专题 19 英美文化阅读理解专项：感恩节(耶稣)降临节 圣诞节-2024年高考英语常考英美文化阅读专练 素材积累.docx

1、48. Thanksgiving Day 感恩节Thanksgiving Day is a very important traditional holiday in America. On the fourth Thursday of each November, families and friends gather together for the occasion to celebrate with a traditional turkey dinner, usually in the mid-afternoon. Thanksgiving Day originated as a ce

2、lebration of the years harvest and is similar to the Mid-Autumn Festival in China. This American tradition started in 1621 before the United States of America was established. It was a huge celebration for a hard-earned harvest in the first year after the first group of immigrants arriving in the Ne

3、w World. On September 6,1620,the Mayflower ship set sail from Plymouth, Devon, England, taking all the English Pilgrims to the New World. The English Pilgrims numbered about a hundred people, and left England to escape religious persecution. The Pilgrims sailed sixty-six days, arrived in the New Wor

4、ld in November of the same year. They first settled in a cornfield abandoned by Native Indians and named it Plymouth Plantation. They worked on the land with much difficulty and were beset by a devastating plague in which half of the Pilgrim died in the long winter of 1620. In the spring of 1621, an

5、 Indian brave named Squanto and her Wampanoag tribe came to their help. The tribe taught the Pilgrims how to work the earth and plant corn, beans, pumpkins, squash and other crops.In late September 1621, the Pilgrims were pleased with their great harvest. To celebrate their first harvest, the Pilgri

6、ms wanted to thank God and the Native Indian. They invited Squanto and the entire Wampanoag tribe to celebrate together in a shared feast. The first Thanksgiving dinner is said to have lasted from three days to one week. It was indeed a time of happiness, fellowship and rejoicing for the Pilgrims. T

7、hey arranged a friendly treaty with the Native American Indians, built houses in the wilderness, and raised sufficient crops to feed themselves for the upcoming long winter. The Pilgrims had become the first generation of settlers in this new land holding so much promise. From then on, Thanksgiving

8、became a holiday for celebrating the harvest in the New World, and dates varied from October to November each year over the next 150 years. The first National Thanksgiving was declared by the Continental Congress in 1777. On October 3,1789, President George Washington declared that the people of the

9、 United States should observe (celebrate) “a day of public thanksgiving and prayer” on Thursday,26 November. In 1941,a Congressional Joint Resolution set the fourth Thursday of November asanationalholiday for Thanksgiving. (423 words)Helper:originate起源 establish成立 hard-earned辛苦劳作的 immigrant移民 Mayflo

10、wer“五月花”号 Plymouth，Devon德文郡普利茅斯 Pilgrims清教徒 persecution p:sikju:n 迫害 abandon废弃Plantation种植园 beset困扰 devastatingdevsteiti 毁灭性的plague pleig瘟疫 Squanto斯匡托 Wampanoag wmpng 万帕诺亚格人feastfi:st盛宴 rejoice(使)欣喜, 喜悦 vary vri 变化 Congressional Joint Resolution国会联合决议 Exercises:从所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳答案。1. On Thanksgiv

11、ing Day, people are likely to eat_.A. mooncakes B. turkeys C. pumpkins D. beans2. Thanksgiving Day is similar to the Mid-Autumn Festival in China in the way _.A. families and friends gather together B. people celebrate it with a big dinnerC. people celebrate the years harvestD. people show respect t

12、o their ancestors3. Thanksgiving Day was intended for the first generation of settlers to_.A. celebrate their arriving in the New WorldB. celebrate their surviving from the long winter of 1620C. thank Squanto and her Wampanoag tribeD. thank God and the Native Indian4. About Thanksgiving Day, the fal

13、se statement is that_.A. it existed before the USA was foundedB. it has been observed in October or in NovemberC. it is usually celebrated for several days D. it has been a traditional holiday in America5. The last paragraph mainly tells us _.A. Thanksgiving Day is becoming more and more important i

14、n AmericaB. Thanksgiving Day has become a national holiday in AmericaC. how the date of modern Thanksgiving Day came into beingD. Thanksgiving Day is supported by American governmentBrief Introduction:感恩节是一个很重要的美国传统节日。每年11月的第四个星期四，人们都会与家人、朋友欢聚一堂，下午3时左右吃传统的火鸡大餐。该节日最初主要是为了庆祝一年的丰收，与中国的中秋节有些相似。这个美国传统节日始

