Passage 1
Click to Read TextBasketball, a game of constant movement and a thousand
actions, is a difficult game to remember; Leonard Koppett makes this and other excellent points in All About Basketball.
Football is a series of set plays, as clear in our minds as moves in chess; and the high drama of a baseball game is often distilled in a single pitch, catch, throw, or hit. We remember baseball and football actions as though the players were etched upon our minds like figures on a distant green. In basketball, by contrast, we remember movement, style, flair, but only occasionally a single play. Perhaps we recall the seventh game of the Lakers-Knicks playoff on May 8, 1970, after the Lakers had pounded the Knicks in the sixth game. Willis Reed was injured and out, it seemed, for the season; and we may remember Reed walking stiffly to the floor for that final game just minutes before warm-ups were concluded; remember the sustained ovation; remember his stilt jumps as he put the hirst two shots of the game through and then had to leave the game in pain; remember that the Knicks, lifted high by his courage, went on to win game seven, bringing to New York basketball a new perspective. But it is hardly ever, even here, an individual plus one remembers. A basketball game plays past like a river,like a song In basketball as in no other sport, Koppett also notes, the referee is part of the drama. Decisions of the scorer and the timer are critical and affect the outcomes of countless games every year.
But the referee is an agent, an actor; he affects the changing tissue of the drama every instant. He cannot call every infraction, but he must control the game. He needs to gain the players' and the crowds' attention, respect, and emotional cohesion. Thus, referees like Pat Kennedy, Sid Borgia, and Mendy Rudolph in the NBA became better known than many of the players. Each blew the whistle in a range of different tones and styles; each had a repertoire of operatic gestures; each had an energy and physical exuberance that added to the total drama. All won respect for coolness under withering emotion.
Basketball players are visible in every action, Koppett notes, and easily singled out by the spectators as football players are not. They handle the ball scores of times and are physically involved in every moment of offense and defense, as baseball players are not. They are subject to many more flukes than baseball or football players, for they pass and run at high speed constantly, forcing dozens of errors, breaks, and opportunities. "Don't shoot!" the coach screams in despair, his voice trailing off to "Nice shot" as he sits down.
Teams move in patterns, in rhythms, at high velocity; one must watch the game abstractly, not focusing on any single individual alone, but upon, as it were, the blurred and intricate designs woven by the paths through which all five together
cast a spell upon an opposition. The eye watches five men at once, delighting in their unity, groaning at their lapses of concentration. Yet basketball moves so rapidly and so depends on the versatility of each individual in escaping from the defense intended to contain him that the game cannot be choreographed in advance. Twelve men are constantly in movement (counting two referees), the rebounds of the ball are unpredictable, the occasions for passing or dribbling or shooting must be decided instantaneously; basketball players must be improvisers. They have a score, a melody; each team has its own appropriate tempo, a style of game best suited to its talents; but within and around that general score, each individual is free to elaborate as the spirit moves him.
Basketball is jazz: improvisatory, free, individualistic, corporate, sweaty, fast, exulting, screeching, torrid, explosive, exquisitely designed for letting first the trumpet, then the sax, then the drummer, then the trombonist soar away in virtuosic excellence.
The point to stress is the mythic line of basketball: a game of fake and feint and false intention; a game of run, run, run; a game of feet, of swift decision, instantaneous reversal, catlike "moves", cool accuracy, spring and jump. The pace is hot. The rhythm of the game beats with the seconds: a three-second rule, a ten-second rule, a rule to shoot in twenty-four seconds. Only when the ball goes out of bounds, or a point is scored, or a foul is called does the clock stop; the play flows on. Teams do not move by timeless innings as in baseball, nor by set, formal, single plays as in football. Even when a play is called or a pattern is established, the game flows on until a whistle blows, moving relentlessly as lungs heavy and legs weary. It is like jazz.
