托福阅读之题目分析 --剧院的起源

 托福阅读和听力是托福考试当中比较容易得分的项目，也是我们中国学生在当中的强项，同学们在，第一要注意积累词汇，第二要学会分析托福阅读文章分析的技巧和思路，张扬才能够事半功倍。

原文：

The Origins of Theater

In seeking to describe the origins of theater, one must rely primarily on speculation, since there is little concrete evidence on which to draw. The most widely accepted theory, championed by anthropologists in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, envisions theater as emerging out of myth and ritual. The process perceived by these anthropologists may be summarized briefly. During the early stages of its development, a society becomes aware of forces that appear to influence or control its food supply and well-being. Having little understanding of natural causes, it attributes both desirable and undesirable occurrences to supernatural or magical forces, and it searches for means to win the favor of these forces. Perceiving an apparent connection between certain actions performed by the group and the result it desires, the group repeats, refines and formalizes those actions into fixed ceremonies, or rituals.

Stories (myths) may then grow up around a ritual. Frequently the myths include representatives of those supernatural forces that the rites celebrate or hope to influence. Performers may wear costumes and masks to represent the mythical characters or supernatural forces in the rituals or in accompanying celebrations. 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. 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. When this occurs, the first step has been taken toward theater as an autonomous activity, and thereafter entertainment and aesthetic values may gradually replace the former mystical and socially efficacious concerns.

Although origin in ritual has long been the most popular, it is by no means the only theory about how the theater came into being. Storytelling has been proposed as one alternative. Under this theory, relating and listening to stories are seen as fundamental human pleasures. Thus, the recalling of an event (a hunt, battle, or other feat) is elaborated through the narrator’s pantomime and impersonation and eventually through each role being assumed by a different person.

A closely related theory sees theater as evolving out of dances that are primarily pantomimic, rhythmical or gymnastic, or from imitations of animal noises and sounds. Admiration for the performer’s skill, virtuosity, and grace are seen as motivation for elaborating the activities into fully realized theatrical performances.

In addition to exploring the possible antecedents of theater, scholars have also theorized about the motives that led people to develop theater. Why did theater develop, and why was it valued after it ceased to fulfill the function of ritual? Most answers fall back on the theories about the human mind and basic human needs. One, set forth by Aristotle in the fourth century B.C., sees humans as naturally imitative—as taking pleasure in imitating persons, things, and actions and in seeing such imitations. Another, advanced in the twentieth century, suggests that humans have a gift for fantasy, through which they seek to reshape reality into more satisfying forms than those encountered in daily life. Thus, fantasy or fiction (of which drama is one form) permits people to objectify their anxieties and fears, confront them, and fulfill their hopes in fiction if not fact. The theater, then, is one tool whereby people define and understand their world or escape from unpleasant realities.

But neither the human imitative instinct nor a penchant for fantasy by itself leads to an autonomous theater. Therefore, additional explanations are needed. One necessary condition seems to be a somewhat detached view of human problems. For example, one sign of this condition is the appearance of the comic vision, since comedy requires sufficient detachment to view some deviations from social norms as ridiculous rather than as serious threats to the welfare of the entire group. Another condition that contributes to the development of autonomous theater is the emergence of the aesthetic sense. For example, some early societies ceased to consider certain rites essential to their well-being and abandoned them, nevertheless, they retained as parts of their oral tradition the myths that had grown up around the rites and admired them for their artistic qualities rather than for their religious usefulness.

我们今天就其中的第六段进行讲解。

【Paragraph 6】But neither the human imitative instinct nor a penchant for fantasy by itself leads to an autonomous theater. Therefore, additional explanations are needed. One necessary condition seems to be a somewhat detached view of human problems. For example, one sign of this condition is the appearance of the comic vision, since comedy requires sufficient detachment to view some deviations from social norms as ridiculous rather than as serious threats to the welfare of the entire group. Another condition that contributes to the development of autonomous theater is the emergence of the aesthetic sense. For example, some early societies ceased to consider certain rites essential to their well-being and abandoned them, nevertheless, they retained as parts of their oral tradition the myths that had grown up around the rites and admired them for their artistic qualities rather than for their religious usefulness.

参考翻译 ： 但是，无论是人类模仿的本能或是对幻想的嗜好本身都不能发展成为独立的戏剧，因此，我们需要更多解释。一个必要的条件可能是一种要脱离通常人们看待问题的视角。比如，这个条件的一个标志是喜剧构想的出现，因为喜剧要求足够的发散思维，我们需要将社会规范中的离经叛道的行为视作极其荒谬的事情，而不是对公众群体福利的严重威胁。另一个导致戏剧独立的条件是审美感觉的出现。例如，一些早期社会的人们认为有的仪式对他们的幸福生活来说不再是必需品，并且取消了那些仪式。虽然如此，人们还是保留了那些口头传述故事的传统并且热爱从这些仪式里发展起来的神话，出于它们的艺术性，而不是宗教原因。

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

○compromise

○inclination

○tradition

○respect

首先是一道词汇题

penchant for something, they have a special liking for it or a tendency to do it. 特别的喜好 [正式]

例：

...a stylish woman with a penchant for dark glasses.

…一位对墨镜有特别喜好的时髦女子。

所以这道题的答案是B。 A compromise表示妥协 B inclination 倾向 C tradition 传统 D respect 尊重

11. Why does the author mention “comedy”?

○To give an example of early types of theater

○To explain how theater helps a society respond to threats to its welfare

○To help explain why detachment is needed for the development of theater

○To show how theatrical performers become detached from other members of society

这道题是一个修辞目的题。当然我们首先重点关注comedy的位置。 For example, one sign of this condition is the appearance of the comic vision, since comedy requires sufficient detachment to view some deviations from social norms as ridiculous rather than as serious threats to the welfare of the entire group. 本句是 个举例,例子主要是用来支持前面观点，所以我们要看下它支持的观点句想表明什么， One necessary condition seems to be a somewhat detached view of human problems. 一个必要的条件可能是一种要脱离通常人们看待问题的视角。选项里只要有跟这句大方向保持同替或概括性的句子就可以选了。 只有C选项强调了 脱离视角。所以正确答案是C。在修辞目的题目练习中，大家主要关注的就是句间关系，特别是细节对哪句进行支持。课下需要多多练习句间关系的分析。

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

○A society’s rites were more likely to be retained in the oral tradition if its myths were admired for artistic qualities.

○The artistic quality of a myth was sometimes an essential reason for a society to abandon it from the oral tradition.

○Some early societies stopped using myths in their religious practices when rites ceased to be seen as useful for social well-being.

○Myths sometimes survived in a society’s tradition because of their artistic qualities even after they were no longer deemed religiously beneficial.

这道题是经典的句子简化题。

For example, some early societies ceased to consider certain rites essential to their well-being and abandoned them, nevertheless, they retained as parts of their oral tradition the myths that had grown up around the rites and admired them for their artistic qualities rather than for their religious usefulness.

参考翻译： 例如，一些早期社会的人们认为有的仪式对他们的幸福生活来说不再是必需品，并且取消了那些仪式。虽然如此，人们还是保留了那些口头传述故事的传统并且热爱从这些仪式里发展起来的神话，出于它们的艺术性，而不是宗教原因。

这个句子主干就是societies ceased to consider certain rites.....nevertheless,...they retained as parts of their oral tradition... and admired them.

正确答案是D。

关于及托福备考就先给同学们介绍到这里，如果铜须麽恩想学习托福阅读部分的分析思路及方法，或者想有专业的指导你备考，

相关推荐>>>