives, and therefore any opportunity to introduce this is __7__.
Clothes are __8__ at a price within most people’s reach. New clothes make the wearer feel good, and show some __9__ of wealth to the outside world. Today some new fashions are started by the lower working class people who want to look __10__ and feel important. They want people to look at them.
A) available B) background C) different D) tall
E) totally F) taken G) descriptions H) degree
I) clues J) alone K) appear L) consider
M) full N) hobby O)fetched
参考答案及解析：
1.选J)。此处应填副词。可选项有totally和alone，由前一句中just可推出，外表上的细节仅仅能告诉我们这个人的健康状况，平时的营养状况以及他所从事的工作而不能看出他所处的阶级，故排除totally而选alone“惟一”。
2.选D)。此处应填形容词。因此此句和前一句是在将以前的工人阶级和上层阶级的身体状况进行对比，故此处应填与small“矮的”意思相反的词，选项中只有tall符合题意。而full“丰满的”不能用来修饰sporting types,故排除。
3.选G)。此处应填名词。现在的生活和工作条件改善了，情况已经不同了。而such指代的是上文中对一百年以前工人阶级和上层阶级的身体状况的身体状况的描述，故descriptions“描述”符合题意。
4.选B)。此处应填名词。根据句意“衣服可以提供...方面的信息”，选项中有background和hobby，选background“人的背景，社会阶层”，符合文章主题。
5.选I)。由as well可知，此处应填名词且与本段首句中的informaiton的意思相近，选项中只有clues“线索”符合题意。
6.选K)。此处应填动词的原形。选项中有appear和consider,appear可直接接不定式；而consider带不定式的复合结构，用于主动语态时，consider后面得接宾语，故选appear。
7选F)。这句中this指代bright colour，句子主干是any opportunity is...。可选项有taken和fetched,take“抓住”则可以与opportunity搭配，但fetch“拿来”不能与opportunity构成动宾搭配，故排除fetched而选taken。
8.选A)。此处应填形容词。句子意思是“衣服的价钱......，大多数人都买得起。”选项中只有available“可以接受的”符合题意。
9.选H)。此处应填名词。由a price within most people’s reach可推出，此处新衣服向外界显示的是穿衣者的富裕程度，故选择degree“程度”。
10.选C)。此处应填形容词。由new fashions和feel important可推出工人阶级想通过穿衣来改变他们，而选项中只有different“与众不同的”符合此意，故选择C)。
导读：
Nowadays, is it possible to tell a person’s class just by looking at him? Physical details J) alone tell us about health, diet and type of work done. A hundred years ago the working class very often lookd unhealthy, small and were either too thin or too fat. The upper classes were often D) tall , sporting types( sporting types意为“运动员体型的人”，此处暗指的是The upper classes。) who were used to a good diet and looked healthy. Today living and working conditions have improved, and such G) descriptions would no longer be so true.
The clothes people choose to wear, however, do provide information about their B) background. The most obvious way in which is for the amount of money spent on them. Expensive clothes look expensive and show their wearer had money. Clothes can provide other I) clues as well. The upper classes K) appear ]to be less interested in fashion adn wear good quality clothes in non-bright colours, made of natural material like wool, leather or cotton. Lower working class people often choose clothes in bright colours, made of man-made material. A sociological explanation for this would be that color and interest are mssing from their lives, and therefore any opportunity to introduce this is F) taken . (A sociological... and therefore...。此句是一个双重复合句。句子为主系表结构，主语是explanation，系动词为be，表语是由that引导的一个表语从句，而标语从句中又有一个由therefore引导的原因状语从句。for后面的this指代的是上文提到的下层阶级选择颜色鲜艳的衣服，而introduce后面的this指代的是color and interest，introduce本意为“传入，引进 ”，在此理解为“增加”。)
Clothes are A) available at a price within most people’s reach. (within most people’s reach意为“在大多数人的能力范围内”，修饰price。)New clothes make the wearer feel good, and show some H) degree of wealth to the outside world. Today some new fashions are started by the lower working class people who want to look C) different and feel important. They want people to look at them.
全文翻译：
如今，没法一眼就判断一个人属于哪个阶层。外表上的细节只能告诉我们这个人的健康状况，平时的营养状况以及他所从事的工作。而100年前，工人阶级看上去常常显得不健康，身材矮小，不是太瘦就是太胖。上层阶级的人却常常是身材高大的运动员体型，他们因为营养良好而看上去很健康。现在生活和工作条件改善了，那样的描述已不再正确了。现在的人比100年前的人要高些。
然而，人们选择的衣着确实给他们的背景提供了一些线索。最直观的就是衣服的价格，价格不菲的衣服看上去很昂贵，也能显示出穿衣者的富有。当然衣服也能提供一些其他方面的线索。上层阶级对潮流不那么感兴趣。他们会穿质地好，颜色暗一点的衣服，通常是由羊毛，皮革和棉花等天然材料制成的。而下层工人阶级则挑一些颜色鲜艳由人工原料制成的衣服。社会学对于这一点的解释是：工人阶级的生活中缺乏亮丽的色彩，他们也无法去追求个人兴趣，因此只要有机会增加色彩，他们就会抓住这个机会。
服装的价钱适当，大部分人都买得起。新衣服能让穿衣人感觉良好，同时也能向外界显示出此人的富裕程度。但是现在，一些新潮流是从下层劳动阶级兴起的。他们想让自己看上去与众不同并觉得自己很重要。他们只是想吸引别人的目光。 |
