A
We all like fantasy stories, and grow up reading and listening to fantasies. These tales fuel our imaginations, and satisfy our longings for adventures. The most interesting thing about fantasies is that their plots involve magical beasts and heroes,animal creatures talking like humans,and other things we can’t see in real life. Also, fantasies have a distinguished writing style, with freedom of expression.
Toy Fantasy
In toy fantasy stories, narrators(叙述者)bring their beloved toys to life that can live, talk, think,breathe and behave like human beings. You would see modern toy fantasies in a picture book format. Representative works are A. A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh and Carlo Collodi’s The Adventures of Pinocchio.
Animal Fantasy
The animal fantasy tells tales about animals behaving like human beings, experiencing emotions, and having the ability to talk. However, animals in fantasies hold their various animal characteristics, too. Examples include The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, Charlotte's Web by E. B. White, and The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter which influences children around the world.
Magical Fantasy
In a magical fantasy, you see a character having magical powers, or a strange magical object becomes the subject of the story. Stories of this type began widely spreading long ago, including Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and William Steig’s Sylvester and the Magic Pebble.
Modern Folktales
Modern folktales are types of fantasy that narrators tell in a traditional tale accompanying some typical parts, such as strong conflict, little description of characters, and sometimes magical elements. These tales come before all others and are popular, as authors throughout history, have written them. Hans Christian Andersen has written several tales of this category including The Nightingale, The Emperor’s New Clothes and Thumbelina.
1. What is the common feature of the fantasies?
A. Their characters are highly popular.
B. Their events occur in the unreal world.
C. Their writing styles show desires for freedom.
D. Their plots encourage people to have adventures.
2. Who made a great contribution to the animal fantasy?
A. Carlo Collodi. B. Beatrix Potter.
C. William Steig. D. Hans Christian Andersen.
3. Which type of fantasy has the longest history?
A. The toy fantasy. B. The animal fantasy.
C. The magical fantasy. D. The modern folktales.
【答案】1. B 2. B 3. D
【解析】
【分析】这是一篇应用文。文章作者介绍了四种类型的幻想小说。
【1题详解】
推理判断题。根据文章第一段The most interesting thing about fantasies is that their plots involve magical beasts and heroes,animal creatures talking like humans,and other things we can’t see in real life(关于幻想最有趣的事情是,它们的情节包括神奇的野兽和英雄,像人类一样说话的动物,以及其他我们在现实生活中看不到的东西)可知,幻想是我们现实生活中看不到的东西,不存在于真实的生活中。故选B项。
【2题详解】
细节理解题。根据文章第三段可知,第三段整段主要在讲“动物幻想”。第三段提到了三位人物和他们的作品。分别是The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame;Charlotte's Web by E. B. White和The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter。综合分析,故选B项。
【3题详解】
细节理解题。根据最后一段These tales come before all others and are popular, as authors throughout history, have written them(这些故事比其他所有的故事都来得早,而且很受欢迎,因为历史上的作家都写过这些故事)可知,句中的“这些故事”指的就是前文提及的“现代民间故事”。根据作者的看法,民间故事比其他故事来的都早,因此可以判断民间故事的历史最长。故选D项。