2021年考研《英语二》试题及答案：阅读

2021年考研《英语二》试题及答案（阅读）已公布，具体内容请各位考生即时查看如下：

Section II Reading Comprehension

Part A

Directions： Read the following four texts. Answer the questions after each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (40 points)

Text 1

In an essay entitled “Making It in America”, the author Adam Davidson relates a joke from cotton about just how much a modern textile mill has been automated： The average mill only two employees today,” a man and a dog. The man is there to feed the dog is there to keep the man away from the machines.”

Davidson’s article is one of a number of pieces that have recently appeared making the point that the reason we have such stubbornly high unemployment and declining middle-class incomes today is also because of the advances in both globalization and the information technology revolution, which are more rapidly

than ever replacing labor with machines or foreign worker.

In the past, workers with average skills, doing an average job，could earn an average lifestyle ,But ,today ,average is officially over. Being average just won’t earn you what it used to. It can’t when so many more employers have so much more access to so much more above average cheap foreign labor, cheap robotics, cheap software, cheap automation and cheap genius. Therefore, everyone needs to find their extra-their unique value contribution that makes them stand out in whatever is their field of employment.

Yes, new technology has been eating jobs forever, and always will. But there’s been an acceleration. As Davidson notes,” In the 10 years ending in 2009, [U.S.] factories shed workers so fast that they erased almost all the gains of the previous 70 years; roughly one out of every three manufacturing jobs-about 6 million in total -disappeared.

There will always be changed-new jobs, new products, new services. But the one thing we know for sure is that with each advance in globalization and the I.T. revolution, the best jobs will require workers to have more and better education to make themselves above average.

In a world where average is officially over, there are many things we need to do to support employment, but nothing would be more important than passing

some kind of G.I.Bill for the 21st century that ensures that every American has access to poet-high school education.

21. The joke in Paragraph 1 is used to illustrate_______

[A] the impact of technological advances

[B] the alleviation of job pressure

[C] the shrinkage of textile mills

[D] the decline of middle-class incomes

22. According to Paragraph 3, to be a successful employee, one has to______

[A] work on cheap software

[B] ask for a moderate salary

[C] adopt an average lifestyle

[D] contribute something unique

23. The quotation in Paragraph 4 explains that ______

[A] gains of technology have been erased

[B] job opportunities are disappearing at a high speed

[C] factories are making much less money than before

[D] new jobs and services have been offered

24. According to the author, to reduce unemployment, the most important is_____

[A] to accelerate the I.T. revolution

[B] to ensure more education for people

[C] ro advance economic globalization

[D] to pass more bills in the 21st century

25. Which of the following would be the most appropriate title for the text?

[A] New Law Takes Effect

[B] Technology Goes Cheap

[C] Average Is Over

[D] Recession Is Bad

【答案】

【答案详解】

21.标准答案： A

考点分析：此题考查考生对文章细节信息的把握水平，解题的关键在于定位和辨别细节信息。

选项分析：根据题干提示信息，我们定位到文章第一段的最后两句“…a man and a dog. The man is there to feed the dog, and the dog is there to keep the man away from the machines.”， 说如自动化的纺织厂，他们只需要两个员工“一个人外加一条狗。人是负责喂狗的，狗是让人不要靠近机器的。”近年来考研阅读常常用故事或是笑话引出文章所要谈论的主题。所以，我们再继续看第二段内容。第二段引出文章话题：世界化和信息科技进步是造成失业率居高不下、中产阶级收入下降的主要原因。所以选择答案A。选项B为就业压力的缓解，与本文谈论话题向左;选项C现代纺织厂规模的缩减，望文生义;选项D中产阶级收入的减少，不是文章谈论的重点，文章重在谈论造成中产阶级收入的减少的原因。

22. 标准答案： D

考点分析：此题考查考生对文章细节信息的把握水平，解题的关键在于定位和辨别细节信息。

选项分析：根据题干提示信息，我们定位到文章第三段的倒数第二句“Therefore, everyone needs to find their extra — their unique value contribution that makes them stand out in whatever is their field of employment”，“所以，人人都需要有另外的价值：异于常人的独特价值能够让他们在各自的雇佣市场上脱颖而出。” stand out与题干中的successful同义复现，题干中问我们为了成为成功的雇员，他必须怎么做。答案D中的contribute something unique是对their unique value contribution的同义改写，所以，答案选择D。其他三个选项均与文章内容不相符合。选项A，work on cheap software继续生产廉价的软件;选项B，ask for a moderate salary索要适当的薪水;选项C，adopt an average lifestyle选择一般的生活方式。

