20110610 英美社会与文化期末复习题目汇总

期末复习题目汇总

TIPS：简答题答案有点长，大家可以自己提炼一下，记住要点就行。如果大家发现有什么错误，请及时更正，可以联系蒋玉秀：152********.以便及时告知大家。填空题有2个没找到答案，下次课我问一下老师。44和47班的同学辛苦了。为了维护大家的劳动成果及我们法律倡导的公正性，决议此答案的版权归44和47

班的同学所有。祝愿大家考试顺利。

I. Fill in the blanks.

English __. Others came from The Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, France, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. By 1690, 250,000 people lived in the _ New World __. By 1790, there were 2.5 million people.

2. The first settlements were along the Atlantic coast and on rivers that flowed into the ocean. In the Northeast, trees covered the hills and stones filled the soil, but water power was available. The Northeast was called New England, and it included Massachusetts, _ Connecticut ___, and _ Rhode Island __. The economy was based on timber, fishing, shipbuilding, and trade.

3. The ideas of _liberalism and democracy__ are the basis of the U.S. political system. As the colonists built their new society, they believed more strongly in these ideas. Britain’s 13 colonies grew in population and economic strength during the 1700s. Although ruled by a distant government, the colonists governed many local affairs.

4. The American Revolution and the war for independence from Britain began with a small fight between British troops and colonists on April 19, _1775__. The British troops left _Boston _, Massachusetts, planning to take weapons and ammunition from revolutionary colonists. At __Lexington ___, they met armed colonists who were called _Minutemen _ because they could be ready to fight in a minute.

American War of Independence

Victorian_ Era.

6. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made the famous _I have a dream_ speech in 1963.

7. Easter is an important __ Christian _ festival in Christian countries.

8. President Woodrow Wilson, in 1914, made the official announcement proclaiming _Mother’s day_ as a national holiday that was to be held each year on the 2nd Sunday of May.

9. _Independence Day_ is the National Day of US which is observed on July 4.

10. Columbus Day celebrates _firstly_ by Christopher Columbus on October 12, 1492.

11. On_Halloween___, American children dress up in funny or scary costumes and go trick or treating by knocking on doors in their neighborhood.

12. Thanksgiving Day is a federal holiday celebrated on the fourth Thursday in _November_____.

13. Earth Day is designed to promote _ ecology _.

14. Thanksgiving celebrates the first harvest feast between the Indians and the _ Pilgrims _ during the settlers’ first year in America.

Representatives and the Senate; the Parliament in Britain is composed of the monarch, the House of Lords . and the House of Commons .

16. The Three branches of the American federal government are the Legislative Branch , the Executive Branch , and the Judicial Branch .

17. In the United Kingdom, the Prime Minister is head of government; in the United States, the President is the head of government.

18. The House of Lords in the United Kingdom consists of two very different types of

and the Lords Temporal .

19. Two of the basic powers that government can wield挥舞；使用；行使 in a tax forec losure 丧失抵押品赎回权are taxation and eminent ___ domain _______.

20. Once the property becomes __ delinquent _________, the homeowner（房屋所有权人） begins to receive letters from the lender requesting payment for the mortgage.(抵押) 21. ___ Mortgaged ________ properties that revert（恢复原状） back to the lender（出借人） because of foreclosure (or deeds in lieu of foreclosure) are normally called REOs, or real estate owned properties.

22. The sub-prime crisis, which has its roots in the closing years of the 20th century, became apparent in 2007 and has exposed pervasive（普遍的，到处都是的） weakness in financial industry __ regulation ________ and the global financial system.

23. In recent months, we have taken steps to shore up（支撑）the housing sector -- including measures to help struggling homeowners avoid __foreclosure_______and keep their homes.

24. Union contracts set both a wage floor（工资下限） and a wage ceiling. （工资上限）_ Unionized _______ employers may not give productive workers pay raises outside those envisioned in the collectively bargained contract.

