2014英语专业八级全真模拟试题(3)

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Anniversaries are the opium of museums, publishers, theaters and opera houses. Fixing their eyes on someround-number birth or death date of a major creator, they start planning to cash in years before. For 2006, birthdaysare the winning numbers: Rembrandt's 400th; Mozart's 250th; and the 100th for Samuel Beckett and DmitriShostakovich.

The Dutch have organized a score of Rembrandt shows, starting appropriately with an exhibition based aroundhis mother in the town of his birth, Leiden. Mozart's music will be heard more than usual in churches, concert hallsand opera houses around the world, with his birthplace, Salzburg, once again trying to compensate for theindifference it showed him during his lifetime.
But do such anniversaries and accompanying celebrations serve much purpose? Are they just marketingdevices to sell tickets to museums and performances? Or do they help draw the attention of younger generations tothe giants of Western culture who at times seem crowded out by the pygmies of popular culture?

As it happens, the practice is not new. The birth of Bardolatry, or Shakespeare worship, is generally traced tothe Shakespeare Jubilee, which was organized by the actor-manager David Garrick to celebrate the 200thanniversary of the playwright's birth (the jubilee was actually held in 1769, five years after the anniversary, butpresumably time was more flexible in those days).

Until then, perhaps surprisingly, Shakespeare was not doing too well. The popularity of many of his plays didnot survive the 18-year-long closure of London's theaters during the Civil War and Cromwell's rule. Then, aftertheaters reopened in 1660 with the Restoration of the monarchy, several of his major works--"Richard HI" and"FAng Lear" among them--were drastically revised by other playwrights.

Today, Mozart, for one, is hardly in need of revival. No opera home plans a season these days withouti~cluding at least one of his stage masterpieces: "Le Nozze di Figaro," "Don Giovanni," "Cos1 fan tutte" and "DieZauberflote." His "Requiem," "Coronation Mass" and other sacred works are regularly performed. Hisinstrumental works--he wrote hundreds--keep soloists and orchestras busy throughout the year.

A more interesting reflection for Jan. 27, the 250th anniversary of his birth, is: How would Western culture have fared without Mozart?
True, the same question might be asked of myriad great artists who have bequeathed beauty, emotion andunderstanding. Yet Mozart was unique, not only because he excelled in every kind of music (while, say, Verdi andWagner were great composers only of opera), but also because, more cvcn than Bach, hc turned listening into adeeply personal experience.
There is that perennial: Who killed Mozart? In Peter Schaffcr's 1979 play, "Amadcus," adapted as an Oscar-winning movie by Milos Forman in 1984, the finger of guilt was pointed at Mozart's contemporary, AntonioSalieri. But even that charge was old hat: Pushkin first raised it in his 1830 play, "Mozart and Salieri," whichRimsky-Korsakov adapted as an opera in 1897. Still, the question is again being trotted out for the anniversary.

No such mystery surrounds Rembrandt's life or death. But if his greamess was only fully recognized in the19th century, he certainly is in need of no anniversary "special offers" to be admired today. His more than 600 oilsare in collections around the world and, whenever selected for exhibitions, they draw huge crowds. The organizers of Rembrandt 400, as the annlversm'y has been tagged, evidently again have crowds in mind,hoping that some 250,000 people will travel to the Netherlands for the occasion.
Will Rembrandt's fans cross paths with those of Mozart?

If they did, they might find that their ido!s have something in common. In his 75 or so self-portraits, recordinghis passage from youth to old age, Rembrandt seems to offer a window into his soul. Cannot Mozart's compositionsalso be considered as self-portraits? Certainly, it is by displaying their intimacy that they share their genius with us.But of course only time will define their place in the pantheon. As happened to Rembrandt and many others,great artists are often forgotten before they are enshrined by posterity. After that, thankfully, anniversaries makelittle difference.

16. It can be inferred from the passage that __
A. Mozart's music used to be only played in church
B. Mozart's music has always been welcomed by people
C. Rembrandt once painted a lot about his mother
D. Rembrandt was brought up by his mother only.

17. Which of the following about Shakespeare can NOT be inferred from the passage?
A. He became more and more famous after 1769.
B. He was born in 1564.
C. He was not so famous before 1769.
D. His works were especially welcomed by people around 1660.

18. What does the author think of Mozart?
A. He contributed a lot to the development of music.
B. He produced more musical works than Bach.
C. He based his music on personal experience:
D. He excelled more in sacred works than in instrumental works.

19. Which of the following about Rembrandt is NOT correct?
A. There isn't any mystery surrounds Rembrandt's life or death.
B. He has more than 600 oils.
C. The exhibitions of his compositions can draw many people.
D. Rembrandt's self-portraits can be considered as a window into his soul.

20. What's the author's attitude towards anniversaries?
A. Positive.
B. Negative.
C. Indifferent.
D. Fanatic.

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