15、于1621年，美国成立以前。来源于美洲新大陆第一批移民为庆祝到达新大陆之后第一年的辛苦劳作获得的丰收而举行的盛大宴会。1620年9月6日，一批不堪忍受国内宗教迫害的英国清教徒乘坐“五月花”号从英格兰德文郡普利茅斯出发，开始了到美洲新大陆的航行。这批清教徒大约有100人。 清教徒们在海上航行了66天，终于在当年的11月到达美洲新大陆。他们最初在当地印第安人废弃的一个玉米地安顿下来，并把它命名为普利茅斯种植园。1620年那个寒冷而漫长的冬天，他们在这块土地上费尽千辛万苦地劳作着，困难重重，还遭遇了一场灾难性的瘟疫，一半人在这场瘟疫中死去。到了1621年的春天，一个名叫Squanto的印第安英雄率其

16、瓦帕浓部落开始主动帮助他们。部落里的人们教这些清教徒怎样耕种土地，怎样种植玉米、大豆、南瓜以及其他农作物。1621年9月底，他们的辛勤劳作终于获得大丰收，清教徒们欢欣鼓舞。为了庆祝这第一次来之不易的大丰收，他们想要好好感谢一下上帝和当地的印第安人，便邀请Squanto及其瓦帕浓部落参加他们的庆祝盛宴。这第一次的丰收庆祝盛宴据说从三天一直延长到一个星期。对于清教徒们来说，这的确是一段享受高兴、愉悦、友谊的时间。他们和善良的当地印第安人一起准备了庆祝盛宴，在荒野中盖了房子，并为即将来临的漫长冬天储存了充足的食物。于是，在这块充满希望、憧憬和向往的新大陆上，清教徒们便成了第一代移民定居者。从那以后的

17、150多年里，感恩节便成为一个庆祝新大陆丰收的固定节日，在每年的10月或11月举行庆祝活动。1777年，美国大陆会议第一次宣布感恩节为全国性节日。1789年10月3日，美国总统乔治华盛顿号召美国人民把当年的11月26日(星期四)看作“一个感恩、祈祷的公开纪念日”。1941年，一项国会联合决议把感恩节定为全国性节日，时间定在每年11月的第四个星期四。Keys and Explanations: 1-5 BCDAC1. 选B。从第一段families and friends gather together for the occasion to celebrate with a tradition

18、al turkey dinner可知。2. 选C。根据第一段最后一句可知都是庆祝收获的节日。3. 选D。AB都是Thanksgiving Day出现之前的事，故可排除；从5、6两段可得出正确答案。4. 选C。A可以从第二段第一句判断是正确的；B从倒数第二段说到的以前是10或11月，虽然最后一段表明现在只在11月，但笼统地说从以前到现在是正确的；D可从文章第一句得知正确。从倒数第三段可知，只是第一次持续了很长时间，其余通常都是一天，因此说法错误。5. 选C。段落大意题。从在不同历史时期对感恩节庆祝日期不同，直到现在最终确定在每年11月的第四个星期四来看，重在追溯历史弄清现在庆祝日期的来源。49.

19、 Advent (耶稣)降临节 “Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat.”Christmas is the biggest festival in Britain and is celebrated on 25th December. The four weeks before Christmas are called Advent, and are traditionally celebrated in churches by lighting a candle each Sunday during Advent.Nowadays, ma

20、ny people in Britain are not very religious, but they still celebrate Christmas. But watch out- the preparations begin long before Advent. In fact as early as September or October, you start to see signs that Christmas is on the way.The first places to tell us that we should be thinking about Christ

21、mas are the shops. People in Britain spend on average over 600 (around $1000) per person on Christmas every year, and the shops encourage people to spend more and more.Shops put up Christmas decorations and play cheesy Christmas songs or carols; and some shop workers wear Christmas hats. Some big sh

22、ops on Regent Street and Oxford Street in London create wonderful displays in their windows with moving characters, falling snow, colourful lights and music.Advent wreathSo what do people buy in preparation for Christmas? Well, Christmas decorations; Christmas cards to send to your friends and relat

23、ives; presents for your loved ones and wrapping paper to wrap them up with. And of course food! Apart from (Besides) the special Christmas dinner of roast turkey or goose, people buy lots of chocolates, nuts and snacks for everyone to enjoy.Advent calendarBut the children are the most excited that C

24、hristmas is coming. They start making lists of presents they would like, and give them to their parents, or send them to Santa Claus. In December, they can also open their Advent calendars.Advent calendars are a way of counting down to Christmas. They have a window to open for every day from 1st 24t

25、h December (Christmas Eve).A basic Advent calendar has a Christmassy picture behind each window, but the childrens favourite is usually a chocolate Advent calendar, with a chocolate for every day of the month. (331 words)Helper:Christmas decoration圣诞装饰 cheesy ti:zi 俗套的 carol krl圣诞颂歌loved one 亲人 wrap

