Question

I met him first in 1936. I rushed into his ugly little shop to have the heels of my shoes repaired. I waited when he did it. He greeted me with a cheerful smile. “You’re new in this neighborbood, aren’t you?”

    I said I was. I had moved into a house at the end of the street only a week before.

    “This is a fine neighborhood,” he said. “You’ll be happy here.” He looked at the leather covering the heel sadly. It was worn through because I had failed to have the repair done a month before. I grew impatient, for I was rushing to meet a friend. “Please hurry,” I begged.

    He looked at me over his spectacles. “Now, lady, we won’t be long. I want to do a good job. You see, I have a tradition to live up to.”

    A tradition? In this ugly little shop that was no different from so many other shoe repair shops on the side streets of New York?

    He must have felt my surprise, for he smiled as he went on. “Yes, lady, I inherited a tradition. My father and my grandfather were shoemakers in Italy, and they were the best. My father always told me, ‘Son, do the best job on every shoe that comes into the shop, and be proud of your fine work. Do that always, and you’ll have both happiness and money enough to live on.’”

    As he handed me the finished shoes, he said: “These will last a long time. I’ve used good leather.”

    I left in a hurry. But I had a warm and grateful feeling. On my way home I passed the little shop again. There he was, still working. He saw me, and to my surprise he waved and smiled. This was the beginning of our friendship. It was a friendship that came to mean more and more to me as time passed.

    Every day I passed his shop, we waved to each other in friendly greeting. At first I went in only when I had repair work to be done. Then I found myself going in every few days just to talk with him.

    He was the happiest man I’ve ever known. Often, as he stood in his shopwindow, working at a pair of shoes, he sang in a high, clear Italian voice. The Italians in our neighborhood called him la luce alla finestra—“the light in the window”.

    One day I was disappointed and angry because of poor jobs some painters had done for me. I went into his shop for comfort. He let me go on talking angrily about the poor work and carelessness of present-day workmen. “They had no pride in their work,” I said. “They just wanted to collect their money for doing nothing.”

    He agreed. “There’s a lot of that kind around, but maybe we should not blame them. Maybe their fathers had no pride in their work. That’s hard on a boy. It keeps him from learning something important.” He waited a minute and said “Every man or woman who hasn’t inherited a prideful tradition must start building one.”

    “In this country, our freedom lets each of us make his own contribution. We must make it a good contribution. No matter what sort of work a man does, if he gives it his best each day, he’s starting a tradition for his children to live up to. And he is making lots of happiness for himself.”

    I went to Europe for a few months. When I returned, there was no “light in the window”. The door was closed. There was a little sign: “Call for shoes at shop next door.” I learned the old man had suddenly got sick and died two weeks before

    I went away with a heavy heart. I would miss him. But he had left me something—an important piece of wisdom I shall always remember: “If you inherited a prideful tradition, you must carry it on; if you haven’t, start building one now.”                                            

1.The shoemaker looked sadly at the shoes because __________

A. they were of poor quality.

B. he didn’t have the right kind of leather

C. he thought they were too worn to be repaired

D. the author hadn’t taken good care of them.

2.The author was surprised when she heard that the shop had a tradition because the shop ________.

A. looked no different from other shoe repair shops        

B. had a light in the window

C. was at the end of a street

D. was quite an ugly and dirty one

3.What does the underlined word “inherit” mean in paragraph 6 mean?

A. develop                             B. receive                           C. learn                                  D. appreciate

4.The author later frequently went into the little shop __________.

A. to repair her worn shoes

B. only to chat with the shoemaker

C. to look at the new shoes there

D. only to get comfort from the shoemaker

5.Why was the shoemaker called “the light in the window” by his neighbors?

A. Because he always worked late at night.

B. Because he always put a light in the window.

C. Because he was always guiding the others.

D. Because he was always happy and cheerful.

6.What’s the best title of this passage?

A. A Proud Shoemaker                                                     B. A Prideful Tradition

C. The Light in the Window                                             D. Treasure Your Shoes

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.D

2.A

3.B

4.B

5.D

6.C

【解析】

試題分析：文章介紹了主人公有一天去修鞋，我急著有事兒，而這個鞋匠說可能要持續的時間要長一點兒，我感覺有點兒著急，然后鞋匠告訴我，他從他的祖父還有他的曾祖父那里繼承了一種傳統，就是無論做什么工作，都要盡最大努力，不但能獲得金錢還能得到快樂，經歷了這件事之后，我們就成了朋友，會經常在一起聊天，等我去了歐洲幾個月回來的時候，這個鞋匠去世了，我很難過，但也會永遠記住他所說的，如果你繼承了一種引以自豪的傳統，那你就繼續傳下去，如果沒有，你就建立一種好的傳統。

1.D細節理解題。He looked at the leather covering the heel sadly. It was worn through because I had failed to have the repair done a month before.句意為：他很傷心的看著我的鞋，它被我穿破了，因為我一個月前，我沒有把它修好。所以這里是指我沒有照管好我的鞋。故答案應為D。

2.A細節理解題。  A tradition? In this ugly little shop that was no different from so many other shoe repair shops on the side streets of New York?句意為：一個傳統？這個丑陋的小店和對面的修鞋店沒有什么不同啊。所以我感到吃驚，故答案應為A。

3.B細節理解題。He must have felt my surprise, for he smiled as he went on. “Yes, lady, I inherited a tradition. My father and my grandfather were shoemakers in Italy, and they were the best. My father always told me, ‘Son, do the best job on every shoe that comes into the shop, and be proud of your fine work. Do that always, and you’ll have both happiness and money enough to live on.’”大意為：他一定感覺到我吃驚了，笑著對我說：“是的，太太，我---了一種傳統，我的父親和曾祖父在意大利是鞋匠，他們都是最棒的，他們總是告訴我，凡是來這個店里的每一又鞋都要好好的修，你會以你的漂亮的工作而自豪，你不但會獲得報酬，還會得到幸福。故這里是從祖父，父親那里得到了好的傳統，故應為B。

4.B細節理解題。Then I found myself going in every few days just to talk with him.意思為：我發現自已每隔幾天都要進去，僅僅是和他聊天。故答案應為B。

5.D細節理解題。   He was the happiest man I’ve ever known. Often, as he stood in his shopwindow, working at a pair of shoes, he sang in a high, clear Italian voice. The Italians in our neighborhood called him la luce alla finestra—“the light in the window”.句意為：他是我見到過的最快樂的人，他經常站在櫥窗前修鞋，又清晰聲音又高的唱著歌，我們社區的意大利人把他叫著窗戶里的亮光。這里是指樂觀的人。故答案應為D。

6.C細節理解題。The light in the window,這里的light是指人的精神，即有從父親，祖父那里繼承來的對工作認真負責的精神，也有樂觀的態度，所以答案應為C。

【考點】考查日常生活類文章的閱讀理解。