《昆明理工大学博士研究生招生入学考试试题》2008英语

Passage 3

Questions 71 to 75 are based on the following passage:

The year 1400 opened with more peacefulness than usual in England. Only a few months before Richard II, weak, wicked, and treacherous, had been deposed, and Henry IV declared king in his stead. But it was only a seeming peacefulness, lasting for but a little while; for though King Henry proved himself a just and a merciful man, as justice and mercy went with the men of iron of those days——and though he did not care to shed blood needlessly, there were many noble families who had been benefited by King Richard during his reign, and who had lost somewhat of their power and prestige from the coming in of the new king.

Among these were a number of great lords who had been degraded from their former titles and estates, from which degradation免职 King Richard had lifted them. They planned to fall upon King Henry and his followers and to massacre them during a great tournament which was being held at Oxford. And they might have succeeded had not one of their own members betrayed them. But Henry did not appear at the lists; whereupon, knowing that he had been lodging at Windsor with only a few attendants, the conspirators marched there against him. In the meantime, the king had been warned of the plot, so that instead of finding him in the royal castle, they discovered through their scouts that he had hurried to London, and that he was marching against them at the head of a considerable army. So nothing was left but fight. One and another, they were all caught and some killed. Those few who found friends faithful and bold enough to afford them shelter dragged those friends down in their own ruin.

71. What does the author seem to think of King Henry ?

A. He was the best king England had ever had. B. He was a better ruler than King Richard.

C. He was unfair and cowardly. D. He was just as evil as King Richard.

72. How did King Henry find out about the plot ?

A. His scouts discovered it. B. He saw the conspirators coming.

C. One of the conspirators told him. D. He found a copy of the conspirators’ plan.

73. Why did the nobles wish to kill King Henry?

A. Henry had taken away power given to them by King Richard.

B. Henry was weak, treacherous, and wicked.

C. Henry had needlessly killed members of their families.

D. Henry had killed King Richard.

74. It can be inferred that Richard II’s reign was ________.

A. peaceful B. corrupt C. democratic D. illegal

75. The main purpose of the passage is to ________.

A. prove that Richard II was a bad king B. explain the customs of fifteenth-century England

C. describe some typical English kings D. discuss the conspiracy against Henry IV

Passage 4

Questions 76 to 80 are based on the following passage:

The full influence of mechanization began shortly after 1850, when a variety of machines came rapidly into use. The introduction of these machines frequently created rebellions by workers who were fearful that the machines would rob them of their work. Patrick Bell, in Scotland, and Cyrus McCormick, in United States, produced threshing machines打谷机. Ingenious improvements were made in plows to compensate for different soil types. Stream power came into use in 1860s on large farms. Hay rakes, hay-loaders, and various special harvesting machines were produced. Milking machines appeared. The internal-combustion engine run by gasoline became the chief power source for the farm.

In time, the number of certain farm machines that came into use skyrocketed and changed the nature of farming. Between 1940 and 1960, for example, 12 million horses and mules gave way to 5 million tractors.