23. 标准答案：B

考点分析：此题考查考生对文章细节信息的定位和理解水平。此类题目的解题关键在于根据题干信息定位，本题的“Paragraph 4”，“quotation”即为定位信息。

选项分析：根据第四段引用的Davidson的原话，“2009年之前的十年内，美国工厂裁撤工人速度之快，基本上等于过去70年新增的工人数量;大概每三个工作岗位就有一个岗位消失了，总共约有600万之多。”可知引用这段话的主题为裁员，且速度很快，这符合B项工作机会急速消失，故此项为准确答案。AC两项文章中没有提到，D项和B项互为相反项，结合文章来看工作机会在消失而不是出现了新的工作机会，故D项错误。

24. 标准答案：B

考点分析：此题考查考生对文章的细节信息的把握水平，关键在于定位和对文章的理解。

选项分析：根据题干信息提示“unemployment”，结合自然段定位法，我们不难定位到文章倒数第二段最后一句“Here are the latest unemployment rates from…”下面是美国劳工局对美国25岁以上人群的失业率统计：高中学历都没有的失业率为13.8%;有高中学历，但没有大学学历的为8.7%;有大学或大专学历的为7.7%;有学士甚至更高学位的只有4.1%。从这句话可知失业率主要和员工的受教育水准相关。所以如果想要减少失业率，最重要的应该是选项B“确保更多的人受到教育”。ACD项均和文章不符。

25. 标准答案：C

考点分析：本题考核的知识点是全文主旨。能够根据文章中的主要内容作答，亦能够根据以上题目的共同焦点作答。

选项分析：文章第一段通过一个笑话指出现代化社会技术的进步水准，使得劳动力大大减少。其余各段进一步论证了失业率的增加，所以一个追求平庸的时代已经结束了，人们需要提升自身教育水平，才能够保证不被淘汰。最后一段第一句话再次强调说平庸时代已经正式结束了。所以选项C为最恰当的标题。A项“新的法律要实施”仅在最后一段提到一句，不能涵盖文章主旨。B项“科技走向廉价”不符合文意。D项“经济衰退有害”

与文章无关。

Text 2

A century ago, the immigrants from across the Atlantic inclued settlers and sojourners. Along with the many folks looking to make a permanent home in the United States came those who had no intention to stay, and 7millin people arrived while about 2 million departed. About a quarter of all Italian immigrants, for exanmle, eventually returned to Italy for good. They even had an affectionate nickname, “uccelli di passaggio,” birds of passage.

Today, we are much more rigid about immigrants. We divide nemcomers into two categories： legal or illegal, good or bad. We hail them as Americans in the making, or our broken immigrantion system and the long political paralysis over how to fix it. We don’t need more categories, but we need to change the way we think about categories. We need to look beyond strick definitions of legal and illegal. To start, we can recognize the new birds of passage, those living and thriving in the gray areas. We might then begin to solve our immigration challenges.

Crop pickers, violinists, construction workers, entrepreneurs, engineers, home health-care aides and physicists are among today’s birds of passage. They are energetic participants in a global economy driven by the flow of work, money

and ideas .They prefer to come and go as opportunity calls them , They can manage to have a job in one place and a family in another.

With or without permission, they straddle laws, jurisdictions and identities with ease. We need them to imagine the United States as a place where they can be productive for a while without committing themselves to staying forever. We need them to feel that home can be both here and there and that they can belong to two nations honorably.

Accommodating this new world of people in motion will require new attitudes on both sides of the immigration battle .Looking beyond the culture war logic of right or wrong means opening up the middle ground and understanding that managing immigration today requires multiple paths and multiple outcomes. Including some that are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system.

26 “Birds of passage” refers to those who____

[A] immigrate across the Atlantic.

[B] leave their home countries for good.

[C] stay in a foregin temporaily.

[D] find permanent jobs overseas.

27 It is implied in paragraph 2 that the current immigration stystem in the US____

[A] needs new immigrant categories.

[B] has loosened control over immigrants.

[C] should be adopted to meet challenges.

[D] has been fixeed via political means.

28 According to the author, today’s birds of passage want___

[A] fiancial incentives.

[B] a global recognition.

[C] opportunities to get regular jobs.

[D] the freedom to stay and leave.

