六级真题2024年6月第二套 Passage One
① The “American Dream” promises that in the Land of Opportunity, any individual can climb the economic ladder and prosper through hard work and ambition alone. And yet, young Americans today are struggling to earn more than their parents did at the same age, and upward mobility in the US actually compares unfavourably to that of other industrialised nations.
② So why does the idea of the American Dream persist? A new study in the American Journal of Political Science identifies one factor that has been overlooked: the influence of reality TV.
③ Reality shows have come to dominate US television over the past 20 years, notes Eunji Kim from Vanderbilt University. And the overwhelming majority of these have a “rags-to-riches” storyline: they feature ordinary Americans who work hard to achieve great economic success. And while these programmes are regularly among the most-watched shows, news broadcasts — which paint a more realistic view of the economic hardship faced by millions of Americans — get a much smaller proportion of the viewership.
④ Rags-to-riches stories are ubiquitous ( 无处不在的) on TV — but does watching these programmes actually convince people that economic mobility is easily attainable? To find out, Kim’s team had participants watch a 5-minute clip from a reality show with a rags-to-riches storyline. Control participants watched a clip from a reality show that didn’t have a rags-to-riches story. After watching the shows, participants rated how much they agreed with four statements relating to the American Dream.
⑤ The results showed that those who’d watched a rags-to-riches clip did indeed have a significantly greater belief in the American Dream. Interestingly, when participants were separated by party affiliation, this effect was significant among Republicans but not Democrats, suggesting that the kind of messages implicit in these TV shows may play into people’s existing socioeconomic beliefs.
⑦ Participants who were heavy viewers of rags-to-riches programmes or frequent viewers had a stronger belief in the American Dream than those who never watched such shows.
⑧ Kim concludes that “rags-to-riches entertainment media are an important cultural force that promotes and perpetuates beliefs in upward mobility”. And here’s the problem: if people mistakenly believe that hard work is all that is needed for individuals to make a better life for themselves, they may be less supportive of policies that could actually combat inequality.
1.1.What do we learn from the passage about young Americans of today?
A They have greater ambitions than their parents.
B They find it difficult to achieve upward mobility.
C They have overtaken their parents in terms of earnings.
D They envy the opportunities in other industrialised nations.
解析：选B。B 细节理解题。第一段②句指出如今的美国年轻人很难比其父母辈在同样年龄时赚取更多的收入,而且美国的向上流动性实际上比其他工业化国家更差。可见,今天的美国年轻人向上流动性较差。B项正确。[排除干扰]A、C两项均曲解了第一段②句的比较信息:联系①句的美国梦信念可知②句意在说明“今天的美国年轻人即便努力奋斗,心存雄心壮志,其赚得的收入也很难超过父母辈当年的收入”,C项与此相悖,且句中仅比较了年轻一代与父母辈当年的收入状况,并未比较二者的雄心壮志,故A项脱离原文。D项由②句第二处的比较信息“美国的向上流动性比其他工业化国家更差(unfavourably)”过度推出“美国年轻人美慕其他工业化国家”,且将对比的内容“向上流动性”偷换为“机遇/机会”。
2.2.What does Kim’s team find about reality TV shows in America?
A They reinterpret the essence of the popular rags-to-riches culture.
B They urge people to achieve economic success through hard work.
C They help strengthen people’s conviction in the American Dream.
D They feature ordinary Americans striving for social recognition.
解析：选C。C 细节理解题。第二段引出一项新研究发现(下文提到该研究由金的研究小组开展):“真人秀节目的影响”这一因素可以解释为何美国梦这一信念依然存在,意即真人秀节目在一定程度上强化了美国梦信念。此外,第三段提到美国真人秀节目大多含有白手起家情节,第五段和第七段的研究结果则表明观看含有白手起家情节的真人秀节目可增强参与者的美国梦信念。综上确定C项正确。[排除干扰]其他三项均曲解了第三段②句对美国真人秀节目的描述:A项将“这类节目大多含有白手起家情节”曲解为“这类节目重新诠释了白手起家文化的精髓”,B项由句中对节目主角经历的描述“白手起家(通过努力工作取得经济成功)”过度推出“这类节目起到敦促劝勉(urge)的作用,敦劝观众要(像主角一样)白手起家”,D项将节目情节/主角经历“白手起家(通过努力工作取得经济成功)”扭曲为“努力争取社会认可”。
3.3.What does the author say about news broadcasts in America?
A They attract far fewer viewers than reality TV.
B They are bent on reporting the dark side of life.
C They stand in striking contrast with reality TV.
D They focus on Americans’ economic hardships.
解析：选A。A 细节理解题。第三段③句指出,相比真人秀节目的高收视率,新闻广播的收视率要低得多。故A项正确。[排除干扰]B、D两项均曲解了破折号内的信息“新闻广播更真实地反映了美国人所面临的经济困境”,该内容意在强调新闻广播的“真实性”,而非新闻广播的“关注点/报道重点”(侧重于报道“生活的阴暗面”“美国人的经济困境”)。C项与③句的论述重心存在偏差,该句意在说明真人秀和新闻广播在收视率上存在差异,并非强调两类电视节目“截然不同/构成鲜明对照(striking contrast)”。
4.4.What can we infer from the passage about Republicans in general?
A They believe strongly in the American Dream.
B They strive to climb the socio-economic ladder.
C They have a very strong affiliation with their party.
D They tend to watch more rags-to-riches TV shows.
解析：选A。A 细节理解题。第五段先指出“观看白手起家类片段能显著增强共和党人对美国梦的信念,而对民主党人则效果不佳”,随后得出推论“白手起家的故事可能会强化人们的已有观念”,也即“共和党人本就坚信美国梦,而民主党人原本不那么相信美国梦,故观看白手起家类片段对两者影响不同”,故 A项正确。[排除干扰]B项将“坚信美国梦”等同于“力求攀登社会经济阶梯”,而由首段①句可知,其实指“相信只要努力奋斗且胸怀大志就能攀登经济阶梯并获得成功”。C项由第五段②句 party affiliation 捏造而来,文中并未论及共和党人与其政党的关系。D项将第五段②句中“共和党人受白手起家类片段的影响更大(this effect was significant among...)”窜改为“共和党人会观看更多白手起家类节目(watch more...TV shows)”。
5.5.What is stated about people who believe in upward mobility?
A They are likely to blame the government for their plight.
B They regard political consequences as anything but trivial.
C They respect individuals striving to climb the social ladder.
D They are less likely to approve of policies to fight inequality.
解析：选D。D 细节理解题。第八段指出“白手起家类娱乐媒体增进并维系向上流动的信念,而如果人们相信只要努力工作就能过上更好的生活(即向上流动),他们就不会那么拥护能够削弱不平等的政策”故D项正确。[排除干扰]A 项结合首段“美国年轻人的收入不及父母辈,向上流动很难”及第八、九段关键词 make a better life、policies、political 臆断出“人们深陷困境,并将自身困境归咎于政府”,而文中并未谈及“人们责怪政府”。B项将第九段末句“娱乐媒体的政治影响不可小觑(Its political consequences...)”曲解为“政治影响本身不容小觑(political consequences...)”。 C项将“相信向上流动的人”和“力求攀登社会阶梯的人”划分为两类人,并捏造出“前者尊重后者”,而文中“相信向上流动性的人”也是“力求攀登社会阶梯的人”。