The names of William Shakespeare, Charles Dic...

The names of William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, and Jane Austen are probable not new to you. They are stars of the literary landscape and their works add to the charm of their British homeland. This week, we take you to the places where these literary masters grew up, lived or got their inspiration from.

Stratford-upon-Avon

Located on the banks of the river Avon in the north of England, Stratford-upon-Avon provides a beautiful glimpse into Britain’s rural life. Every year, thousands of tourists flock to the town to see the land that produced Britain's greatest playwright. They visit the house where Shakespeare lived and go to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre to enjoy his plays

William Shakespeare(1564-1616)

Stratford-upon-Avon would be an ordinary small city in Britain if it was not the birthplace of William Shakespeare. Shakespeare left the town when he was 18, but even at the height of his career in London, Shakespeare returned here regularly to visit his family. Shakespeare thought of it as his real home, even though London brought him fame

Bath

UNESCO World Heritage city, Bath has the country's only natural hot springs. The city is named after its most popular sight: the Roman Baths, which were built by the Romans in the first century as a public bath house. For centuries, people went there to bathe in the natural mineral water.

Jane Austen (1775-1817)

Bath was one of Austen's favorite places. It appears in her novels: Persuasion and Northanger Abbey. In the latter she wrote,"I do like it very much If I could have papa and mamma and the rest of them here, I suppose I should be too happy!”

London

LONDON is the cultural center of Britain. Its historical attractions draw numerous visitors. Treasures such as Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and Buckingham Palace are among the world's top tourist attractions. Museums like the British Museum and the National Gallery, all free, make London a favorite for art lovers.”

Charles Dickens (1812-1870)?

Dickens spent most of his life in London and wrote extensively about this city .Born in Hampshire, south of London, Dickens moved to London when he was two years old. He depicted London as foggy,dirty,with villains everywhere,as shown in his works Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, Bleak House and A Tale of Two Cities.

1.Which of the following is true?

A.Stratford-upon-Avon made Shakespeare famous.

B.In Shakespeare's opinion, London was his real home.

C.Stratford-upon-Avon was the birthplace of Shakespeare.

D.Shakespeare returned to London regularly to visit his family.

2.________is not Charles Dickens' s works.

A.Oliver Twist B.Great Expectation C.Bleak House D.Northanger Abbey

3.What's the main idea of the passage?

A.Introduce the places where three literary masters grew up and lived.

B.Introduce the works of three literary masters.

C.Compare the three literary masters.

D.Describe the three literary masters.

八年级英语阅读单选简单题查看答案及解析

D

A Christmas Carol was written by Charles Dickens. The first 6,000 copies of the book were sold out in a week. And the book has inspired many plays and movies. The first play was put on in 1844. The first two movies were silent films made in 1901 and 1908. Since then, the story has been remade more than 60 times for television and cinema. What makes such a tale so attractive? Audiences have always loved a good plot, a villain(反面人物) who harms other people or breaks the law, and the ending of right over wrong. The book offers all three.

The book tells the story of a man named Ebenezer Scrooge. He is mean and cruel to his clerk and turns away（避免）his only living relative. One night, Scrooge is visited by three spirits（幽灵）. The first shows scenes from Scrooge’s youth that led to this present state. The second takes him to the homes of his clerk and his nephew. Here Scrooge sees that people can be happy without lots of money. The spirit also shows him the desperate(绝望的） poor people of London. The third spirit shows Scrooge will die alone, and no one will care if he continues to live as he has. At last the message is understood, and Scrooge repents. He becomes generous and caring to all around him, especially to his clerk’s sick son, Tiny Tim.

Every year, thousands of people watch A Christmas Carol. Why? They may be touched by its lessons on the true meanings of wealth and happiness. They may enjoy the special effects and feelings or watching every year may be just a habit. Viewers never seem to grow tired of the old miser(守财奴), Scrooge, and his dramatic message of hope and change.

1.What do we know about the book A Christmas Carol?

A. It was written in the early 19th century.

B. Dickens completed the book in a week.

C. It has been adapted（改编）for cinema and television.

D. It didn’t attract readers when published for the first time.

2.The third spirit shows Scrooge 　　　　 .

A. where he will die and who will care about him

B. how others care about his present life

C. when and how he will die alone

D. what his future life will be like

3.The underlined part “Scrooge repents” probably means 　　　　　　 .

A. Scrooge feels sorry for what he has done

B. Scrooge does things as he did before

C. Scrooge is angry with the three spirits

D. Scrooge gives the three spirits a hand

八年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

—Which is the most interesting _____ all the books?

—The one by Charles Dickens.

A. of　　 B. for　　 C. on　　 D. at

八年级英语单选题简单题查看答案及解析

—Tom, have you ever read the book ________ A Tale of Two Cities《双城记》by Charles Dickens?

—Yes. I finished reading it last winter vacation.

A.was named B.is named C.named D.names

八年级英语单选题困难题查看答案及解析

1.When is William’s birthday?

A. August 8　　　　     B. December 8        C. August 12            D. December 12

2.How long will William stay in the USA?

A. Two weeks.　　         B. Two months.　　　     C. One week.　　         D. One month.

3.Where can you find the card?

