Question

It was 3:45 in the morning when the vote was finally taken. After six months of arguing and final 16 hours of hot parliamentary debates, Australia’s Northern Territory became the first legal authority in the world to allow doctors to take the lives of incurably ill patients who wish to die. The measure passed by the convincing vote of 15 to 10. Almost immediately word flashed on the Internet and was picked up, half a world away, by John Hofsess, executive director of the Right to Die Society of Canada. He sent it on by way of the group’s online service, Death NET. Says Hofsess: “We posted bulletins all day long, because of course this isn’t just something that happened in Australia. It’s world history.”

The full import may take a while to sink in. The NT Rights of the Terminally Ill Law has left physicians and citizens alike trying to deal with its moral and practical implications. Some have breathed sighs of relief, others, including churches, right-to-life groups and the Australian Medical Association, bitterly attacked the bill and the hurry of its passage. But the tide is unlikely to turn back. In Australia—where an aging population, life-extending technology and changing community attitudes have all played their part—other states are going to consider making a similar law to deal with euthanasia (安樂死). In the US and Canada, where the right-to-die movement is gathering strength, observers are waiting for the dominoes (多米諾骨牌) to start falling.

Under the new Northern Territory law, an adult patient can request death — probably by a deadly injection or pill — to put an end to suffering. The patient must be diagnosed (診斷) as Terminally Ill by two doctors. After a “cooling off” period of seven days, the patient can sign a certificate of request. After 48 hours the wish for death can be met. For Lloyd Nickson, a 54-year-old Darwin resident suffering from lung cancer, the NT Rights of Terminally Ill Law means he can get on with living without the haunting fear of his suffering: a terrifying death from his breathing condition. “I’m not afraid of dying from a spiritual point of view, but what I was afraid of was how I’d go, because I’ve watched people die in the hospital fighting for oxygen and clawing at their masks,” he says.

1. Which of the following has the similar meaning to “But the tide is unlikely to turn back.”?

A. What happened in Australia can change world history.

B. It is impossible to pass the NT Rights of the Terminally Ill Law.

C. Doctors are allowed by law to take the lives of the ill patients.

D. That the Law has been passed probably can’t be changed.

2. From the second paragraph we learn that __________.

A. the objection to euthanasia is slow to come in other countries

B. physicians and citizens share the same view on euthanasia

C. changing technology is chiefly responsible for the hurry passage of the law

D. it takes time to realize the significance of the law’s passage

3.By saying “observers are waiting for the dominoes to start falling”, the author means __________.

A. observers are taking a wait-and-see attitude towards the future of euthanasia

B. similar bills are likely to be passed in the U.S., Canada and other countries

C. observers are waiting to see the result of the game of dominoes

D. the effect-taking process of the passed bill may finally come to a stop

4. We can learn from the passage that Lloyd Nickson __________.

A. will face his death with calm when dying

B. experiences a lot the suffering of a lung cancer

C. has an intense fear of terrible suffering

D. undergoes a cooling off period of seven days

5. The author’s attitude towards euthanasia seems to be that of __________.

A. opposition B. doubtC. approvalD. anxiety

 

Answer 1

1.D

2.D

3.B

4.A

5.C

【解析】作者在本文中敘述了澳大利亞北部地區(qū)通過了安樂死這一法案，同時(shí)也告訴我們很多人對(duì)此有不同的看法。

1.D

【試題解析】推理題。根據(jù)Some have breathed sighs of relief, others, including churches, right-to-life groups and the Australian Medical Association, bitterly attacked the bill and the hurry of its passage. But the tide is unlikely to turn back. 可知這項(xiàng)法律引起了人們的廣泛爭(zhēng)論，有人支持，有人反對(duì)。但是這項(xiàng)法律已經(jīng)被投票通過了，不能再被更改了。所以D項(xiàng)是正確的。

2.2】D

【試題解析】推理題。根據(jù)本段第一句The full import may take a while to sink in.可知要過一段時(shí)間以后這項(xiàng)法律才真正地被人們所了解。本句中的sink in表示理解。故D正確。

3.3】B

【試題解析】推理題。根據(jù)本句In the US and Canada, where the right-to-die movement is gathering strength, observers are waiting for the dominoes (多米諾骨牌) to start falling.

可知在美國(guó)和加拿大，很多人都支持這樣的法律，也許人們都希望在美國(guó)和加拿大都能夠通過類似的這樣同意安樂死的法律。故B正確。

4.4】A

【試題解析】推理題。根據(jù)最后一段4,5行For Lloyd Nickson, a 54-year-old Darwin resident suffering from lung cancer, the NT Rights of Terminally Ill Law means he can get on with living without the haunting fear of his suffering: a terrifying death from his breathing condition.可知她現(xiàn)在患有肺癌，如果她同樣安樂死，她的死亡將沒有任何痛苦，會(huì)非常平靜。故A正確。

5.5】C

【試題解析】推理題。在本文中作者先說明澳大利亞北部地區(qū)通過了這一法律，然后又列舉了多個(gè)例子證明這一法律在很多情況下都是有利的。說明作者是贊成這一法律的。故C正確。

【長(zhǎng)難句解析】

I’m not afraid of dying from a spiritual point of view, but what I was afraid of was how I’d go, because I’ve watched people die in the hospital fighting for oxygen and clawing at their masks,” he says.

【翻譯】他說：我并不害怕死亡，但是我害怕的是我如何死去。因?yàn)槲铱匆娽t(yī)院里的人死于缺氧，用手抓他們的面罩。

【分析】本句中的but連接的是兩個(gè)并列句，but后面的并列句里有一個(gè)what引導(dǎo)的主語(yǔ)從句what I was afraid of, what 既是這個(gè)主語(yǔ)從句的引導(dǎo)詞也在句中作為介詞of的賓語(yǔ)。同時(shí)句中還有一個(gè)表語(yǔ)從句how I’d go。