5．The light from the campfire brightened the darkness，but it could not prevent the damp cold of Dennis's Swamp （沼澤地） creeping into their bones．It was a strange place．Martin and Tom wished that they had not accepted Jack's dare．They liked camping，but not near this swamp．
"So，"Martin asked as they sat watching the hot coals．"How did this place get its name？"
"Are you sure you want to hear it？It's a scary story，"warned Jack．
"Of course!"cried out Tom．"If there were anything to be scared of，you wouldn't have chosen this place!"
"Ok，but don't say I didn't warn you，"said Jack，and he began this tale．
"Way back in time，a man called Dennis tried to start a farm here．He built that cottage over there to live in．In those days，the area looked quite different--it was covered with tall trees and the swamp was a crystal-clear river．After three hard years，Dennis had cleared several fields and planted crops．He was so proud of his success that he refused to listen to advice．
"‘You are clearing too much land，warned one old man．‘The land is a living thing．It will hit back at you if you abuse it．
"Silly fool，said Dennis to himself．If I clear more land，I can grow more crops．I'll become wealthier．He's just jealous!"
"Dennis continued to chop down trees．Small animals that relied on them for food and shelter were destroyed．He was so eager to expand his farm that he did not notice the river flowing slowly towards his door．He did not notice salt seeping to the surface of the land．He did not notice swamp plants choking all the native plants．"
"What happened？"Martin asked．It was growing colder．He trembled，twisting his body closer to the fire．
"The land hit back--just as the old man warned，"Jack shrugged．"Dennis disappeared．Old folks around here believe that swamp plants moved up from the river and dragged him underwater．His body was never found．"
"What a stupid story，"laughed Tom．"Plants can't …"Before he had finished speaking，he screamed and fainted（暈倒）．The other two boys jumped up with fright，staring at Tom．Suddenly，they burst out laughing．Some green swamp ivy （常春藤） had covered Tom's face．It was a while before Tom could appreciate the joke．
56．The underlined word"dare"in Paragraph 1is closed in meaning toD．
A．courageB．a(chǎn)ssistanceC．instructionD．challenge
57．Why did Jack tell Tom and Martin the story？
A．To frighten them．B．To satisfy their curiosity．
C．To warn them of the danger of the place．D．To persuade them to camp in the swamp．
58．Why did Dennis ignore the warning of the old man？D．
A．The old man envied him．B．The old man was foolish
C．He was too busy to listen to others．D．He was greedy for more crops．
59．Why did Tom scream and faint？B．
A．He saw Dennis's shadowB．He was scared by a plant
C．His friends played a joke on him．D．The weather became extremely cold．
60．What lesson can we learn from the story of Dennis？A．
A．Grasp all，lose all．B．No sweat，no sweet．
C．It is no use crying over spilt milk．D．He who makes no mistakes makes nothing．
分析 本文為記敘文．由在野營中一個(gè)孩子所講故事為切入點(diǎn)來講述一塊地是如何受到Dennis過度開發(fā)而變成沼澤地的．也同時(shí)告訴我們貪多必失的道理．
解答 56．D．詞義猜測題．根據(jù)第一段中的The light from the campfire brightened the darkness，but it could not prevent the damp cold of Dennis's Swamp （沼澤地） creeping into their bones．It was a strange place．可知，來自于篝火的光照亮了黑暗卻不能阻止深入骨髓的Dennis沼澤地的濕氣可見這是一個(gè)奇怪的地方．三人來此野營是Jack的一個(gè)挑戰(zhàn)．A．courage 勇氣、膽量；B．a(chǎn)ssistance幫助、協(xié)助；C．instruction指示、說明；D．challenge挑戰(zhàn)．故選D．
57．B．推理判斷題．根據(jù)第二、三、四段他們的對話可知，Jack警告他們這個(gè)故事很嚇人，但經(jīng)不住他們的請求還是告訴他們了，故Jack講這個(gè)故事并不是為了嚇?biāo)麄�，而是為了滿足他們的好奇心．故選B．
58．D．細(xì)節(jié)理解題．由第八段中"If I clear more land，I can grow more crops．I'll become wealthier．He's just jealous！"可知，他想種更多的莊稼，變得更富，還以為別人嫉妒他．由此可知他不聽老人的勸告是因?yàn)樗澙�，想種更多的莊稼．故選D．
59．B．細(xì)節(jié)理解題．由最后一段倒數(shù)第二句"Some green swamp ivy（常春藤）had covered Tom's face．"可知，他暈倒的原因是他被常春藤嚇到了．
60．A．主旨大意題．從文中的故事講述可知，Dennis不顧一切地墾荒和對種植更多莊稼的貪婪之心，局卻是被水中植物拽入水中，一無所得，死不見尸，可見A項(xiàng)"貪多必失"最恰當(dāng)．故選A．
點(diǎn)評(píng) 本文考察故事類閱讀．這類文章一般描述的是某一件具體事情的發(fā)生發(fā)展或結(jié)局，有人物、時(shí)間、地點(diǎn)和事件．命題往往從故事的情節(jié)、人物或事件的之間的關(guān)系、作者的態(tài)度及意圖、故事前因和后果的推測等方面著手，考查學(xué)生對細(xì)節(jié)的辨認(rèn)能力以及推理判斷能力．