A. At the school.　         B. In the airplane.         C. At the bus stop.　     D. In the hospital.

八年级英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

All of Britain talked about the royal wedding(皇室婚礼)between Prince William and Kate Middleton.Many people wanted to watch it.But only a small part of them could get an invitation.Hermione Sutton is a six-year-old girl from Epson.She is one of the lucky few people who got a ticket(入场券) to the royal wedding.

It is difficult for Hermione to walk or stand for a long time.Her mother Helen found that the royal family could give some seats for disabled(残疾的) people.She decided to ask for the tickets.They waited and waited.On March 31st, they got an invitation.

“I thought it was a joke for April 1st.Did it arrive a day earlier?” Helen Sutton said.

Hermione was excited to watch the royal wedding.She waited for the April 29th wedding.

“We’ll take flowers, cameras and I can take more photos that day than in the past year or more,” she said.

根据短文内容，选择最佳选项。

1.Hermione is from______.

A. America　　 B. Canada　　 C. England　　 D. Australia

2.There is something wrong with Hermione’s_________.

A. arm　　 B. leg　　 C. hand　　 D. heart

3._______ asked for the ticket of the royal wedding.

A. Hermione　　 B. Helen　　 C. William　　 D. Kate

4.The ticket arrived on________.

A. March 31st　　 B. April 1st　　 C. April 29th　　 D. May 2nd

5.Hermione won’t take__________ to the royal wedding.

A. flowers　　 B. cameras　　 C. tickets　　 D. rings

八年级英语阅读单选中等难度题查看答案及解析

O. Henry was a pen name of an American writer. He wrote short stories. His real name was William Sydney Porter. He was born in North Carolina in 1862. As a young boy he lived an exciting life. He did not go to school for very long, but he tried to teach himself everything he needed to know. When he was about 20 years old, O. Henry went to Texas. There he tried different jobs. He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank. When some money was lost from the bank, others believed O. Henry took it. So people sent him to prison﹡. He stayed in prison for three years. There he learned to write short stories. After he got out of prison, he went to New York and went on writing. He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there. People liked his stories, because they always finished with a sudden change at the end, to the reader's surprise﹡.

1.In which order did O. Henry do the following things? __________

a. Lived in New York b. Worked in a bank c. Traveled to Texas

d. Was put in prison e. Had a newspaper job f. Learned to write stories

A. c, e, b, d, f, a　　 B. e, c, f, b, d, a　　 C. e, b, d, c, a, f　　 D. c, b, e, d, a, f

2.O. Henry went to prison because__________.

A. he didn’t use his real name.

B. he took money from the newspaper.

C. he wanted to write stories about prisoners.

D. people thought he took the money from the bank.

3.People enjoyed reading O. Henry's stories because__________.

A. they had surprising endings.　　 B. they were easy to understand.

C. they showed his love for the poor.　　 D. they were about New York City

4.Where did O. Henry mostly write for his short stories? __________

A. The newspaper articles.　　 B. His life inside the prison.

C. The city and people of New York.　　 D. His exciting early life as a boy.

八年级英语阅读单选简单题查看答案及解析

.完形填空（10分）

As we all know, Charles Dickens is considered to be a great English writer. He's very famous not only in Britain, but also in many other　　　　 in the world. He was born in 1812 and he lived in London. He wrote lots of books, and he also liked 　　 . He was an actor.

Maybe it's interesting to hear that and that's　　　　 his books were so good. He gave public readings of his stories that were very popular. His stories first appeared in a magazine, in parts. People always wanted　　　　 part. He wrote a lot, and most of them are popular. There are films and plays of them　　　 : Oliver Twist became a famous musical play, and Great Expectations was a wonderful 　　 __.Dickens' early life was very hard. His family was poor, and his mother sent him out to work in a factory when he was 12. He　　　　 it, but he used his experiences in his writing. He married Catherine Hogarth and they had a big family. He continued to write　　　　 he died. When he died in 1870, he was　　　 a story. But what a pity! We'll never know _　　 _ it ended.

1.A. cities　　　　 　 B. countries　　　 C. towns　　　　 D. villages

2.A. reading　　　　 　 B. writing　　　　　 C. acting　　　　　 D. playing

3.A. what　　　　　　　 B. how　　　　　　　　 C. when　　　　　　 D. why

4.A. the next　　　　 B. next　　　　　　 C. next to　　　 　 D. next time

5.A. too　　　　　　　　 B. as well　　　　 C. as well as　　 D. also

6.A. book　　　　 　　　 B. story　　　　　　 C. play　　　　　　 D. film

7.A. hated　　　　　　 B. enjoyed　　　　　 C. wanted　　　　　 D. shamed

8.A. as　　　　　　　　 B. while　　　　　　 C. until　　　　　 D. since

9.A. drawing　　　　 B. singing　　　　　 C. writing　　　　 D. making

10.A. what　　　　　　 B. how　　　　　　 C. who　　　　　　 D. which

八年级英语完形填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

William Shakespeare ______ for 400 years, but his works still have great influence today.

A. died　　 B. was dying

C. has died　　 D. has been dead

八年级英语单选题中等难度题查看答案及解析

William Shakespeare ______ for four centuries, but his works are still famous today.

A. has been dead　　 B. has died　　 C. died　　 D. was dead

八年级英语单选题困难题查看答案及解析