ข้อที่ 1
1. We can justifiably infer from this passage that the appearance of Willis Reed at the seventh game of the Lakers-Knicks playoff in 1970:
A was necessary to the Knick ่s victory.
B played some part in the Knicks ่ victory.
C brought New Yorkers a new perspective on the significance of physical injury.
D was at the insistence of his coach.
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ข้อที่ 2
2. As it is used in the context of the passage, word "operatic" in paragraph 2 most nearly means:
A classical.
B musical.
C comedic.
D histrionic.
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ข้อที่ 3
3. Which of the following would most undermine Koppett's position on the difference between basketball and other sports like football and baseball?
A Following a basketball game, commentators discuss the
B After a basketball game, commentators discuss a particular team member ่s strengths and weaknesses.
C contrasting playing styles of team members.
D Days after a basketball game, commentators cite a memorable play made in the third quarter.
E After a football game, commentators cite a memorable play made in the last few moments of the game.
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ข้อที่ 4
4. The author most likely compares basketball to jazz primarily in order to:
A suggest that, like jazz, basketball allows for flexibility and individual excellence within a set format.
B assert that basketball is a newer and more dynamic sport than football or baseball.
C indicate that basketball requires athletes to be fast.
D claim that because of the fast-paced and unpredictable nature of the sport, basketball players are among the most skilled athletes.
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ข้อที่ 5
5. The primary purpose of the passage is most nearly:
A to compare and contrast basketball players and musicians.
B to describe the unique characteristics and challenges of the sport of basketball.
C to describe the crucial role of the referee in a basketball game.
D to defend the ideas offered in Leonard Koppett ่s All About Basketball against his critics.
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ข้อที่ 6
6. The role of the individual athlete during a basketball game as described by the author is most analogous to:
A the role of an average student in a class.
B the role of a member of a selective think-tank in a brainstorming session.
C the role of the solo instrumentalist in an orchestra.
D the role of the director of a film.
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ข้อที่ 7
7. The author describes the reaction of the coach in paragraph 3 in order to do all of the following EXCEPT:
A provide an illustration of the various emotions that can be inspired by the game.
B contrast the limited role of the coach with the central role of the referee.
C indicate a limitation on the role of the coach during the game.
D communicate the unpredictable nature of the game.
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Passage 2
Click to Read TextIt is not easy to define Benjamin Franklin's religious and moral beliefs; yet it is important to do so, because they are representative of a large body of men of his time, whose worldly success certainly derived from their beliefs. D. H.
Lawrence, who was angered by all success, treats Franklin as a hypocrite who found the rules which lead to success and turned them into a religion. This analysis is certainly false, but even if it were true, it would not take us far enough. For it would not tell us what made Franklin respected by men as different as his American friends, his English enemies, and his French admirers. There was something in Franklin's beliefs which had a symbolic quality for them all.
The charge that Franklin was a hypocrite can be presented simply. He advocated many virtues at a time when he undoubtedly lapsed into some vices. He began his marriage in 1730 by bringing an illegitimate son into the house. Indeed, he may never have been very vigorous in resisting the temptations of the flesh. These lapses from the conventions of family life would not have outraged D. H. Lawrence if they had not been coupled with a certain priggishness in many of the household maxims which Franklin popularized.
In 1732, Franklin began publishing Poor Richard's Almanac, which was by far the most successful work that he wrote, and in some ways the most influential. Like other almanacs, this is stuffed with those plums of wisdom which most people like to taste and few to digest-_"hunger never saw bad bread," and "well done is better than well said." It is these crystallized plums, so eminently homely and homemade, which have made Franklin's beliefs seem commonplace. But this criticism confuses the manner in which Franklin expressed himself and expressed himself at all times with the content of his thought. Franklin had a special gift for putting a thought into a simple and earthy sentence. This is a gift of expression: a rare gift, but Franklin had it to perfection.
The gift has a drawback, however. In this form, Franklin's isolated thoughts do indeed wear a simple and sometimes a commonplace air. But it is a crude error to suppose therefore that the totality of Franklin's thoughts, the system into which the isolated thoughts lock and combine, is commonplace.
