The origins of theater

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1. The word championed in the passage is closest in meaning to

1. changed
2. debated
3. created
4. supported

Correct Answer is D.

解析：記住詞義。

 

2. The word attributes in the passage is closest in meaning to

1. ascribes
2. leaves
3. limits
4. contrasts

Correct Answer is A.

解析：記住詞義。

 

3. According to paragraph 1, theories of the theater

1. are mainly hypothetical
2. are well supported by factual evidence
3. have rarely been agreed upon by anthropologists
4. were expressed in the early stages of theater's development

Correct Answer is A.

解析：paragraph 1第一句“In seeking to describe the origins of theater, one must rely primarily on speculation, since there is little concrete evidence on which to draw.”已經説明了問題，都是假説，沒有確鑿證據，所以B是錯誤的，選A；D是沒有提及；C的話，通過第二句“The most widely accepted theory, championed by anthropologists in the late nineteenth…”可以得知并不是rarely。

 

4. According to paragraph 1, why did some societies develop and repeat ceremonial actions?

1. To establish a positive connection between the members of the society
2. To help society members better understand the forces controlling their food supply
3. To distinguish their beliefs from those of other societies
4. To increase the society's prosperity

Correct Answer is D.

解析：Paragraph 1最後一句解釋，由於觀測到行爲與結果的明顯聯係，於是人們開始重複ceremonies和rituals，重複的意義是這些關係到不僅僅是food supply，還有各種desires。直接的結果是爲了人類更好的生活，換言之，繁榮。故選D。

 

 

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5. The word this in the passage refer to

1. the acting out of rites.
2. the divorce of ritual performers from the rest of society
3. the separation of myths from rites
4. the celebration of supernatural forces

Correct Answer is C.

解析：“As a person becomes more sophisticated, its conceptions of supernatural forces and causal relationships may change. As a result, it may abandon or modify some rites.” 關鍵句：“But the myths that have grown up around the rites may continue as part of the group’s oral tradition and may even come to be acted out under conditions divorced from these rites.” 中提示到“…be acted out under conditions divorced from rites.”也就是說表演和儀式分離開來，即使沒有儀式的情況下也可以演出，這麽一來，神話與儀式開始分離。選C。

 

6. The word autonomous in the passage is closest meaning to

1. artistic
2. important
3. independent
4. established

Correct Answer is C.

解析：記住詞義。

 

7. According to paragraph 2, what may cause societies to abandon certain rites?

1. Emphasizing theater as entertainment
2. Developing a new understanding of why events occur
3. Finding a more sophisticated way of representing mythical characters
4. Moving from a primarily oral tradition to a more written tradition

Correct Answer is B.

解析：當人們見多識廣之後，一些無法解釋的自然現象變得能夠用科學的道理詮釋，這就會直接導致宗教儀式的土崩瓦解。所以説，越是發展對自然現象的認知和理解，越來越會使得ceremonies和rituals變得不那麽重要，從而最終捨棄。故選B。

 

 

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8. All of the following are mentioned in paragraph 5 as possible reasons that led societies to develop theater EXCEPT:

1. Theater allows people to face what they are afraid of.
2. Theater gives an opportunity to imagine a better reality.
3. Theater is a way imitating other people.
4. Theater provides people the opportunity to better understand the human mind.

Correct Answer is D.

解析：選D。原文并沒有提及人們是通過劇院來更好地瞭解人類思維，屬於捏造事實。事實上，根據前段的指出，劇院反而是因爲人們認知世界后從ritual中分離得到的產物。

 

9. Which of the following best describes the organization of paragraph 5?

1. The author presents two theories for a historical phenomenon.
2. The author argues against theories expressed earlier in the passage.
3. The author argues for replacing older theories with a new one.
4. The author points out problems with two popular theories.

Correct Answer is A.

解析：選A。作者提出了2個理論，1是由亞里士多德背書的模仿理論，人通過模仿能獲得快樂；2是人的天性有reshape reality，不喜歡日常，需要fantasy和fiction緩解焦慮或逃避現實。作者并沒有贊成或反對這兩個理論，只是單單陳述出來。

 

 

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10. The word penchant in the passage is closest in meaning to

1. compromise
2. inclination
3. tradition
4. respect

Correct Answer is B.

解析：penchant特別的喜好，inclination也有愛好的意思。

 

11. Why does the author mention comedy?

1. To give an example of early types of theater
2. To explain how theater helps a society respond to threats to its welfare
3. To help explain why detachment is needed for the development of theatre
4. To show how theatrical performers become detached from other members of society

Correct Answer is C.

解析：選C。本段前3句告訴我們，上一段提到模仿本能和對幻想的嗜好都不能成爲戲劇發展獨立的原因，於是，作者舉出了comedy的例子，所以A選項不可能選，因爲作者不是來告知種類的，而想要通過comedy來解釋detachment的原因的。一個必要的條件是可能是一種要脫離通常人們看待問題的視角，比如，這個條件的一個標志是喜劇構想的出現。

 

12. Which of the sentences below best express the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.

1. A society's rites were more likely to be retained in the oral tradition if its myths were admired for artistic qualities.
2. The artistic quality of a myth was sometimes an essential reason for a society to abandon it from the oral tradition.
3. Some early societies stopped using myths in their religious practices when rites ceased to be seen as useful for social well-being.
4. Myths sometimes survived in a society's tradition because of their artistic qualities even after they were no longer deemed religiously beneficial.

Correct Answer is D.

解析：最後一句主要是說那些早期社會的人們認爲儀式和他們的幸福生活不再是必需品，并且取消了那些儀式。雖然如此，人們還是保留了那些口頭傳述故事的傳統并且熱愛從這些儀式當中發展起來的神話，出於它們的藝術性，而不是宗教原因。

 

 

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13. Look at the four squares [ █ ] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the passage.

To enhance their listener's enjoyment, storytellers continually make their stories more engaging and memorable.

Where would the sentence best fit?

Click on a square [ █ ] to insert the sentence in the passage.

Correct Answer is D.

解析：原句中有提到listener，則説明必然是在storytelling之後，故AB不可能選，然而第三個空之後的under this theory是指的Storytelling，所以C部分不可能填空；并且第四個空后的Thus於是有總結的意向，但總結的是什麽呢？這裏出現了空白，并且也沒有別的選項了，只能選D。

 

14. Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some answer choices do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This questions is worth 2 points.

Anthropologists have developed many theories to help understand why and how theater originated.

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A. The presence of theater in almost all societies is thought to have occurred because early storytellers traveled to different groups to tell their stories.

B. Many theorists believe that theater arises when societies act out myths to preserve social well-being.

C. The more sophisticate societies became, the better they could influence desirable occurrences through ritualized theater.

D. Some theories of theater development focus on how theater was used by group leaders to govern other members of society.

E. Theater may have come from pleasure humans receive from storytelling and moving rhythmically

F. The human capacities for imitation and fantasy are considered possible reasons why societies develop theater.

Correct Answer is BEF.

解析：EF基本上沒什麽異議，AD是虛假事實，BC之間有爭議，B你可能因爲之前做題得到一個結論就是戲劇不是用來preserve social well-being的，但事實是，一開始還是這麽做的，人類學家們這麽認爲的，後來才漸漸因爲藝術價值而保留。C的問題在於“通過ritualized theater來影響一些想要的結果”，問題是theater是趨向於獨立的，而不是更加儀式化，同時這也是虛假事實。

 

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