4. What is the topic of the passage?
Ⅳ. Fast Read in g
In this part，you are required to read three passages and choose the best answers to the questions after each passage，using the skill you have just learned.
( 1)
Many travelers go through an initial period of euphoria and excitement,overwhelmed by the thrill of being in a totally new and unusual environment. As this initial sense of“ adventure”wears off，they gradually become aware of the fact that old habits and routine ways of doing things no longer suffice ( 满足需求) . They gradually ( or suddenly ) no longer feel comfortably themselves. If this happens to you，as it is likely to，you will feel like the outsider you in fact are. Minor problems may quickly assume the proportions of major crises，and you may find yourself growing somewhat depressed. You may feel an anxiety that results from losing all our familiar signs and symbols of social intercourse，a kind of psychological disorientation( 无所适从) . You will indeed be experienc- ing what has come to be referred to as“ Culture Shock”. Such feelings are perfectly normal，so，knowing this and with a bit of conscious effort，you will soon find yourself making adjustments ( some quite subtle and perhaps not even noticeable at the conscious level) that will enable you to adapt to your new cultural environment.
There is no clear-cut way of dealing with culture shock. Simply recognizing its existence and your accepting vulnerability to it ( 容易受其影响) is an important first step. As long as you know in advance that you will probably fall victim to culture shock at a certain level，you can prepare yourself psychologically to accept the temporary discomfort and turn it into an advantage by learning from it. Remember that you are not the only one experiencing occasional frustration，irritability，and depression，etc. Falling victim to culture shock，in other words，does not imply the existence of any psychological or emotional shortcomings on your part. As Robert Kohls says，“Culture shock is in some degree inevitable. . . and is the occupational hazard of overseas living through which one has to be willing to go through in order to enjoy the pleasures of experiencing other countries and cultures in depth. ”
Undergoing culture shock is in itself a learning experience that you should take advantage of . It is a way of sensitizing you to another culture at a level that goes beyond the intellectual and the rational. Just as an athlete cannot get in shape without going through the uncomfortable conditioning stage，so you cannot fully appreciate the cultural differences that exist without first going through the uncomfortable stages of psychological adjustment.
1. What does the first paragraph mainly discuss?
A. What an unusual environment is.
B. What“ cultural shock”is.
C. What problems a traveler usually has.
D. How to survive in a totally new environment.
2. What is the main idea of the second paragraph?
A. There is no clear -cut way of dealing with culture shock.
B. Culture shock is in some degree inevitable.
C. One has to be willing to go through“ culture shock ” in order to enjoy the pleasures of experiencing other countries and cultures in depth.
D. As long as you know in advance that you will probably fall victim to culture shock at a certain level，you can prepare yourself psychologically to accept the temporary discomfort and turn it into an advantage by learning from it.
3. What is the main idea of the third paragraph?
A. Undergoing culture shock is in itself a learning experience that you should take
advantage of .
B. You cannot fully appreciate the cultural differences that exist without first going
through the uncomfortable stages of psychological adjustment.
C. An athlete cannot get in shape without going through the uncomfortable
conditioning stage.
D. Undergoing culture shock is a way of sensitizing you to another culture at a
level that goes beyond the intellectual and the rational.
4. What is the topic of the passage?
A. New environment.
B. Cultural shock.
C. Psychological adjustment.
D. Frustration，irritability，and depression.
( 2)
Just as you will have had to prepare yourself for a period of psychological disorientation when you leave the USA，you should know that after your time abroad,you may also have to prepare yourself for a parallel period of readjustment when you return“ home. ”Why? Simply because，if you have had a full experience living and learning overseas，you are likely to have changed some while you have been away. So the place you return to may itself appear to have changed，as indeed it might have.
Even though these changes are seldom huge，and may not be apparent to others，you are likely to be very aware of them，and this can be confusing，all the more so because it is unexpected. Brigham Young University??s CultureGrams offer many insights on customs and lifestyles of individual countries. Phone 1-800-528-6279 or visit the website at http: / /www. culturgram. com/ .
Immediately after your return，you can probably expect to go through an initial stage of euphoria and excitement. Most people are overwhelmed by the sheer joy of being back on their native land. But as you try to settle back into your former routine，you may recognize that your overseas experience has changed some or many of your perceptions and assumptions，your ways of doing things，even what it means to“ be yourself . ”You might have become，in a sense，a somewhat new person. After all，that is what education is all about! But this intellectual and personal growth means that you can expect a period of disorientation as you adjust to the“ new”environment at home.
The re-adjustment period is usually rather short-lived，since“ home”will never be as“ foreign”to you as the foreign environment you adjusted to overseas. Also,your experience of dealing successfully with culture shock abroad will have provided you with the psychological tools for dealing with the challenges of readjustment.
