Question

Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that generally things turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may well be successful atwork and in love.
But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example，you may fail to obtain a new job，another chance will come around soon), Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams in your face. That's bitter reality.
Now a book has been published which confirms what we pessimists(悲觀者）have suspected all along. It's called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better. ”
So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on a date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” and “ Don’t count your chickens until they hatch. “ To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien，the American comedian says, ”Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”
There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.
【小題1】What is the passage mainly about?

A．A book that has recently been published.

B．The dangers of being too optimistic.

C．The benefits of defensive pessimism.

D．How to become successful in life.

【小題2】The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” in paragraph 4 means     .

A．he cost is not so high	B．there is no real proof
C．it’s not a dangerous thing to do	D．it is quite simple to understand

【小題3】The writer would probably describe himself as          .

A．an optimist

B．a realist

C．a defeatist

D．a scientist

【小題4】Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?

A．“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”

B．“Every cloud has a silver lining.”

C．“Whatever will be, will be.”

D．“The glass is half full not half empty.”

Answer 1

【小題1】C
【小題2】D
【小題3】B
【小題4】A

解析試題分析：本文是一篇說明文，說明了防御性悲觀主義的積極力量，防御性悲觀使用一個管理策略的恐懼、焦慮和擔心。防御性悲觀主義者為自己準備設定低的結果，他們仔細考慮處理這些問題的方法，這給了他們一個控制感
【小題1】推理題。由本文的主要意思“防御性悲觀主義的積極力量，防御性悲觀使用一個管理策略的恐懼、焦慮和擔心。防御性悲觀主義者為自己準備設定低的結果，他們仔細考慮處理這些問題的方法，這給了他們一個控制感”可以推出答案，故選C。
【小題2】推理題。由后面的句子Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on a date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan.可以推出很容易理解，故選D。
【小題3】細節題。由最后一段最后一句You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full可以知道作者是個現實主義者，故選B。
【小題4】這是細節理解題。由倒數第二段第三行There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” and “ Don’t count your chickens until they hatch.故選A。
考點：這是一說明文
點評：本文以問句的形式，能吸引讀者的注意力，并喚起讀者對文章的閱讀興趣等， 根據你對文章的理解，來判斷各個選項的正誤。最重要的就是讀懂句子的意思，找出文章的中心，抓住主要句子和相關句子的意思就可以解決了，要注意題目中的一些關鍵詞和文章中的句子的對比