25. The government should end the _all the interventions _______ it has made since 2008, starting with abolition of the TARP program. It then should abolish Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae and repeal all U.S. government regulatory measures that interfere with mortgage markets.

26. Factor differences between Britain and U.S. resulted in Britain benefiting from its highly skilled _ workforce _______, two thirds of which were employed with companies staffed with less than 250 workers.

27. Unlike Britain, the U.S. had a national, homogeneous market in which large corporations profited from economies of ____?____ and mass production.

28. The 1976 agreement with the monetary fund was not only seen as a national embarrassment, it remained a symbol of a country that, under various Labor governments, effectively lost control of the economy to militant __ trade ______ unions, resulting in rampant狂暴的 work stoppages堵塞 t hat brought down Britain.

States, if some of the students want to go to school during July or August, they could enroll in __summer____ sessions.

30. Two oldest universities in Britain are __Oxford____ and ___Cambrige___.

31. The most famous public school in Britain is called __Eton college____.

32. In the U.S., except kindergarten, there are two other classroom situations to which little children are introduced. They are ___Nursery school___ and ____day-care center__.

33. _American football_______ is the college sport that often stirs up the most national interest in the United States.

34. There are three forms of monetary assistance that college students receive. They are:

__, __loans____, and __part-time jobs____.

_the Bill of Right______ in the Constitution.

36. In the US, religious instruction in public schools is __against the _constitution_____ according to a ruling by the Supreme Court.

37. The two Protestant denominations, _Methodists_______ and _Baptists_______ are by now regarded as wholly(完全的) American.

38. In the US, the largest single religious group is that of ___Roman Catholics_____. The largest Protestant group is __the ___ Baptists ___. Next to that Protestant sect is _the__ Methodists______. A very small and select Protestant group is ____Quakers____.

39. The first Catholic president is ____John F Kennedy.

40. In England, four-fifths of the people except the Catholics go to church. Yet

centuries were mainly from __northern_ and ____western____.

42. People who came to the New World prior to the founding of the United States are called “__early immigrants_”, while those who arrived in America before 1880 are referred to as “_old immigrants_.”

43. __Caucasian__ people constitute the largest ethnic-racial minority group in the US today.

44. That “All men are created equal” is from the document __The Declaration of Independence__.

45. The cultural diversity in the US finds its best expression in the well-known term _a mixture of a salad bowl and a melting pot__.

46. The British national characteristic of _______reserve______ finds its expression in the fact that many British people still prefer to have a fireplace in their living room, and still adhere to the Monarchy.

欢(mass media)

47. British National Broadcasters can be divided into two types: 1) Public Broadcasting, such as the famous _BBC_____, which was founded in 1922; and 2) Private Broadcasting, such as ______, ______, and ______.

48. British public broadcasting should serve the purpose of ____entertaining__, ____informing__ and __educating___ the nation.

49. The most striking characteristics of magazine development in the U.S. during the twentieth century was a trend toward _target____, _audiences news digests_____ and _general-interest reporting_____ in the decades following World War I influenced magazine development.

天(leisure and entertainment)

50. In early America, leisure was values with_suspicion_______ and _____ ______.

51. The American puritans’ extreme emphasis placed on work and the detestation of idleness were supported by_Puritan_____ __theology________, which gave moral sanction to economic necessity.

52. Contemporary Americans believe that leisure should be more than a __restorative _________ (有助于恢复精神的活动)for work; it should be viewed as an _important_________ part of modern life and be regarded as a ___ worthwhile _____ end or goal in and of itself.

53. In Great Britain, Pubs usually have two separate rooms: the __ public _____ bar and

that represented a glaring gap between American ideals and reality.

55. Drug abuse is a social problem because it has a wide range of social costs. It is closely related with crime,automobile accidents. It has serious effects on individuals health and safety, and the economic losses caused by drug abuse are great.