29 The author suggests that the birds of passage today should be treated __

[A] as faithful partners.

[B] with economic favors.

[C] with legal tolerance.

[D] as mighty rivals.

30 which of the best title for the passage?

[A] come and go： big mistake.

[B] living and thriving ： great risk.

[C] with or without ： great risk.

[D] legal or illegal： big mistake.

【答案详解】

26.【答案】C (stay in a foreign temporarily)

【解析】词汇题。根据题干关键词定位，定位到第一段最后一句。在這句中，They even had an affectionate nickname, “uccelli di passaggio,” birds of passage.，they 这个代词承前指代，指四分之一的意大利移民。有些人要再美国定居(permanent home)，但是一些人仅仅在美国暂时居住,要回国(had no intention to stay).一定要注意

理解这个倒装结构：Along with …. came those who……,那些没有要回国的是我们要强调的。通过这句我们能选择出C选项。这A项仅仅说一世纪前的横跨大西洋的移民们，没有说birds of passage来自于哪里。B项虽然有for good 但是与原文意思相反。原文是移民们会永远的回到意大利，而不是选项当中的离开自己的祖国。D项文中首段并未提及。

27.【答案】C (should be adopted to meet challenges)

【解析】推理题。题干要求在第二段。原文“We don’t need more categories”能够排除A选项。文章“Today, we are much more rigid about immigrants.”我们当前有更加严格的对待移民以及“ We need to look beyond strict definitions of legal and illegal.”我们需要超越这种合法和不合法的严格定义。就知道当前是很严格的。我们还没有选项中的“has loosened control over immigrants.”对移民的放松控制。B 项排除。文章也并没有说这个制度被政治方式所修复。政治确实出现在文章中，但是仅仅说“the long political paralysis”长期的政治麻痹与原文不符。故排除。“To start …We might then begin to solve our immigration challenges.”首先承认这些短暂移民的存有，然后解决移民的挑战。是C选项的同义替换。

28.【答案】D (the freedom to stay and leave)

【解析】细节题。根据关键词定位，可定位到第三段。 “They prefer to come and go as opportunity calls them .They can manage to have a job in one place and a family in another.”他们喜欢随着机会的来临，来去都自如。他们能够在一地工作，也能

够再另外的地方成家。强调的是机会和来去自如。D项是这句的同义替换。A项是对原文的片面理解。“They are energetic participants in a global economy driven by the flow of work, money and ideas”不但仅是来自金钱的刺激(financial incentives)，还有有工作和各种理念。B在文中未提及。文中仅仅说道“global economy” ，没有提“global recognition”，C项中的regular jobs(一般工作)在文中未提及，也是对文意的曲解。

29.【答案】C (with legal tolerance)

【解析】推理题。根据题干，可定位到第五段。题干问到“根据作者，这些短暂移民者应该以何种方式被对待” “Looking beyond the culture war logic of right or wrong means opening up the middle ground and understanding that managing immigration today requires multiple paths and multiple outcomes. Including some that are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system”意思是 “我们应该超越移民合法性方面的文化之争，重现看待中间地带，充分意识到当今的移民管理体系需要各种途径，从而取得多样化的结果，来解决现今移民体系下用法律手段很难解决的问题”暗含了C项中tolerance也就是对“multiple paths and multiple outcomes”的改写。A、B和D项在文中未提及。

30.【答案】D (legal or illegal： big mistake)

【解析】主旨大意题。文章第二段第二句中提到“We divide newcomers into two categories： legal or illegal” “我们把新移民分为2类：合法和不合法移民.” 同时作

者认为“We need to look beyond strick definitions of legal and illegal，” “我们不需要合法和不合法移民这样严格的定义”这说明这种分类是错误的。另外，文章最后一段最后一句“Including some that are not easy to accomplish legally in the existing system.”“包括在现行移民体系中不容易合法的实现一些事情”也反映了文章的中心。也就是说合法和不合法的分类是错误的。故选D。 A项说短暂移民们的移动是个错误。没有体现文章主旨。B和C项都说是risk(风险)跟文章无关。

Text 3

Scientists have found that although we are prone to snap overreactions, if we take a moment and think about how we are likely to react, we can reduce or even eliminate the negative effects of our quick, hard-wired responses.

