Passage Four
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.
“Opinion” is a word that is used carelessly today. It is used to refer to matters of taste, belief, and judgment. This casual use would probably cause little confusion if people didn’t attach too much importance to opinion. Unfortunately, most to attach great importance to it. “I have as much right to my opinion as you to yours,” and “Everyone’s entitled to his opinion,” are common expressions. In fact, anyone who would challenge another’s opinion is likely to be branded intolerant.
Is that label accurate? Is it intolerant to challenge another’s opinion? It depends on what definition of opinion you have in mind. For example, you may ask a friend “What do you think of the new Ford cars?” And he may reply, “In my opinion, they’re ugly.” In this case, it would not only be intolerant to challenge his statement, but foolish. For it’s obvious that by opinion he means his personal preference, a matter of taste. And as the old saying goes, “It’s pointless to argue about matters of taste.”
But consider this very different use of the term, a newspaper reports that the Supreme Court has delivered its opinion in a controversial case. Obviously the justices did not shale their personal preferences, their mere likes and dislikes, they stated their considered judgment, painstakingly arrived at after thorough inquiry and deliberation.
Most of what is referred to as opinion falls somewhere between these two extremes. It is not an expression of taste. Nor is it careful judgment. Yet it may contain elements of both. It is a view or belief more or less casually arrived at, with or without examining the evidence.
Is everyone entitled to his opinion? Of course, this is not only permitted, but guaranteed. We are free to act on our opinions only so long as, in doing so, we do not harm others.
36. Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to the author?
A) Everyone has a right to hold his own opinion.
B) Free expression of opinions often leads to confusion.
C) Most people tend to be careless in forming their opinions.
D) Casual use of the word “opinion” often brings about quarrels.(A)
37. According to the author, who of the following would be labored as intolerant?
A) Someone who turns a deaf ear to others’ opinions.
B) Someone who can’t put up with others’ tastes.
C) Someone who values only their own opinions.
D) Someone whose opinion harms other people.(B)
38. The new Ford cars are cited as an example to show that ________.
A) it is foolish to criticize a famous brand
B) one should not always agree to others’ opinions
C) personal tastes are not something to be challenged
D) it is unwise to express one’s likes and dislikes in public(C)
39. Considered judgment is different from personal preference in that ________.
A) it is stated by judges in the court
B) it reflects public like and dislikes
C) it is a result of a lot of controversy
D) it is based on careful thought(D)
40. As indicated in the passage, being free to act on one’s opinion ________.
A) means that one can ignore other people’s criticism
B) means that one can impose his preferences on others
C) doesn’t mean that one has the right to do things at will
D) doesn’t mean that one has the right to charge others without evidence(C)
这篇材料讲的是“观点”，虽然有五段之多，但主要论述的内容实际上只有一个：观点到底是什么。文章的结构是这样的，开头提出几个观点，如人人都有权表达自己的观点(Everyone’s entitled to his opinion)，挑战别人观点的人总考(试大是被贴上偏狭的标签(anyone who would challenge another’s opinion is likely to be branded intolerant)。注意，intolerant不是无法忍受的意思，而是“不容异己、偏执”等意思，“无法忍受的”应是intolerable。而后，作者指出这些观点的对错必须根据观点的定义来判断(depends on what definition of opinion you have in mind)，从而为论述观点的不同定义做好准备。
第二段论述了观点的第一个定义：一种个人偏好(by opinion he means his personal preference, a matter of taste)。作者以某人对新车的评论为例，指出，挑战这类观点不但是偏狭的(intolerant)，而且是愚蠢行为。
接下来是另外一个例子，最高法院将其“观点”递交给一个争议不休的案子(Supreme Court has delivered its opinion in a controversial case)。这个例子中的观点体现的不再是个人的偏好(their personal preferences, their mere likes and dislikes)，而是对一种经过深思熟虑之后的判断的传达(they stated their considered judgment)。这是观点的第二个定义。
这两个定义回答了“挑战别人观点的人总是被贴上偏狭的标签”的对错问题。
最后，作者又论述了观点的第三种定义。作者把上述两种定义视为观点的两种极端(two extremes)，而大多数观点处于这二者之间，既不是个人偏好，也不是深思熟虑过的结论(It is not an expression of taste. Nor is it careful judgment)，而是融合了这两方面的内容。
这一定义回应了“人人都有权表达自己的观点”这一说法。作者在最后一段指出这种说法不仅是被允许的，而且是受到保护的，只要其观点不伤害到别人(so long as, in doing so, we do not harm others)。
36. Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to the author?
A) Everyone has a right to hold his own opinion.
B) Free expression of opinions often leads to confusion.
C) Most people tend to be careless in forming their opinions.
D) Casual use of the word “opinion” often brings about quarrels.(A)
本题问根据作者的说法，下列叙述中哪一项是正确的。
这道题看似涉及面较广，但依照四六级阅读题的规律，还是应该首先从第一段寻找答案。
第一句首先指出观点一词在当今被人们随意考(试大地使用着，而后是对观点的大体定义。第三句指出如果人们不把观点赋予太重大的意义，那么这种随意使用的现象也不会引起多少混乱。第四句话锋一转，称事实恰恰相反，大多数人给观点赋予了重要的意义。而后是一些人们给观点赋予重要意义的例子。
A，每个人都有权持有自己的观点。这一说法来自于I have as much right to my opinion as you to yours，二者意思一样。在最后一段作者也提出持有观点的权利是受到保障的。应该选A。
B，观点的自由表达经常会导致混乱。This casual use would probably cause little confusion if people didn’t attach too much importance to opinion. Unfortunately, most to attach great importance to it。前一句是说如果人们不把观点赋予太重大的意义，那么这种随意使用的现象也不会引起多少混乱，等于“如果人们把观点赋予重大意义，则随意使用现象就会引起混乱。而后一句说大多数人给观点赋予了重要的意义，等于是说观点的随意使用会经常引起混乱。不过，要注意的是文中所说的引起混乱的是对opinion一词的随意使用，而不是B所说的观点的自由表达。
C，大多数人的观点往往并非深思熟虑而成。根据上面对B的分析可知，文中的careless指的是对观点一词的使用，而不是观点的形成。
D，对观点一词的随意使用往往会引发争吵。Fusion(混乱)并不是quarrel(吵架)。
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