I found myself a little while ago in one of the largest American prisons. It was like a st

I found myself a little while ago in one of the largest American prisons. It was like a stone castle, its high towers watched by guards with guns. I had been there several times before, on earlier visits to the USA. But this time I had come to see one particular prisoner, He was nineteen and after two years by himself in one room was awaiting execution for murder. He bad just heard the result of a fresh trial. He was to serve life imprisonment instead. He was white -faced and talkative, a boy who had failed in high school and had all too easily got caught up in a night's adventure that had ended with burning down buildings, two deaths and those two years awaiting death.

This prison is no worse than many others and it is certainly better than some. After

you have passed through the complicated series of gates and doors and the electronic instruments have checked that you have no metal on your person--that you have no gun in fact--you enter within the walls. At once you are astonished at the difference between the strict controls outside and curiously easy--going way of life inside. Here are men walking about, often smoking cigars; the football team is being trained on the field~ there is a good deal of standing around waiting for something to happen. And of course things do happen: a sudden shout, a rush to the water tower, a mad climb to its top, senseless disobedience for days. But this is somehow a symbol for a bigger senselessness than that.

This time I was wondering what twenty years(and that would be the minimum)might mean for one boy pushed into this organized idleness.

1. This was _____.

  A. the writer's first visit to the prison but not to America

  B. not his first visit to the prison or to America

  C. his second visit to America but not to the prison

  D. his first visit both to America and to the

2. In this passage the word "execution" means

  A. life imprisonment     B. the decision of the judge

  C. punishment by death   D. another trail

3. Which of the following is true?

  A. They were taking the prisoner out to kill him.

  B. The punishment had been changed from life imprisonment to death.

  C. The punishment had been changed from death to life imprisonment.

  D. They were talking him out for a fresh trial.

4. The writer thinks that the prison system is ___

  A. a very good one    B. good but could be even better

  C. fairly bad but might be even worse    D. foolish

5. Here "a bigger senselessness" refers to.

  A. a sudden rush to the water tower    B. a mad climb to the tower's top

  C. disobedience for days    D. anything more serious than all of the above

本文讲述作者去美国监狱探视一个特别的小孩时的所见、所闻和所想．

1. B。事实细节题．根据I had been there several times before , on earlier visits to the USA 可知答案为B。

2. C。词义猜测题。根据He was nineteen and after two years by himself in one room was awaiting execution for murder可知他犯的是谋杀罪。被判死刑，因此答案为c。

3. C。事实细节题．根据He had just heard the result of a fresh trail . He was to serve life imprisonment instead可知答案为C。

4. D。推理判断题．从第2段作者描述监狱时所用的晤气可知答案为D．

5. D。推理判断题．从And of course things do happen: a sudden shout, a rush to the water tower, a mad climb to its top, senseless disobedience for days. But this is somehow a symbol for a bigger senselessness than that.

可知答案为D。