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The common belief of some linguists that each language is a perfect vehicle for the thoughts of the nation speaking it is in some ways the exact counterpart of the conviction of the Manchester school of economics that supply and demand will regulate everything for the best. Just as economists were blind to the numerous cases in which the law of supply and demand left actual wants unsatisfied, so also many linguists are deaf to those instances in which the very nature of a language calls forth misunderstandings in everyday conversation, and in which, consequently, a word has to be modified or defined in order to present the idea intended by the speaker: He took his stick-no, not Johns, but his own. No language is perfect, and if we admit this truth, we must also admit that it is not unreasonable to investigate the relative merits of different languages or of different details in languages.The primary purpose of the passage is to analyze an interesting feature of the English language refute a belief held by some linguists show that economic theory is relevant to linguistic study illustrate the confusion that can result from the improper use of language suggest a way in which languages can be made more nearly perfect
答案：(B)
某些语言学家的一种普遍信念是，每种语言都是一个载体，可用来完美地表达操该种语言的民族的思想。在某种程度上，这一语言学思想与曼彻斯特经济学派所坚信的观点如出一辙，构成了一种绝然的对等理论。该经济学派认为，供求关系制约着一切并使一切趋势于最佳状态。正如这些经济家对供求规律所造成的使实际需求不得满足的诸般实例视而不见那样，同样地，许多语言学家对下述情形也可谓是充耳不闻。在此类情形中，语言的性质本身就有可能导致日常交谈中的种种误解，因此在这种情况下，一个词语必须经过修饰或界定之后，才有可能表达说话者所意欲表述的那层涵义：“他拿了他的拐杖——不，不是约翰的，而是他自己的。”没有任何语言是尽善尽美的，假如我们承认这一真理，我们同样也必须承认，对不同语言的相对优劣，或对不同语言中的不同细节进行分析，这并非不合情理。
The misunderstanding presented by the author in lines 19-20 is similar to which of the following¡
I.X uses the word you to refer to a group, but Y thinks that X is referring to one person only.
II. X mistakenly uses the word anomaly to refer to a typical example, but Y knows that anomaly means exception.
III. X uses the word bachelor to mean unmarried man, but Y mistakenly thinks that bachelor means unmarried woman.
I only
II only
III only
I and II only
II and III only
答案：(A)
In presenting the argument, the author does all of the following EXCEPT
give an example
draw a conclusion
make a generalization
make a comparison
present a paradox
答案：(E)
Which of the following contributes to the misunderstanding described by the author in lines 19-20 ¡
It is unclear whom the speaker of the sentence is addressing.
It is unclear to whom the word his refers the first time it is used.
It is unclear to whom the word his refers the second time it is used.
The meaning of took is ambiguous.
It is unclear to whom He refers.
答案：(B)
FALLACY:
personal philosophy
imaginative idea
unconfirmed theory
tentative opinion
valid argument
答案：(E)
谬误n.
A.个人哲学
B. 富有想象的观点
C. 未被证实的观点
D. 尝试性的观点 |