56. British conservative known to the world, but British teenage pregnancy rate unexpectedly is highest in the world.

II. True or false statements.

1. Thomas Paine, a radical political thinker, argued for independence and against hereditary monarchy in his pamphlet Common Sense. true

2. Thomas Jefferson was the main writer of the Declaration of Independence. true

3. The British soldiers were also called Roundheads. False

4. Thomas Jefferson was the commander-in-chief of the colonial army. False

5. The Declaration of Independence, adopted July 4, 1777, announced the birth of a new nation. False

6. Earth Day was first celebrated in 1970 in Britain. False

T7. Many people now refer Washington's Birthday as "Presidents' Day" and consider it a day honoring all American presidents. true

8. The first presidential proclamation honoring fathers was issued in 1966 by President John F. Kennedy. False

9. Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on May 1st. False

10. Boxing Day actually has nothing to do with boxing. true

11. Both Britain and America have a written constitution. In Britain, there is no Bill of Rights to guarantee the individual rights of every citizen, while in America there is one. False

12. The General Election in Britain takes place every four to five years, while the presidential election in America takes place every four years. true

13. In the United States, both the president and the senators can serve at most 8-year terms. False

T14. The Supreme Court is the highest court in the United States. It consists of nine Justices: the Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices. The Justices are nominated by the President and confirmed with the consent of the Senate. true

15. In the United Kingdom, implementation履行of the Minister's decisions is carried out by a permanent politically neutral organization known as the civil service. The independence and professional of the British civil service is a fundamental feature of the British political system. true

16. According to Josh Rosner, co-author of Reckless Engagement, there was a symbiotic 共生的 relationship between Wall Street and the GSEs and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were the largest buyers of sub-prime securities the Wall Street was bundling捆绑, packaging and selling themselves. true

17. An abundance of cheap credit makes borrowing money easy for banks and causes them to go crazy with leverage（影响力）. true

18. U.S. corporate tax rate, currently the

（second）highest in the developed world, must be hiked to restore U.S. competitiveness. False

19. Although Britain’s domestic market was smaller, consumer demand s were much less heterogeneous than in the U.S. due to cultural factors and wage inequality. .true

20. As the lesson of Britain’s crisis in 1976 demonstrates, good intentions are not enough to offset a loss of international investor confidence. true

21. About half（three --quarters）of income of British universities is provided by the State. False

22.The “eleven plus” is the exam taken by children in their last year at primary school.true

an examination taken by 11 and 12 year old students to select suitable candidates for grammar school

23. An American college student should maintain a low C average in order to remain in school. true

24. In order to attend college, a high school student in the U.S. must pass the college entrance examination. False

25. Since World War II, one of the most dramatic developments in U.S. higher education has been the ever-rising cost.(the enormous increase in the number of student ) False

26. Religion in America has(never) been identified with an oppressive or dominant social class or set of political institutions. False

27. There are more than a hundred other Protest sects, many of them hardly known to anyone except their own members, but with a combined membership of more than twenty million. They express variety, rather than doctrinal shism.True

28.The largest single religious group is that of Roman Catholics, More than one-quarter of all Americans are now of the Roman Catholic faith, and the majority of these are descendants of immigrants from Germany and Scandinavia. (Ireland , Italy ,Poland ) false 29. It is probably safe to say that the Orthodox Church members are more outside the main stream of American social and religious life, or less assimilated, than members of other religious bodies. True

30. It is still considered unlikely that a Jew could be elected as President of the United States, because of the strong built-in prejudices of the Protest majority. True

31. Black people constitute the largest ethnic racial minority group in the U.S. today. True

32. The frontier experience shaped, to a large extent, the American National character True

33. Phrases like “from rags to riches” clearly demonstrate the American belief in the myth of American Dream. True

34. The sentence “an Englishman’s home is his castle” suggests that conse rvatism is a part of the British national character. True

35. The British geographic separation from the European continent helped shape the British sense of aloofness from strangers. False

（that England's aloofness from large ideas of general politics was due to its desire to manage its own affairs, and adapt its institutions to its own needs as they arose.）

