Question

The first and best of victories is for a man to conquer himself; to be conquered by himself is, of all things, the most shameful,” says Plato. Self-control is at the root of all the advantages. Let a man give in to his impulses(沖動) and feelings, and from that moment he gives up his moral(道德) freedom.

A single angry word has lost many friends. When Socrates found in himself any temper or anger, he would check it by speaking low in order to control himself. If you are conscious of being angry, keep your mouth shut so that you can hold back rising anger. Many a person has dropped dead in great anger. Fits of anger bring fits of disease. “Whoever the gods would destroy they first make them mad.” “Keep cool,” says Webster, “anger is not argument.” “Be calm in arguing,” says George Herbert, “for fierceness(狂怒) makes error a fault.”

To be angry with a weak man is to prove that you are not strong yourself. “Anger,” says Pythagoras, “brings with folly and ends with regret.” You must measure the strength of a man by the power of the feelings he conquers, not by the power of those which conquer him.

Self-control is man’s last and greatest victory.

If a man lacks self-control he seems to lack everything. Without it he can have no patience, no power to govern himself; he can have no self-confidence, for he will always be controlled by his strongest feeling. If he lacks self-control, the very backbone and nerve of character are lacking also. (from www.nmet168.com)

1. What’s the main idea of the passage?

A. The importance of self- control.   B. How to conquer oneself?

C. The relation between a man’s moral freedom and his feelings.

D. A man should keep cool.

2. What’s the meaning of “whoever the gods would destroy they first make them mad”?

A. If you are mad, the gods will kill you.

B. If you lose your temper first, gods will kill you first.

C. If you can’t control yourself, you will be crazy.

D. If the gods want to kill you, they will make you mad first.

3. Which of the following is NOT true, according to passage?

A. The first and best of victories is for a man to conquer himself.

B. You will make a small mistake serious if you don’t keep cool.

C. You must measure a man’s strength by the power of the feelings which conquer him.

D. Anger brings with folly and ends with regret.

4. Which of the following can’t help you avoid anger, according to the passage?

A. Be calm in arguing.      B. Check your temper or anger by speaking low.

C. Keep your mouth shut.   D. Try to make the other angry first.

Answer 1

1. A；2. D；3. C；4. D

解析:

1. A 主旨大意題。根據文章第 1 段的第 2 句 Self-control is at the root of all the advantages 及全文的內容可知，本文的大意是“自控的重要性”。故答案選 A。

2. D 語義理解題。根據上文 you can hold back rising anger. Many a person has dropped dead in great anger. Fits of anger bring fits of disease 可知答案選 D。

3. C 推理判斷題。根據文章倒數第 3 段的最后一句 You must measure the strength of a man by the power of the feelings he conquers, not by the power of those which conquer him 可知，選項 C 與之矛盾。故答案選 C。

4. D 推理判斷題。根據文章第 2 段的第 2 句和第 3 句以及最后一句可以排除選項 A、B、C，從而得出答案為 D。