题文
Grant Wood’s American Gothic caused a stir （轰动）in 1930 when it was exhibited for the first time at the Art Institute of Chicago and awarded a prize of 300 dollars. Newspapers across the country carried the story, and the painting of a farmer and a younger woman posed before a white house brought the artist instant fame.
In 1930, Grant Wood, an American painter with European training, noticed a small white house built in the small southern Iowa town of Eldon. Wood was so fascinated by it that he decided to paint the house along with the kind of people he thought should live in that house. In the painting, the farmer is modeled on his dentist. Dr. Byron McKeeby. His younger sister Nan served as a model for the woman （imagined to be the farmer’s wife or daughter）. Wood wanted to give a description of the traditional roles of men and women as the man is holding a pitchfork symbolizing hard labor. Each element was painted separately; the models sat separately and never stood in front of the house. The Gothic style of the house inspired the painting’s title.
American Gothic remains one of the most famous paintings in the history of American art. The painting has become part of American popular culture. Some believe that Wood used it to satirize（讽刺） the narrow-mindedness that has been said to characterize Midwestern culture. The painting may also be read as a praise of the moral virtue or rural America or even as a mixture of praise and satire. American Gothic is one of the few images to reach the status of cultural symbol, along with Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.
小题1:Which of the following is true about American Gothic?A．It won a prize of ￡ 300.B．The two characters in it posed before the White House.C．It was the first painting by Grant Wood.D．It was on show at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1930.小题2:From the passage we can infer Iowa is in __________.A．the southern town of EldonB．the Midwest of the United StatesC．a European countryD．the city of Chicago小题3:Grant Wood chose the two models __________.A．to describe traditional roles of men and womenB．to praise the moral virtue of rural AmericaC．to make his dentist and his sister famousD．to carry the story across the country小题4:The title of the painting is based on __________.A．the name of a small townB．the man and the womanC．the Gothic style of the houseD．the pitchfork symbolizing hard labor 题型：未知 难度：其他题型
答案
小题1:D
小题2:B
小题3:A
小题4:C
解析
文章介绍Grant Wood所画的American Gothic，描述图画里面的内容和内涵，以及这幅画的艺术价值。
小题1:细节题：从第一段的句子：Grant Wood’s American Gothic caused a stir （轰动）in 1930 when it was exhibited for the first time at the Art Institute of Chicago and awarded a prize of 300 dollars. 可知美式哥特在1930年在紫芝加哥的艺术研究所被展出，选D
小题2:细节题：从第二段的句子：In 1930, Grant Wood, an American painter with European training, noticed a small white house built in the small southern Iowa town of Eldon. 和第三段的句子：Some believe that Wood used it to satirize（讽刺） the narrow-mindedness that has been said to characterize Midwestern culture.可知Iowa 是位于美国中西部。选B
小题3:细节题：从第二段的句子：Wood wanted to give a description of the traditional roles of men and women as the man is holding a pitchfork symbolizing hard labor. 可知Wood使用两个模特是想描绘出传统的男人和女人的角色，选A
小题4:细节题：从第二段的句子：The Gothic style of the house inspired the painting’s title.可知这幅画的名字是受哥特式房子的启发，选C
考点
据考高分专家说，试题“Grant Wood’s America.....”主要考查你对 [政治经济类阅读 ]考点的理解。政治经济类阅读
政治经济类文章的概念：
要做好这类阅读，平时就要注意了解国内外发生的政治经济大事，掌握一定背景知识，对这类文章的叙述特点及内容安排有一定了解，还要扩展这方面的词汇。阅读这类文章，要抓住文章的核心，即文章整体和各段主要在说什么，也要注意段落之间的逻辑关系。
如何备考政治经济类阅读理解题：
【题型说明】政治经济类阅读文章是高考常选材料之一。该类文章时代气息浓郁，语言鲜活，但熟字新义词、超纲词及专业词语多，长句、难句多。政治类文章大多数是同学们感性趣的内容，读起来倒有似曾相识的感觉，经济类文章读起来就像是雾里看花，文章看完，一头雾水。再加之这类文章的命题侧重于词义猜测、推理判断和文章主旨，同学们对这类题材是望而生畏。
【备考策略】建立心理优势。针对不同体裁的文章，我们要采取相应的阅读方法和技巧。政治类文章多采用记叙文形式，我们可采取“顺读法”，以便抓关键语句，领会文章主旨；而经济类文章则多采用说明文形式，我们则可以采取“逆读法”，先读试题，再从文章中查找有用信息。若遇到的确难读的材料。千万不用着急，因为你觉得难，其他人也一定是同感。在高考前，我们就要有这种心理准备，高考试卷肯定有一、两篇难以阅读的材料。不过，我们平时可以有意识地从报刊杂志上找一些较难的阅读材料来阅读，以培养自己迎难而上的心理素质。
【答题方法】
1、寻找主干：
根据英语中五种基本句型结构，把句子中的主语、谓语、宾语、表语等主要成分找出来，其他成分如定语、状语、补语等则易于理解。找到了句子主干，句子的意思至少明白了一半。
2、剔除从句：
在一个长句中可能会出现若干个从句，在理解时，如果把各个从句剔除出来单独理解，然后把大意拼凑起来，整个长句的意思就会明白六、七分。
3、辨别分句：
一个长句如果是由几个并列、转折、递进、对比关系的分句组成，句中往往有表示这些分句关系的连接词，只要能弄清楚分句和分句之间的逻辑关系，再把各层分句的意思加以连贯，整个长句的句意基本上能跃然脑中。
4、寻找关键词：
如果一个句子看完，一点句意的感觉也没有，下下策就是抓住句中的关键词，通过关键词大体弄懂这个长句的意思。