Snap decisions can be important defense mechanisms; if we are judging whether someone is dangerous, our brains and bodies are hard-wired to react very quickly, within milliseconds. But we need more time to assess other factors. To accurately tell whether someone is sociable, studies show, we need at least a minute, preferably five. It takes a while to judge complex aspects of personality, like neuroticism or open-mindedness.

But snap decisions in reaction to rapid stimuli aren’t exclusive to the interpersonal realm. Psychologists at the University of Toronto found that viewing a fast-food logo for just a few milliseconds primes us to read 20 percent faster,

even though reading has little to do with eating. We unconsciously associate fast food with speed and impatience and carry those impulses into whatever else we’re doing, Subjects exposed to fast-food flashes also tend to think a musical piece lasts too long.

Yet we can reverse such influences. If we know we will overreact to consumer products or housing options when we see a happy face (one reason good sales representatives and real estate agents are always smiling), we can take a moment before buying. If we know female job screeners are more likely to reject attractive female applicants, we can help screeners understand their biases-or hire outside screeners.

John Gottman, the marriage expert, explains that we quickly “thin slice” information reliably only after we ground such snap reactions in “thick sliced” long-term study. When Dr. Gottman really wants to assess whether a couple will stay together, he invites them to his island retreat for a muck longer evaluation; two days, not two seconds.

Our ability to mute our hard-wired reactions by pausing is what differentiates us from animals： doge can think about the future only intermittently or for a few minutes. But historically we have spent about 12 percent of our days contemplating the longer term. Although technology might change the way we react, it hasn’t changed our nature. We still have the imaginative capacity to rise

above temptation and reverse the high-speed trend.

31. The time needed in making decisions may____.

[A] vary according to the urgency of the situation

[B] prove the complexity of our brain reaction

[C] depend on the importance of the assessment

[D] predetermine the accuracy of our judgment

32. Our reaction to a fast-food logo shows that snao decisions____.

[A] can be associative

[B] are not unconscious

[C] can be dangerous

[D] are not impulsive

33. Toreverse the negative influences of snap decisions,we should____.

[A] trust our first impression

[B] do as people usually do

[C] think before we act

[D] ask for expert advice

34. John Gottman says that reliable snap reaction are based on____.

[A] critical assessment

[B]‘‘thin sliced ’’study

[C] sensible explanation

[D] adequate information

35. The author’s attitude toward reversing the high-speed trend is____.

[A] tolerant

[B] uncertain

[C] optimistic

[D] doubtful

31.【答案】 [D] predetermine the accuracy of our judgment

【解析】细节题。题干问的是“作决定过程中所需的时间或许能够_____”。文章第一段提到“如果我们在做出反应之前花点儿时间来思考，那么将会减少甚至消除我们快速反应所带来的负面影响”，也就是说我们做决定所花的时间决定了我们判断的准确性。此外，此选项中的“accuracy” 为“accurately ”的同词异形，故此项为准确答案。选项A表达“依形势紧急性而定”错在无中生有﹔选项B“証明大脑反映的复杂性”，也是无中生有﹔选项C “取决于评估的重要性”，也与原文不符合，故排除。

32.【答案】[A] can be associative

【解析】细节题。题干问的是“我们对于快餐商标的反应速度表明决定是_____样的”,由题干的关键词“fast-food logo”我们能够定位到第三段。第三段开头说，让人做出仓促决定的刺激因素不但限于人际关系范围内。紧接着一句说人们对快餐商标的反应速度比一般阅读速度快。下一句阐述了原因：因为人们无意识地(unconsciously)将“快餐”与“速度”和“心急”联系在一起，并将这些冲动付诸行动。A说决定是有联系性的准确，因为人们将“快餐”与“速度”，“心急”联系在了一起。B说决定是无意识的，与原文意思相反;C说决定是危险的，原文未提及;D说决定是不冲动的，与原文意思相悖排除。

33.【答案】[C] think before we act

【解析】细节题。先看题干说“为了逆转仓促决定所带来的影响，我们应该_____”。 根据题干定位到第四段。第四段通过两个例子说明我们应该怎样克服负面影响，第一个例子表示“如果我们会对消费产品或者房产选择做出“过度反应”，我们能够在购买之前先思考一会儿”，由此可说明我们应该在行动之前先思考来消除负面影响，所以选择答案C。其他选项均不符合题意。