26、ping paper包装纸 apart from 除之外 snack 小吃 Santa Claus 圣诞老人 calendar 日历 Christmassy krismsi 有圣诞气氛的 Brief Introduction:圣诞节前四个星期，从第一个星期日起至圣诞夜(12月24日)止，这段时间在西方称为耶稣降临节(Advent)，人们用以筹备庆祝耶稣基督的降生。按照传统，教堂要在降临节的每个周日点燃一只蜡烛，许多基督教徒在此期间祈祷，斋戒及忏悔以迎接圣诞节的到来。现在在英国有许多人不信教，不过人人都过圣诞节。在商业化的今天，第一个让我们知道圣诞节快要到了的是商家。节日总是会让孩子们很高兴，他

27、们算着能得到什么样的圣诞礼物。耶稣降临节每个孩子都会得到一个“圣诞日历”。圣诞日历有简单以巧克力制成的方形纸盒，上面有24个格子，每个格子上标着一个数字从1到24，从12月1日开始，每天打开一个格子，就可以取出不同形状的巧克力享用，以此来作圣诞倒计时。更有创意的圣诞日历，以木头和布做成麋鹿、雪人，圣诞老人或小红靴子等造型，做成24格、24个小袋子或是24个小紅靴，每一个格或每一袋子內裝上不同的巧克力或是玩具小礼物等，让小孩子们每天起床的第一件事，就是打开今天的圣诞日历！ Exercises:从所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳答案。1. Advent is a festival _.A.

28、taking place in the four weeks before ChristmasB. celebrated in churches by lighting a candle everydayC. when people begin to prepare for ChristmasD. only celebrated by religious people in Britain2. Which of the following statements is true?A. Fewer and fewer people celebrate Christmas because many

29、of them are not religious.B. People spend too much money on Christmas every year.C. Children are the most excited about Christmas only because they can receive the presents.D. Children usually eat a lot at Christmas.3. You can find the followings in the shops when Christmas is coming EXCEPT _.A. Chr

30、istmas decorationsB. Christmas songs or carolsC. some shop workers wearing Christmas hats playing in the windowsD. moving characters, falling snow, colorful lights and music in some big shops4. People buy a lot of things in preparation for Christmas, NOT including _.A. Christmas decorationsB. Christ

31、mas cards to send to their friends and relativesC. presents for their loved onesD. wrapping paper to decorate the Christmas tree5. Which of the following statements about a chocolate Advent calendar is WRONG?A. A chocolate Advent calendar is a way of counting down to Christmas.B. has a window to ope

32、n for every day from 1st - 24th December.C. has a Christmassy picture behind each window.D. has a chocolate for every day of the month.Keys and Explanations:1-5 ADCDC1. 选A。细节理解题。由第二段第二句话可知耶稣降临节发生在圣诞节四个星期以前，故A项正确；由第二段第二句话可知耶稣降临节的庆祝方式是每周日在教堂点燃一根蜡烛，而不是每天，故B项错误；由第三段第二句话可知人们开始为圣诞节做准备是在耶稣降临节很早以前，大约九月或十月的时

33、候，故C项错误；D项文中没有提到。2. 选D。细节理解题。由第三段首句可知虽然现在英国信仰宗教的人少了，但人们仍然庆祝圣诞节，故A项错误；B项文中没有提到；由第八段可知孩子们喜欢圣诞节的原因之一是圣诞礼物，但并不是唯一原因，故C项错误；由最后一句可知孩子们在圣诞节往往会大吃大喝，故D项正确。3. 选C。细节理解题。由第五段可知商店里的工作人员确实会戴圣诞节帽子，但他们并不在橱窗里，故C项错误。4. 选D。细节理解题。由第六段最后一句可知人们买礼品包装纸是为了包装礼品，而不是为了装饰圣诞树，故D项错误。5. 选C。推理判断题。由最后一段首句可知普通的圣诞日历每个格子后面有一幅圣诞画片，所以不是巧

34、克力圣诞日历，故C项错误。50. Christmas traditions 圣诞节传统There are many ways to celebrate Christmas, and some British people like to go on holiday, go out for lunch to a restaurant, or spend the day with friends. But most peoples idea of a traditional Christmas involves spending a few days with their family - som

35、etimes their extended family. The day is the most exciting for the children. They may have spent weeks or even months dreaming of the presents they want most. Since the beginning of December, they may have opened their advent calendars, finding a new festive picture, chocolate, or small gift, to cou

