17.A turkey named Courage gave thanks to President Obama for saving his life on the day before Thanksgiving.Honouring a 62-year-old tradition,the President pardoned(赦免)the bird on Thanksgiving eve.
The tradition of a turkey pardon at Thanksgiving began with President Truman in 1947.Courage comes from Ellsworth,Iowa.The name Courage was chosen by voters (投票人)who took part in a survey posted on the White House website.The lucky turkey walked on the lawn of the Rose Garden and posed for the cameras at the presidential podium(講臺(tái)).
The dinner that has become known as the First Thanksgiving was actually a harvest festival celebrated in December of 1621.That's when English settlers in Plymouth,Massachusetts,gave thanks for the progress they had made after a hard winter in their new country.As America grew,Thanksgiving customs also spread and got bigger.George Washington declared that the first national Thanksgiving would be on November 26,1789.In the decades to follow,however,people celebrated Thanksgiving locally,with no official date.President Abraham Lincoln declared the last Thursday in November 1863a national day of Thanksgiving.It stayed that way until 1939,when President Franklin D.Roosevelt moved it one week earlier.He wanted to lengthen the shopping period before Christmas to encourage gift-buyers and to help businesses.So Congress(議會(huì)) ruled that,after 1941,Thanksgiving would be an official federal holiday falling on the fourth Thursday of November.
This year we celebrated Thanksgiving on Thursday,November.Millions of Americans got together to give thanks with friends and family.The lucky turkey,Courage,was one of them.After his pardon,Courage would be sent to Disneyland Resort in California,where he would be the grand assemble of Disney's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
31.That the turkey Courage was pardoned was decided byD.
A.George Bush
B.Congress
C.President Truman
D.the public
32.The first Thanksgiving Day was held toA.
A.celebrate the harvest of British settlers
B.celebrate the progress of Americans
C.encourage the struggle with British settlers
D.celebrate the joy of all Americans after a hard winter
33.We can infer(推斷)from the passage thatD.
A.President Obama pardoned a turkey before Thanksgiving because of the economic crisis
B.the turkey named Courage was pardoned by President Roosevelt before Thanksgiving
C.the pardoned turkey walked on the lawn of the Rose Garden on Thanksgiving eve
D.the pardoned turkey will appear in a celebrating parade of Thanksgiving Day.
分析 一個(gè)叫Courage的火雞,感謝奧巴馬總統(tǒng)在感恩節(jié)的前一天拯救了它的生命.62年的傳統(tǒng),總統(tǒng)會(huì)在圣誕節(jié)前夕赦免火雞.按照習(xí)俗,美國(guó)總統(tǒng)每年都會(huì)在感恩節(jié)前一天在白宮赦免火雞,使其免于成為感恩節(jié)大餐.美國(guó)總統(tǒng)特赦火雞的傳統(tǒng)始于杜魯門總統(tǒng)時(shí)代.在感恩節(jié)這一天,數(shù)以百萬(wàn)計(jì)的美國(guó)人聚集在一起,表示給家人和朋友的感謝.
解答 31:D.細(xì)節(jié)理解題.通讀第二段The name Courage was chosen by voters (投票人)who took part in a survey posted on the White House website可知是由公眾投票決定的.故選D.
32:A.細(xì)節(jié)理解題.根據(jù)第三段,The dinner that has become known as the First Thanksgiving was actually a harvest festival celebrated in December of 1621.,第一個(gè)感恩節(jié)是為慶祝豐收的.可知應(yīng)選A.
33:D.細(xì)節(jié)理解題.結(jié)合最后After his pardon,Courage would be sent to Disneyland Resort in California,where he would be the grand assemble of Disney's Thanksgiving Day Parade.可知該赦免火雞將出現(xiàn)在一個(gè)慶祝的感恩節(jié)游行上.故選D.
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