34.【答案】[D] adequate information

【解析】细节题。题干问的是“John Gottman认为可靠的快速反映是基于_____的。”由题干John Gottman 定位到全文倒数第二段。其中第一句：John Gottman, ...explains that we quickly “thin slice”information reliably only after we ground such snap reactions in ”thick sliced”long-term study. 婚姻专家约翰.古德曼解释说，我们快速反应的信息的可靠性是建立在这样的快速反应的行为是以长期的研究为基础而做出的快速反应行为。其中ground是题干中base on 的同意置换，long-term study长期的研究与D选项adequate information相互呼应。由此可判断出[D] adequate information(充足的信息)是本题正解。35.【答案】[C] optimistic

35. 【解析】态度题。根据35题题干reversing the high-speed trend是全文的最后一句，所以解此题可先定位到全文的最后一段。最后一段最后两句：Although technology might change the way we react, it hasn’t changed our nature. We still have the imaginative capacity to rise above temptation and reverse the high-speed trend.译为 “即使技术可能改变我们反应的方式，但是它并没有改变我们的本性。我们仍然有水平去克服诱惑并扭转这种高速度的趋势。” 由此我们能够看出作者的态度

是非常确定的，所以[C] optimistic(乐观的)是正解。

Text4

Europe is not a gender-equality heaven.In particular, the corporate workplace will never be completely family—friendly until women are part of senior management decisions,and Europe,s top corporate-governance positions remain overwhelmingly male .indeed,women hold only 14 percent of positions on Europe corporate boards.

The Europe Union is now considering legislation to compel corporate boards to maintain a certain proportion of women-up to 60 percent.This proposed mandate was born of frustration. Last year, Europe Commission Vice President Viviane Reding issued a call to voluntary action. Reding invited corporations to sign up for gender balance goal of 40 percent female board membership. But her appeal was considered a failure： only 24 companies took it up.

Do we need quotas to ensure that women can continue to climb the corporate Ladder fairy as they balance work and family?

“Personally, I don’t like quotas,” Reding said recently. “But i like what the quotas do.” Quotas get action： they “open the way to equality and they break through the glass ceiling,”according to Reding, a result seen in France and other

countries with legally binding provisions on placing women in top business positions.

I understand Reding’s reluctance-and her frustration. I don’t like quotas either; they run counter to my belief in meritocracy, government by the capable. But, when one considers the obstacles to achieving the meritocratic ideal, it does look as if a fairer world must be temporarily ordered.

After all, four decades of evidence has now shown that corporations in Europe as the US are evading the meritocratic hiring and promotion of women to top position— no matter how much “soft pressure ” is put upon them. When women do break through to the summit of corporate power--as, for example, Sheryl Sandberg recently did at Facebook—they attract massive attention precisely because they remain the exception to the rule.

If appropriate pubic policies were in place to help all women---whether CEOs or their children’s caregivers--and all families, Sandberg would be no more newsworthy than any other highly capable person living in a more just society.

36. In the European corporate workplace, generally_____.

[A] women take the lead

[B] men have the final say

[C] corporate governance is overwhelmed

[D] senior management is family-friendly

37. The European Union’s intended legislation is ________.

[A] a reflection of gender balance

[B] a reluctant choice

[C] a response to Reding’s call

[D] a voluntary action

38. According ti Reding, quotas may help women ______.

[A] get top business positions

[B] see through the glass ceiling

[C] balance work and family

[D] anticipate legal results

39. The author’s attitude toward Reding’s appeal is one of _________.

[A] skepticism

[B] objectiveness

[C] indifference

[D] approval

40. Women entering top management become headlines due to the lack of ______.

[A] more social justice

[B] massive media attention

[C] suitable public policies

[D] greater “soft pressure”

36.【答案】B men have the final say

【解析】根据题干中的关键词European corporate workplace，定位到文章的第一

段.第一句话就明确指出欧洲不是一个性别平等的天堂。接着说，尤其是工作场所从来不是彻底友好的，公司的高层仍旧是清一色的男性。选项B，男性有最后的话语权，是这句话的同义替换，所以准确。

37.【答案】A a reflection of gender balance

【解析】根据题干的关键词The European Union，定位到第二段首句，intended legislation是对is now considering legislation的同义改写。该句意思为“欧洲国家现在考虑立法来迫使公司董事让妇女的比例达到60%”，所以立法是为了保持性别的平衡。B选项的reluctant是对第5段的Reding’s reluctance出的干扰项，并不是说European Union的立法。C选项a response to Reding’s call不准确，Reding号召的是voluntary action， D也是干扰项，而真正的立法缘由是对gender