In this respect, the simplicity of Franklin's sentences is as deceptive as the simplicity of Bertrand Russell's, and the outlook which they make up all together is equally complex.
The informality with which Franklin wrote and spoke is, however, just to his thought in one respect: he was opposed to formality and rigidity of belief. It is not merely that he did not care for the fine points of dogma; he thought it wrong in principle to wish to formulate religion in fine points. He did not acknowledge any sectarian monopoly of truth. For example, when, at the age of 83, he stated his belief in God, he coupled it with another belief, "that the most acceptable service we render Him is doing good to His other children."
At bottom, it is this tolerance in Franklin's make-up which we must understand. He was tolerant of others because he recognized in them the same humanity that he knew in himself.
He never hid his motives from himself, but neither did he belittle the motives of others. We should recognize him as honest because he judges others exactly as he judges himself, with a realistic and generous sense of what can be expected of human beings. Sustained by humanity, he could gain the respect of those as religiously diverse as the anticlerical Tom Paine and the evangelist George Whitfield.
ข้อที่ 1
1. Which of the following statements best expresses the main point of the passage?
A Benjamin Franklin ่s deep insights into moral and religious questions, although gaining him the respect of many, contrasted sharply with the simplicity of his writing style.
B Benjamin Franklin ่s writings were distinctive in his day for arguing against religious dogma and in favor of tolerance, thereby attracting much criticism from other authors.
C The simplicity of Benjamin Franklin ่s writing, although somewhat at odds with the sophistication of his thought, was connected to the broad-mindedness that gained him the respect of many of his contemporaries.
D Despite being accused of hypocrisy, Benjamin Franklin became successful because of his gift for simple speech and to his impressive tolerance.
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ข้อที่ 2
2. It is reasonable to infer from the passage that D. H. Lawrence:
A upheld in his own household and writings the accepted conventions of family life.
B believed that successful religions are usually hypocritical.
C was envious of Benjamin Franklin ่s wealth and popularity.
D was more critical of Franklin ่s writings than of his behavior.
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ข้อที่ 3
3. In the context of the passage, the word "vigorous" most nearly signifies:
A healthy.
B tolerant.
C vociferous.
D diligent.
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ข้อที่ 4
4. According the passage, the relationship of Franklin's writing style to his ideas is most analogous to which of the following
A An intricate painting composed entirely of basic geometric shapes.
B A novel advocating virtues that the author does not uphold in his own personal life.
C symphony which alternates between fast and slow sections.
D A movie showing the same events from different perspectives, each of which is equally valid.
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ข้อที่ 5
5. The authors probably quote Franklin in paragraph 2 in order to:
A deride the trite expressions common to his more popular writings,
B contrast Franklin ่s and Lawrence ่s moral outlook,
C illustrate his simple and unpretentious style,
D emphasize his preference for action over speech.
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ข้อที่ 6
6. Which of the following statements, if true, would most call into question the authors' characterization of Benjamin Franklin's attitude towards religion?
A Although Franklin often attended religious services, he did not claim formal membership in any religious institution.
B Franklin was influential in removing ่sacred and undeniable ่ from Thomas Jefferson ่s first draft of the Declaration of Independence and in replacing these words with ่self-evident. ่
C Like D. H. Lawrence, Franklin was greatly intrigued by Eastern religions, helping to bring Buddhist and Hindu lecturers to Boston and Philadelphia.
D Active with the Freemasons, Franklin published pamphlets denouncing the beliefs of the Catholic Church.
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ข้อที่ 7
7. It may be inferred from the passage that each of the following describes Benjamin Franklin's writings
EXCEPT:
A they attracted some readership outside the United States.
B they were notable for their somewhat commonplace style.
C their style reflected in a certain fashion Franklin\'s attitude towards religion.
D they at times addressed controversial religious topics.
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