36. In Britain, the greater part of most people’s leisure time is spent in the home. true

37. As for British people, the working class considers the home as a private place while the middle class regards it as a social zone. true

38. People who play Bingo consider themselves to be gamblers. False

39. Many Americans prefer leisure activities that require a high level of physical exertion. true

40. As for American people, the effects of pre-industrial Puritanism are still rather profound in the contemporary society. true

41. New figures show the number of children and teenagers taken to hospital after drinking alcohol has gone up by nearly a third. true

42.Within the field of criminology, white-collar crime has been defined as “a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation.” False

43. Poverty in the United States does not simply mean that the poor do not live quite as well as other citizens. Poverty can also mean low self-esteem, despair, and stunting of human potential. true

44. Britain has the lowest divorce rate and smallest proportion of lone parents in Europe. False

45. A survey reported by OECD says that the health of British teenagers ranks the last one among all the OECD member countries, because of smoking, drinking and teenager pregnancy. False

III. Short-answer questions.

小燕1. What are the distinctive features of middle colonies of the 13 colonies?

The middle colonies included New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. The weather was milder and the countryside was more

varied. People worked in industry and agriculture. The society was more diverse and sophisticated. People living in New York came from all over Europe.

2. What are the distinctive features of the Southern colonies of the 13 colonies?

The Southern colonies included Virginia, Georgia, and North Carolina and South Carolina. The growing season was long and the soil was fertile. Most people were farmers. Some owned small farms that they worked themselves. The wealthy farmers owned large plantations and used African slaves as workers.

3. What do you know about the Declaration of Independence?

The Declaration of Independence was written largely by Thomas Jefferson, who had displayed talent as a political philosopher.Perhaps the greatest influence on Jefferson came from Enlightenment thinkers. These philosophers believed that the natural world was organized in a logical and reasonable pattern. While acknowledging that this pattern derived from the ultimate wisdom of God, they also held that the world was understandable through the powers of human reason. The writings of French, English, and Scottish Enlightenment philosophers frequently presented the concept that all men are created equal and possess certain inalienable rights. Jefferson’s belief in the social contract came from British political philosopher John Locke, who argued that government existed by consent of the governed and that people should rebel if their natural rights were violated.

The Declaration of Independence, adopted July 4, 1776, not only announced the birth of a new nation, but also set forth a philosophy of human freedom that would become a dynamic force throughout the entire world

怡然 4. Can you briefly introduce the traditions of Thanksgiving Day?

The Thanksgiving feast became a national tradition and almost always includes some of the foods served at the first feast: roast turkey, cranberry sauce, potatoes, and pumpkin pie.

5. What does Easter celebrate and how do people celebrate it?

Easter is a Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. For Christians, Easter is a day of religious services and the gathering of family. Many Americans follow old traditions of coloring hard-boiled eggs and giving children baskets of candy.

6. Can you list four basic principles that the American Constitution of 1789 is built on?（实际共有6个basic principles，答题时选4个就可以了）

●Popular Sovereigntyi - This principle states that the source of governmental power lies with the people.

● Limited Government ii - The US government does not derive its power from itself. It must follow its own laws and it can only act using powers given to it by the people.

● Separation of Powersiii - The US Government is divided into three branches so that no one branch has all the power. Each branch has its own purpose: to make the laws, execute the laws, and interpret the laws.

● Checks and Balancesiv - Each branch of government has a certain number of checks it can use to ensure the other branches do not become too powerful. For example, the president can veto legislation, the Supreme Court can declare acts of Congress unconstitutional, and the Senate must approve treaties and presidential appointments.

●Judicial Reviewv - This is a power that allows the Supreme Court to decide whether acts and laws are unconstitutional.

● Federalism vi - One of the most complicated foundations of the US is the principle of federalism. This is the idea that the central government does not control all the power in the nation. States also have powers reserved to them.

