Page 66 - 新英语进阶·高中·拓展阅读提优篇

58 新英语进阶·高中拓展阅读·提优篇

Unit 8 生命的意义与价值

序号 标题 题型 体裁 词数 难度 建议用时

A Henry David Thoreau 的生活哲学 阅读理解 议论文 393 ★★★★☆ 8 min

B 人生目标 阅读理解七选五 议论文 317 ★★★☆☆ 8 min

C 快乐的人生与有意义的人生不可兼得 完形填空 议论文 335 ★★★★☆ 13 min

D 压力是人生不可或缺的一部分 语法填空 议论文 180 ★★☆☆☆ 6 min

E 不要让挫折改变你 读后续写 记叙文 408 ★★★★★ 25 min

A

阅读下面的短文,从每题所给的 A、B、C 和 D 四个选项中选出最佳选项。

Let s take a moment to consider the words of a remarkable philosopher, Henry David Thoreau.

Thoreau spent the years 1845-1847 living on the outskirts of society in a small cabin in the woods. He

called this period of his life an experiment of intentional living and wrote this famous paragraph:

I went to the woods because I wished to live intentionally, to front only the essential facts of life, and

see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I

wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow(精华) of life.

There is great wisdom in Thoreau s purpose here, and I think it s very useful to ask ourselves this

question: What would our lives be like if we sucked all the marrow out of life?

If Thoreau s quote sounds familiar, it may be from watching the film Dead Poets Society. The film is

about young men at a boarding school as they prepare to do good in the world because they have the

privilege to bring about change. Their English teacher, played by Robin Williams, tries to convince them

that they should live life well now instead of believing that they will find happiness after they reach certain

goals. Part of his argument is conveyed by quoting this famous passage from Thoreau.

Sucking the marrow out of life actually is as simple as it sounds—though “simple” is not quite the

same thing as “easy”. One barrier that often keeps us from getting the most out of life is our desire for

approval and fame. In the process of always looking for fame and glory, there is the danger that we will

stop living. In order to seek approval from others, we fail to find a sense of approval within our own spirit.

When we become aware that we are missing so much out of life, we can decide that we want to make

changes. Our best move is to start small. If we are having a meal, whether a great festival feast or a

modest supper, it is always within our power to take it slowly and really feel, taste, and enjoy the food.

Few of us can easily do like Henry David Thoreau. But we can make small changes every single day.