There are two major parties in Britain today,the Conservative Party and the Labour Party,which have been in power by turns since 1945.The two—party system of Britain was formed in the course of the development of the capitalist state and the political parties.In order to strengthen the state machine,the British bourgeosie have let it come into being and exist in one form or another form since the 17th century.P.S.Tregidgo once said:"The more parties there are,the less likely it is that any one of them will be strong enough in Parliament to outvote all the others;but when there are only two,one of them is sure to have a majority o f seats.This helps to ensure a strong and stable government.”This may be the reason why the British have the two party system.
　　 The division into two parties grew out the establishment of a Protestant Church of England in the 16th century.Because of a purely religious difference of opinion,the Puritans were separated from the broad body of the Anglican Church.The non Puritan Anglicans were on the side of the King and Church,and their supporters were called by their opponents "Tories.”The Puritans were for Parliament and trade,and their supporters were called by the “Tories”“Whigs”.The Tories and the Whigs were in power a long time.In 1833,the Tory party split into two and its name was changed to Conservative.In the 1860s the Whigs became Liberals.From that time on,the Liberals and the Conservatives were in office by turns until 1922.The policies they put into effect were sometimes different,but they were both controlled by the rich.
　　 The working class became more and more unwilling to follow the Conservatives and the Liberals.They wanted to have their own party.So the Labour party was formed by the trade unions.After 1922 the Labour Party gradually replaced the Liberal Party to become one of the two major parties in Great Britain.

　　 1.What does “it” stand for in the third line?
　　 A)The twoparty system. B)The state machine.
　　 C)The Partiament. D)The capitalist state.
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　　 2.We can learn from what P.S Tregidgo once said that ____.
　　 A)if there are parties in Britain,none of them will be strong enough to have con trol in the government
　　 B)the more patients there are,the more likely it is that they will have the deci sive say in the government
　　 C)the two partysystem contributes to the establishment of a powerful and long lasting government
　　 D)if there are only two parties in Britain,it will be easy for the government to control them

　　 3.What can we infer from the forming of the Tory Party and the Whig Party?
　　 A)These two parties originally believed in different religions.
　　 B)These two parties were established under the influence of different religious believes.
　　 C)The British King and the Parliament supported different religions becaused they were for the two party system.
　　 D)The British King and the Parliament were supported by different parties for political reasons.

　　 4.According to the passage,why was the Labour Party established in Britain?
　　 A)Because the trade unions did not do much good for the working people.
　　 B)Because the Liberal Party were not strong enough to defeat the Conservative Party.
　　 C)Because the working people would not like to be members outside the Liberal Party.
　　 D)Because neither of the two major parties was the parties for the working people.

　　 5.Which of the following is true concerning the Tory Party or the Whig Party?
　　 A)The Whig Party no longer exists in Britain.
　　 B)The Tory Party has kept its unity until the present day.
　　 C)The Whig Party has taken the place of the Liberal Party.
　　 D)The Tory Party has taken the place of the Conservative Party.

　　答案：ACBDA