If ambition is to be well regarded, the rewards of ambition — wealth, distinction, control over one's destiny — must be deemed worthy of the sacrifices made on ambition's behalf. If the tradition of amb i tion is to have vitality, it must be widely shared; and it especially must be highly regarded by people who are themselves admired, the educated not least among them. In an odd way, however, it is the educated who have claimed to have given up on ambition as an ideal. What is odd is that they have perhaps most benefited from ambition — if not always their own then that of their parents and grandparents. There is a heavy note of hypocrisy in this, a case of closing the barn door after the horses have escaped ― with the educated themselves riding on them.

Certainly people do not seem less interested in success and its signs now than formerly. Summer homes, European travel, BMWs — the locations, place names and name brands may change, but such items do not seem less in demand today than a decade or two years ago. What has happened is that people cannot confess fully to their dreams, as easily and openly as once they could, lest they be thought pushing, acquisitive and vulgar. Instead, we are treated to fine hypocritical spectacles, which now more than ever seem in ample supply: the critic of American materialism with a Southampton summer home; the publisher of radical books who takes his meals in three-star restaurants; the journalist advocating participatory democracy in all phases of life, whose own children are enrolled in private schools. For such people and many more perhaps not so exceptional, the proper formulation is," Succeed at all costs but avoid appearing ambitious."

The attacks on ambition are many and come from various angles; its public defenders are few and unimpressive, where they are not extremely unattractive. As a result, the support for ambition as a healthy impulse, a quality to be admired and fixed in the mind of the young, is probably lower than it has ever been in the United States. This does not mean that ambition is at an end, that people no longer feel its stirrings and promptings, but only that, no longer openly honored, it is less openly professed. Consequences follow from this, of course, some of which are that ambition is driven underground, or made sly. Such, then, is the way things stand: on the left angry critics, on the right stupid supporters, and in the middle, as usual, the majority of earnest people trying to get on in life.

27. It is generally believed that ambition may be well regarded if _____.

[A]its returns well compensate for the sacrifices

[B]it is rewarded with money, fame and power

[C]its goals are spiritual rather than material

[D]it is shared by the rich and the famous

28. The last sentence of the first paragraph most probably implies that it is____ .

[A]customary of the educated to discard ambition in words

[B]too late to check ambition once it has been let out

[C]dishonest to deny ambition after the fulfillment of the goal

[D]impractical for the educated to enjoy benefits from ambition

29. Some people do not openly admit they have ambition because____ .

[A]they think of it as immoral

[B]their pursuits are not fame or wealth

[C]ambition is not closely related to material benefits

[D]they do not want to appear greedy and contemptible

30. From the last paragraph the conclusion can be drawn that ambition should be maintained_____.

[A]secretly and vigorously

[B]openly and enthusiastically

[C]easily and momentarily

[D]verbally and spiritually

名师解析

27. It is generally believed that ambition may be well regarded if _____.

普遍认为，如果 ____, 雄心就能够受人尊重。

[A] its returns well compensate for the sacrifices

雄心的回报充分补偿了所作的牺牲

[B] it is rewarded with money, fame and power

雄心以金钱、名誉和权力作为回报

[C] its goals are spiritual rather than material

雄心的目标是精神上的而不是物质上的

[D] it is shared by the rich and the famous

它是富人和名人共享的

【答案】 A

【考点】 事实细节题。

【分析】 文章第一句指出，“雄心如果想要获得尊重，那么它的回报——财富、声望、对命运的掌控——则必须被认为值得为之牺牲”。也就是说，正确答案是 [A] 。 [B] 中的金钱、声望和对命运的控制，在第一句中，只是作为取得回报的三个例子，并非仅包括这三方面而已。因此，选择项 [A] 更加确切地表达了第一句的意思。 [C] 、 [D] 的说法显然不对。

28. The last sentence of the first paragraph most probably implies that it is____.

第一段最后一句话很可能暗示的内容是 ____ 。

[A] customary of the educated to discard ambition in words

受过教育的人习惯于口头上抛弃雄心

[B] too late to check ambition once it has been let out

雄心一旦释放，要想再阻拦就晚了

[C] dishonest to deny ambition after the fulfillment of the goal

在目标达成之后不诚实地否认雄心

[D] impractical for the educated to enjoy benefits from ambition

对受过教育的人来说，要享受雄心带来的好处是不实际的。

【答案】 C

【考点】 句意题。

【分析】 本句中出现一个比喻，意思是“他们是野心的受益者，但又虚伪地否认拥有野心的重要性”。这和 [C] 的意思是吻合的。 [A] 的错误在于它不够完整，没有提到受益这个概念。 [B] 的说法是字面意思。 [D] 选项没有根据。