1Popular Sovereignty 民众主权（主张主权归人民全体所有，政府应由人民产生并服从人民的意志）

1 Limited Government 有限政府

1Separation of Powers 三权分立，分权

1Checks and Balances 权力制衡

1 Judicial Review 司法审查

范唯7. What are the two dominant political parties in the United States and the three dominant political parties in the United Kingdom?

答：The two major political parties in the United States are the Democrats and the Republicans.

The three dominant political parties in the United Kingdom are Conservative，Labor，Liberal Democrats.

8. What are the causes of the sub-prime (mortgage) crisis in the U.S.?

答：(1) Boom and bust in the housing market: Low interest rates and large inflows of foreign funds created easy credit conditions for a number of years prior to the crisis, fueling a housing market boom and encouraging debt-financed consumption.

(2) Speculation in residential real estate.

(3) High-risk mortgage loans and lending/borrowing practices: In the years before the crisis, the behavior of lenders changed dramatically. Lenders offered more and more loans to higher-risk borrowers, including illegal immigrants, just one indication of poor underwriting.

(4) Securitization practices.

(5)inaccurate credit ratings.

(6) Financial institutions debt levels and incentives.

(7) Investment in U.S. by foreigners of their proceeds from America’s net imports.

9. What solutions are needed to restore the U.S. to a free economy?

答：（1）Reduce Tax Rates. The corporate tax rate should be set at or below the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

(2)We should also stop taxing businesses as individuals, which would help business to grow and create jobs.

(3)Spend Less and Devolve Responsibilities.

（4）Unwind Government Intervention.

（5）Reduce Government Involvement in Commercial Decision-making.

（6）Give Workers a RAISE.

荷初10. What is the greatest argument about public schools in Britain?

The greatest argument about public schools in Britain is the Public School Movement. In 1830s,the extension of public responsibility from the elementary to the secondary level ; in 1827,Massachussetts required every large town to maintain a free high school; by 1850,every state had provided for a system of free public schools .

11. Why are day-care centers in large demand in the U.S.?

The need for more day-care center is acute because about 30% of mothers with children under age 6 are in the labor force and the number of working mothers with pre-school children is still increasing.

12. Many Americans are religious without concerning themselves doctrine. Use what you have learned to illustrate this point.

Religion in America has never been identified with an oppressive or dominant social class or set of political institutions. The Pilgrim Fathers, and many of those who followed them, left Europe to be free to worship in their own way, not as the established authorities told them to. The freedom of belief or disbelief is guaranteed by law, Paradoxically , the original basis of freedom creates a social pressure in favour of religion. Most people want to identify themselves with dominant values, and going freely to the church of one’s choice is a way of doing so , and of gaining acceptance in the face of a subtle demand for conformity. And the church is a place where people can meet others with whom they would like to make friends. Religion , for most people ,is important mainly as a means of getting together with others in a context which is so little defined that its values, expressing merely general good will, can be easily shared. People go to church and it helps them to feel that they have a place in a community. Therefore , unlike in Europe, there has not been a decline in religious observance in America.

44班13. What is the major difference in religious observance between Americans on the one hand, and the English and the Swedish on the other? How do you account for the difference?

Every Sunday morning , all over America, people pour into the churches. In England , leaving aside the Catholics, four –fifth of the people go to church less than once a month, in Sweden the vast majority hardly ever go to church at all.

The major reason is the social and economic changes. In Europe scientific and economic advance and rising material prosperity have been accompanied by a decline in religious observance , but in America this has not happened .

14. Why are there so many free choices in religion for Americans? Why is there no fierce religious struggle in the US as it often happens in Europe?

There is legal guarantee in American for complete freedom of belief and religious practice or non-belief , and also rules to guard against any state religion.

