阅读理解
Today, we complete our story about the influential English writer William Shakespeare. He wrote
plays and poems during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, which remain very popular today.
During earlier times, people would probably have learned several ancient Roman and Greek plays.
It was not unusual for writers to produce more current versions of these works. For example, in
Shakespeare's play The Comedy of Errors Shakespeare borrowed certain details from the ancient
Roman writer Plautus. For his play Macbeth, Shakespeare most likely used a work on Scottish history
by Raphael Holinshed for information. Shakespeare might have borrowed from other writers, but the
intensity(强度)of his imagination and language made the plays his own. While many plays by other
writers of his time have been forgotten, Shakespeare and his art live on.
Shakespeare was also influenced by the world around him. He described the sights and sounds of
London in his plays. His works include observations about political struggles, the fear of diseases, and
the popular language of the city's tradesmen. Shakespeare's knowledge of the English countryside is
also clear. His works include descriptions of deep forests, local flowers, and the ancient popular
traditions of rural people.
It would be impossible to list all of the ways in which Shakespeare's works have influenced the world
culture. But the first and greatest example would be his great influence on the English language. During
his time, the English language was changing. Many new words from other languages were being added.
Shakespeare used his sharp mind and poetic inventiveness to create hundreds of new words and rework
old ones. For example, he created the noun forms of "critic", "mountaineer" and "eyeball". Many common expressions in English come from his plays, including "pomp and circumstance(装腔作势)"from Othello,
"full circle(绕圈子)" from King Lear, etc. The list of cultural creations influenced by Shakespeare is
almost endless. From paintings to television to music and dance, Shakespeare was well represented.
Shakespeare's plays have been translated into every major language in the world.
Shakespeare became a wellknown writer during a golden age of theater. His years of hard work paid off.
1. Shakespeare might have learnt some information from ancient Roman works in________.
A. King Lear
B. The Comedy of Errors
C. Macbeth
D. Othello
2. Why could Shakespeare's works survive his time?
A. Because there were so few people writing plays in his time.
B. Because he produced too many works that nobody else could do.
C. Because he was a rich and influential person of his time.
D. Because his works were rich in imagination and language.
3. Shakespeare's greatest influence should be on________.
A. the English language
B. paintings
C. television
D. music and dance
4. The passage is mainly about ________.
A. an introduction to Shakespeare's life and his works
B. the main features and styles of Shakespeare's plays
C. how culture influenced Shakespeare and he influenced culture
D. Shakespeare's greatest influence on the world culture