29. Some people do not openly admit they have ambition because____.

一些人不公开宣称他们有雄心，是因为 ____ 。

[A] they think of it as immoral

他们认为这不道德

[B] their pursuits are not fame or wealth

他们追求的不是名声和财富

[C] ambition is not closely related to material benefits

雄心和物质利益并非紧密相连

[D] they do not want to appear greedy and contemptible

他们不想让自己看上去贪婪和可鄙

【答案】 D

【考点】 事实细节题。

【分析】 根据第二段第三句，“现在，人们不能像以前那样轻易公开地承认自己的梦想，以免别人认为自己爱出风头，贪婪和庸俗”，所以答案是 [D] 。

30. From the last paragraph the conclusion can be drawn that ambition should be maintained_____.

从最后一段可以得出雄心应该被 ____ _ 保持这一结论。

[A]secretly and vigorously 秘密并严格地

[B]openly and enthusiastically 公开和充满热情地

[C]easily and momentarily 容易并暂时地

[D]verbally and spiritually 在语言上和精神上

【答案】 B

【考点】 作者观点题。

【分析】 文章最后一段提到“本应该是一种健康的冲动，一种应该受人仰慕并扎根于青年人心灵的品质的雄心，却被人攻击，得不到支持。由于不公开，雄心转为地下，雄心变得偷偷摸摸”。由此推论，作者认为人们不应该隐瞒自己的雄心，而应该坦言。

难句解析 ：

1. If the tradition of ambition is to have vitality, it must be widely shared; and it especially must be highly regarded by people who are themselves admired, the educated not least among them.

【结构分析】 本句是并列句，前一个分句中，“ if ”引导条件状语从句，主句主语“ it ”指代“ the tradition of ambition ”。后一个分句中“ who ”引导一个定语从句修饰“ people ”，“ the educated not least among them ”是“ people ”的补语。

2. What has happened is that people cannot confess fully to their dreams, as easily and openly as once they could, lest they be thought pushing, acquisitive and vulgar.

【结构分析】 “ what ”引导主语从句，“ that ”引导表语从句。“ as…as… ”结构做程度状语，此外“ lest ”引导带虚拟语气的假设状语从句。

3. Instead, we are treated to fine hypocritical spectacles, which now more than ever seem in ample supply: the critic of American materialism with a Southampton summer home; the publisher of radical books who takes his meals in three-star restaurants; the journalist advocating participatory democracy in all phases of life, whose own children are enrolled in private schools.

【结构分析】 本句看上去很长，主句是“ we are treated to fine hypocritical spectacles ”。“ which ”引导一个非限定性定语从句修饰“ spectacles ”。在冒号的后面是三个并列的名词性短语，关键词分别是“ critic ”，“ publisher ”和“ journalist ”。

全文翻译：

雄心如果想要获得尊重，那么它的回报——财富、声望、对命运的掌控——则必须被认为值得为之牺牲。如果雄心的传统要焕发生命力，那么它就应该受到广泛的认同；雄心尤其应该得到那些自身得到他人崇拜的人们的高度尊重，那些接受过良好教育的人最应该包括在内。怪就怪在恰恰是那些受过良好教育的人在声称他们不再将雄心作为理想。可是奇怪的是他们已经从雄心中受益最多——如果不总是他们自己的雄心，那么就是他们父母的和祖父母的。这其中有着强烈的虚伪感，就好比把马放跑后再关上马厩的门，而骑在那些马背上的正是受过良好教育的人自己。

当然，现在人们对成功及其标志的兴趣似乎不逊从前，夏日别墅，欧洲旅行、宝马轿车——尽管它们的地点、地名和商标可能会不一样，但现在对这些东西的需求似乎并未比一、二十年前减少。现在，人们不能像以前那样轻易公开地承认自己的梦想，以免别人认为自己爱出风头，贪婪和庸俗。相反，我们目睹的是得体的虚伪，而且比以前任何时候都多。如：美国物欲主义批评家在南安普顿拥有一幢夏日别墅；激进读物的出版商到三星级宾馆就餐；倡导终生参与民主制的新闻记者却把自己的子女送进私立学校。对于这样的人，以及其他许多不如他们这么特殊的人而言，最好的表达是“成功不惜一切代价，雄心不让任何人看出”。

很多人从不同角度对雄心进行了攻击；却没什么人为之公开辩护，即使辩护也不能服人，尽管辩护者并非极不引人注意。因此，在美国，本应该是一种健康的冲动，一种应该受人仰慕并扎根于青年人心灵的品质的雄心，其得到的支持也许比以往任何时期都低。但这并不意味着雄心已经结束了，人们不再感觉到它对人们的激励了，只是人们不再公开地以它为荣，更少愿意公开地承认。很多不良后果随之而来，如雄心被赶入地下，或变得偷偷摸摸。现在的情况是这样的：左边是愤怒的批评家，右边是愚蠢的支持者，而居中的通常是大多数认真而努力追求成功的人。