13、Q: what is the major difference in religious observance between Americans on the one hand, and the English and Swedish on the other? How do you account for the difference

A: (1)Every Sunday morning ,all over America ,people pour into the churches. not only the catholic churches ,but the protestant ones too ,are flourishing , and new church buildings ,some with interesting architecture ,keep pace with the ever-growing suburbs . In England ,leaving aside the Catholics ,four-fifths of the people

go to church less than once a month ,in Sweden the vast majority hardly ever go to church at all. yet half of American protestants are active church members , and economic changes religion has remained a constant factor . In Europe scientific and economic advance and rising material prosperity have been accompanied by a decline in religious observance ,but in America this has not happened.

(2)Religion in America has never been identified with an oppressive or dominant social class or set of political institutions . The Pilgrim Fathers , and many of those who followed them ,left Europe to be free to worship in their own way ,not as the established authorities told them to. Most people want to identify themselves with dominant value ,and going freely to the church of one's choice is a way of doing so ,and of gaining acceptance in the face of a subtle demand for conformity. And the church is a place where people can meet others with whom they would like to make friends .People go to church and it helps them to feel that

they have a place in a community.

14. Q: Why are there so many free choices in religion for Americans? Why is there no fierce religious struggle in the US as it often happens in Europe?

A:(1) America is remarkable now,as in the past, for its attachment to the principle of freedom of belief or disbelief. As the early Americans had escaped from religious persecution in their old countries, so they were determined that there would be no religious oppression in the home they were building up. When the Bill of Rights in the United States Constitution was drawn up it began in its very first article by insisting that there should be no state religion, and complete freedom of belief and religious practice or non-belief has been jealously guarded from the beginning.

(2)Because of th e back ground of American religion, every church or religious community is a completely independent organization, and concerned with its own finances and its own building. There has very little concentration on doctrine or religious argument.

15、Q: Briefly explain “mobility” as one of the American national characteristics.

A: Americans believe in changes, like change, and respect change. From changing their personalities with assistance of self-help gurus to changing where they live at a faster rate than any other people in the world, they are not satisfied with the status.

Various aspects of this orientation are optimism, receptivity to change, emphasis on the future rather than the past or present, faith in an ability to control all phases of strong conviction in change, and progress in how Americans view the environment.

From “Pursuit of change”

16、Q:What is the American dream?

A:The celebrated myth of the American dream found its expression in phrases like “rags to riches”, “vertical mobility”, etc. The myth establishes that man is to be judged by his own ability rather than his family or place in history and also that any man with a go-ahead spirit could climb to the pinnacle ['pin?kl] of society.

17、Q: what are the differences between “a bowl of salad” and “a melting pot” as metaphors of the America society?

A：In a bowl of freshly tossed salad, all the ingredients are mixed together. Yet they never lose their shape, form or identity. Together, however, the ingredients make up a unity. But in a melting pot, All of the ingredients mix and blend together losing their identity and yield a bit of what they were to become a new reality.

18. Give some examples of Quality Newspapers (at least 4) and Popular Newspapers (at least 5) in Britain.

Quality Newspapers: The Times; The Guardian ; The Daily Telegraph; Evening and Provincial Papers .

Popular Newspapers: Daily Mail ; Daily Mirror ; Daily Express; Sunday Papers ; sun; Periodicals

19. Q:What are the three distinct types of magazines that evolved in the civil war period?

A:Consumer magazines, business magazines and agriculture magazines.

20、Q: please list some differences between Tabloid readers and Quality paper readers

A Quality paper readers are serious and they also print in large size

Tabloid readers refer to a smaller newspaper format. They are less serious and they usually report regional stories, entertainment, sensational crime stories and gossip columns.

21.Q: American people in the pre-industrial and post-industrial eras have placed different focuses on work. Please briefly illustrate them

A:The pre-industrial emphasis on work as necessary for survival. The post-industrial emphasis upon vocational success and the acquisition of money and possessions.

22. Q: generally speaking, how do British people see “work” and “leisure”?

A:British people see work as something which must be done ; leisure on other hand , is not simply free-time , but freely chosen activities that are pursued during non-working time.

