题文
It is widely known that any English conversation begins with The Weather. Such a fixation with the weather finds expression in Dr. Johnson’s famous comment that “When two English meet, their first talk is of weather.” Though Johnson’s observation is as accurate now as it was over two hundred years ago, most commentators fail to come up with a convincing explanation for this English weather-speak.Bill Bryson, for example, concludes that, as the English weather is not at all exciting, the obsession with it can hardly be understood. He argues that “To an outsider, the most striking thing about the English weather is that there is not very much of it.” Simply, the reason is that the unusual and unpredictable weather is almost unknown in the British Isles.
Jeremy Paxman, however, disagrees with Bryson, arguing that the English weather is by nature attractive. Bryson is wrong, he says, because the English preference for the weather has nothing to do with the natural phenomena. “The interest is less in the phenomena themselves, but in uncertainty.” According to him, the weather in England is very changeable and uncertain and it attracts the English as well as the outsider.
Bryson and Paxman stand for common misconceptions about the weather-speak among the English. Both commentators, somehow, are missing the point. The English weather conversation is not really about the weather at all. English weather-speak is a system of signs, which is developed to help the speakers overcome the natural reserve and actually talk to each other. Everyone knows conversations starting with weather-speak are not requests for weather data. Rather, they are routine greetings, conversation starters or the blank “fillers”. In other words, English weather-speak is a means of social bonding.
小题1:The author mentions Dr. Johnson’s comment to show that______.A．most commentators agree with Dr. JohnsonB．Dr. Johnson is famous for his weather observationC．the comment was accurate two hundred years agoD．English conversations usually start with the weather小题2:What does the underlined word “obsession” most probably refer to?A．A social trend.B．An emotional state.C．A historical concept.D．An unknown phenomenon.小题3:According to the passage, Jeremy Paxman believes that______.A．Bill Bryson has little knowledge of the weatherB．there is nothing special about the English weatherC．the English weather attracts people to the British IslesD．English people talk about the weather for its uncertainty小题4:What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?A．To explain what English weather-speak is about.B．To analyse misconceptions about the English weather.C．To find fault with both Bill Bryson and Jeremy Paxman.D．To convince people that the English weather is changeable. 题型：未知 难度：其他题型
答案
小题1:D
小题2:B
小题3:D
小题4:A
解析
【语篇解读】本文是一篇论说文，题材是English weather-speak。全文从英国人见面招呼最喜欢问天气引入中心，为什么英国人那么喜欢以天气为谈论话题，继而深层分析其文化根源——日常问候的方式，一种社会纽带。
小题1:推理判断题。难度：中等。题干关键词为Dr. Johnson’s comment，定位第一段。根据It is widely known that any English conversation begins with The Weather.（众所周知，任何英语交流都是以天气开头。）紧接着就举例说明。故选D项。
小题2:猜测词义。难度：中等。定位第2段Bill Bryson, for example, concludes that, as the English weather is not at all exciting, the obsession with it can hardly be understood.（例如，Bill Bryson认为由于英国的天气让人郁闷，这种激动的状态就很难让人理解。）注意前面的关键提示not at all exciting，从而容易选择答案B。
小题3:推理判断题。难度：较易。题干关键词为Jeremy Paxman，定位第三段“The interest is less in the phenomena themselves, but in uncertainty.” According to him, the weather in England is very changeable and uncertain and it attracts the English as well as the outsider.。可知Jeremy Paxman的观点是英国人喜欢谈论天气的原因是由于英国天气的多变和不确定。故C项符合。
小题4:写作意图。难度：中等。全文从英国人见面招呼最喜欢问天气引入中心，为什么英国人那么喜欢以天气为谈论话题，通过两个常见的错误观点的介绍，继而深层分析其文化根源——日常问候的方式，一种社会纽带。故选A项。
考点
据考高分专家说，试题“It is widely known t.....”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。