36、nt down each day until 25th December.On Christmas Eve, they hang up stockings, ready to be filled with presents by Santa Claus. Often a thank you gift of a mince pie and a glass of sherry will be left, as well as a carrot for those hungry reindeer.Christmas Day itself will be spent eating lots of go

37、odies, opening presents from loved ones, which have been waiting under the Christmas tree, and for most adults, drinking plenty of booze（An alcoholic drink）.A Christmas lunch of roast turkey with all the trimmings is the main event, complete with crackers, and paper party hats. The meal will finish

38、off with Christmas pudding, a steamed fruit pudding.For some, a church service, or the Queens speech on television will be part of the family custom. For most, the afternoon and evening will be spent playing board games, or perhaps watching a family film on TV.After the excitement of the big day, mo

39、st families are happy to spend Boxing Day quietly enjoying their presents, and eating the Christmas leftovers, for example a turkey curry.Then we can all forget about Christmas until next year well until next September. （296 words）Helper:extended family 亲戚 goodygudi糖果，点心等stocking（用来装圣诞礼物的）长筒袜 Boxing

40、 Day 节礼日（圣诞节后的第一天）the main event （圣诞节当天）最主要的事情 booze 含酒精的饮料（习语）a mince mins pie （圣诞节吃的）百果馅饼 reindeer驯鹿 board game用棋盘玩的游戏 leftover剩饭剩菜all the trimmings （与火鸡一起吃的）配菜 sherry 雪利酒 advent calendar 日历（从圣诞节前24起一个倒数的日历，每天打开上面的一个小门，门里有时候有巧克力，有时候只有一张图片）cracker彩包爆竹（圣诞节时的娱乐用品，是一个硬的纸筒，内装小礼品，纸帽等，用纸包裹好，两端一拉即噼里啪啦作响）t

41、urkey curry 咖喱火鸡Brief Introduction:庆祝圣诞节有不同的方式。在英国，有人去旅行、做礼拜或者跟朋友一起。但是大多数人对于圣诞节的想法是跟家人或者亲戚在一起过上几天。最感到激动的莫过于孩子们了，他们早就想得到想要的礼物。甚至打开日历倒计时，节日来临他们把长筒袜挂起来等圣诞来人装礼物。对于大部分成年人来说，他们会饮酒祝贺。圣诞午餐主要是烤火鸡和一些配菜。对另一些人来说，他们会去做礼拜或者在电视里看女王演讲。大部分人在下午和晚上会玩棋盘游戏，或者在电视里的看家庭影院节目。盛大的一天结束后，大部分家人高高兴兴地过节礼日，就是圣诞节后的第一天，悄悄的欣赏着礼物，吃着圣诞节

42、剩下的饭菜，像火鸡咖喱。然后到了下年的12月人们才会想起圣诞节。 Exercises:1. The main purpose of this article is to show _. A. when it is Christmas B. what British people eat at Christmas C. how British people spend Christmas D. when one goes to church2. From the text we know on Christmas Day, British people would like to do the

43、following except_.A. go to church B. enjoy a big feast C. open presents D. eat carrot3. The main reason why children look forward to Christmas probably be that _. A. they can eat what they like best B. they can find new festival pictures C. they can play board games D. they can get the presents 4. W

44、hich of the following is presented at the end of a Christmas lunch? A. roast turkey B. Christmas pudding C. a glass of sherry D. a turkey curry5. The last sentence “Then we can all forget about Christmas until next year” probably indicates that_. A. Christmas is over B. Christmas is not worth rememb

45、ering C. Anyone will remember Christmas D. No one is allowed to remember itKeys and Explanations:1-5 CDDBA1. 选C。主旨大意题。根据第一段和全文看出是让读者知道英国人是如何圣诞节的。A、B、D项虽然在文章中涉及到，但是不是作者写此文的主要目的。2. 选D。细节理解题。从第三段的最后一句看出是孩子们给驯鹿吃的东西就是胡萝卜，而不是节日里人们吃的东西。3. 选D。细节理解题。根据第二段首句The day is the most exciting for the children.紧接着在第二句They may have spent weeks or even months dreaming of the presents they want most.得出D正确。4. 选B。细节理解题。倒数第四段的The meal will finish off with Christmas pudding, a steamed fruit pudding.表明最后上圣诞布丁结束圣诞午宴。5. 选A。推理判断题。最后一段说“到下年人们才会想起圣诞节”，这是为了说明这个节日就这样过完了，并不是说不值得去记住。本句译文是“然后我们都完全把圣诞节忘记了，一直到下一年的十二月（又记起来了）”。