23. What is the fundamental cause of poverty in affluent America?

The fundamental cause of poverty in affluent America is the overall unequal distribution of wealth and income .like all but the most simple societies, the United States is characterized by social stratification –that is , it is divided into social classes that have varying degrees of access to the awards the society offers .

The distribution of income in the United States follows a similar pattern. The richest fifth of American families receives over 40 percent of the national income , whereas the poorest fifth receives only 5.21 percent . About 3000 families receive an annual income of over $1 million , most of it from investments . The highest executives of major corporations enjoy staggering salaries.

24. Q:What does poverty mean in the United States?

A:It means many old people eating dog and cat food to supplement their diets. It means malnutrition and deprivation for hundreds of thousands of children. It means greater susceptibility to disease, to alcoholism to victimization by criminals, to mental disorders. It often means unstable marriage, and shortened life expectancy. Poverty can means low self-esteem, despair, and stunting of human potential.

IV. Writing

1. Due Attention Should Be Given To the Study of Chinese

a. 近年来在学生中出现了忽视中文的现象

b. 出现这种现象的原因和后果

c. 为了改变这种状况，我认为……

2. Pros and Cons of Celebrating Western Holidays in China

?At present, western festivals like Christmas Day, Valentine's Day and April fool’s

Day are becoming increasingly popular in China. When these festivals come along, many young people become quite exuberant. They exchanges gifts with classmates, friends, colleagues and valentines. When Christmas falls, Decorations such as Christmas trees, miscellaneous toys, elaborate cards and ribbons can be found everywhere. On Valentine's Day, the streets are stuffed with cerise roses.

To cut the long story short, a great majority of young people are really fascinated by the western festivals.

?With the mounting popularity of western festivals, there is much controversy over

this phenomenon. Most people believe the festivals bring happiness to us. It can contribute to alleviating the pressure of study, work, etc. Since the celebrations are beneficial, why should we keep them out of the door? Besides, happiness is an indispensable part of our life and there is no doubt that celebrating the festivals can bring us fun and relaxation.

?However, some people, including experts, turn to worry about the disadvantages

and potential harm of the celebrations. They hold that the western festivals serve

as a kind of cultural aggression. And we should drive them out of our country lest they should undermine our traditional culture and system. What's worse, if our own distinctive culture is destroyed, the whole nation will gradually disappear.

In conclusion, we can see there are both benefits and drawbacks of the celebrations of western festivals. We could not totally discard them, nor is it wise to accept them without any condition. One suggestion is that we can modernize our festivals and diversify the festivities and thus make our life filled with more happiness and laughter.

3. In recent years, a growing number of food safety scandals have been exposed to the public in China. Cases include steamed buns that had been dyed with unidentified chemicals (dyeing steamed buns染色馒头), the use of “lean meat powder” （瘦肉精）and poor quality recycled cooking oil known as “gutter oil”（地沟油）, etc. In your opinion, what measures should the government take to deal with the food safety problems in China?

4. Pros and Cons of Buying a House

5. Pros and Cons of University Ranking

6. How To Improve Student's Mental Health?

a. 大学生的心理健康十分重要

b. 因此，学校可以……

c. 我们自己应当……

7. Write a passage on the comparative analysis of the American and the Chinese national character.

8. The Function of Mass Media

9. Why Are There So Many Rural Laborers in Big Cities?

a. 近年来越来越多的民工涌入大城市

b. 产生这一社会现象的原因

c. 我对这一现象的看法

10. Write a paper in which you argue for or against the comments below.

Statistics show that newly licensed teenage boys cause a higher number of serious automobile accidents than any other group. It is evident that many young men are too reckless and impulsive to be good drivers. In order to protect the larger society, the age at which a boy can earn his license should be raised to eighteen.

i Popular Sovereignty 民众主权（主张主权归人民全体所有，政府应由人民产生并服从人民的意志）

ii Limited Government 有限政府

iii Separation of Powers 三权分立，分权

iv Checks and Balances 权力制衡

v Judicial Review 司法审查