文内存因果 答案若比邻

罗丽雯

笔者统计了近5年高考真题，发现问原因的题目，是全国卷阅读题必考的题目之一，少则一题，多则三题，合计考了17小题，且全国I卷自2014年起，全国II卷从2016年起，这些题目一般出自后三篇阅读，而在此之前问原因的题目一般出自前三篇。找原因的题目，大部分题目“因”与“果”比较直接和明显，“因”与“果”连着出现。在17题当中，能利用题干，顺藤摸瓜直接找到答案的合计12题。正如标题所说的“文内存因果，答案若比邻”。另外6小题中，有3题虽然需要总结，但也属于“答案若比邻”的。剩下3题是属于难度较高的题目。而本文主要将“答案若比邻”的题目进行归纳。具体情况见下表：

一、有because出现的题目

问原因的题目，如果与答案相关的内容中有because出现，答案就呼之欲出了。

[例1]2016全国Ⅰ卷

Sandra Day OConnor （1930—present）

When Sandra Day OConnor finished third in her class at Stanford Law School， in 1952， she could not find work at a law firm because she was a woman. She became an Arizona state senator （参议员） and， in 1981， the first woman to join the U.S. Supreme Court. OConnor gave the deciding vote in many important cases during her 24 years on the top court.

22. What was the reason for OConnors being rejected by the law firm？

A. Her lack of proper training in law.

B. Her little work experience in court.

C. The discrimination against women.

D. The poor financial conditions.

[分析] 由題干中的OConnor在文中找到相应段落，由law firm找到相关句子；由she could not find work at a law firm because she was a woman可知，because she was a woman就是她被律师事务所拒绝的原因，与之相匹配的选项是C，对女性的歧视。

[例2]2014全国卷II

Li Drake， a Chinese native raising two children in Minnesota with an American husband， had another reason for looking for an au pair from China. She didnt want her children to miss out on their roots.” Because I am Chinese， my husband and I wanted the children to keep exposed to（接触） the language and culture.”she says.

30. Li Drake has her children study Chinese because she wants them ______.

A. to live in China some day

B. to speak the language at home

C. to catch up with other children

D. to learn about the Chinese culture

[分析]据题干中的Li Drake，找到相关段落后，先是找到“had another reason for looking for an au pair from China”，这句话说明接下来的内容就是题目所问的“让孩子学习中文的原因”。依据”Because I am Chinese， my husband and I wanted the children to keep exposed to（接触） the language and culture （因为我和丈夫希望孩子能接触汉语和其文化）.” 可知答案应该是D，她希望孩子学习中国的文化。

[例3]2013全国卷II

If the CRF seems to be a smart idea， thats because Lee is not merely a seasoned salesperson but also head of a marketing department that has business relations with big names such as Levis and Sony. That idea surely results in the imagination at work when it comes to making different flavored（味道）chocolates.

45. Why is Chris Lee able to develop his idea of the CRF？endprint

A. He knows the importance of research.

B. He learns form shops of similar types.

C. He has the support of many big names.

D. He has a lot of marketing experience.

[解析]由题干Chris Lee，CRF等定位于文中第三段，由“If the CRF seems to be a smart idea， thats because Lee is not merely a seasoned salesperson but also head of a marketing department that has business relations with big names such as Levis and Sony.”，可知Lee是一位salesperson，又由head of a marketing department可推知，Lee在市场营销方面有经验，故选D。

二、隐形because题目

利用because这么明显的线索解题的题目相对较少，更常见的情况是前后两句话之间，在意义上本身具有因果关系，笔者认为此处是把because给隐藏起来了，考生做此类题时，找到相关内容后，不妨在心里补上because，看看前后两句是否具有因果关系。以下将考题分为前果后因和前因后果两种情况来说明。

1. 前果后因

[例4]2015全国卷II

My color television has given me nothing but a headache. I was able to buy it a little over a year ago because I had my relatives give me money for my birthday instead of clothes that wouldnt fit. I let a salesclerk fool me into buying a discontinued model. I realized this a day later， when I saw newspaper advertisements for the set at seventy-five dollars less than I had paid. The set worked so beautiful when I first got it home that I would keep it on until stations signed off for the night. Fortunately， I didnt get any channels showing all-night movies or I would never have gotten to bed.

21. Why did the author say he was fooled into buying the TV set？

A. He got an older model than he had expected.

B. He couldnt return it when it was broken.

C. He could have bought it at a lower price.

D. He failed to find any movie shows on it.

[分析]利用“fooled into buying the TV set”和出題顺序，我们在第一段找到“I let a salesclerk fool me into buying a discontinued model. I realized this a day later， when I saw newspaper advertisements for the set at seventy-five dollars less than I had paid.”，原因即是作者得知他付的钱比广告上的多，故答案为C，他本可以以更低的价格买到这台电视机的。

[例5]2013全国卷II

In 1947 a group of famous people from the art world headed by an Austrian conductor decided to hold an international festival of music， dance and theatre in Edinburgh. The idea was to reunite Europe after the Second World War.

It quickly attracted famous names such as Alec Guinness， Richard Button， Dame Margot Fonteyn and Marlene Dietrich as well as the big symphony orchestras（交响乐团）. It became fixed event every August and now attracts 400，000 people yearly.

At the same time， the“Fringe”appeared as a challenge to the official festival. Eight theatre groups turned up uninvited in 1947， in the belief that everyone should have the right to perform， and they did so in a public house disused for years.endprint

41. Why did some uninvited theatre groups come to Edinburgh in 1947？

A. They owned a public house there.

B. They came to take up a challenge.

C. They thought they were also famous.

D. They wanted to take part in the festival.

[解析]利用題干中的uninvited可快速定位至第三段，找到“Eight theatre groups turned up uninvited in 1947， in the belief that everyone should have the right to perform， and they did so in a public house disused for years.”八个不请自来的团队在1947年去到Edinburgh，因为in the belief ...（他们相信），其后应是他们做这件事的原因，“认为所有人都有表演的权利”。由此确定选项D正确，他们想参加这个音乐节。

2. 前因后果

[例6]2015全国卷II

Includes a guided tour of Windsor and Hampton Court， Henry VIIIs favorite palace. Free time to visit Windsor Castle（entrance fees not included）. With 500 years of history， Hampton Court was once the home of four Kings and one Queen. Now this former royal palace is open to the public as a major tourist attraction. Visit the palace and its various historic gardens， which include the famous maze（迷宫）where it is easy to get lost！

35. Why is Hampton Court a major tourist attraction？

A. It used to be the home of royal families.

B. It used to be a well-known maze.

C. It is the oldest palace in Britain.

D. It is a world-famous castle.

[解析]利用Hampton Court定位至Tour C，再利用a major tourist attraction定位至句子“（Because）Hampton Court was once the home of four Kings and one Queen. Now this former royal palace is open to the public as a major tourist attraction.”大意是“这地方曾是皇上和皇后的家，今天这个前皇家宫殿作为一个主要的旅游景点，向公众开放”，由此可知答案为A。

[例7]2015全国卷I

The citys psychology cafes， which offer great comfort， are among the most popular places. Middle-aged homemakers， retirees， and the unemployed come to such cafes to talk about love， anger， and dreams with a psychologist. And they come to Lehannes group just to learn to say what they feel. “Theres a strong need in Paris for communication，” says Maurice Frisch， a cafe La Chope regular who works as a religious instructor in a nearby church. “People have few real friends. And they need to open up.” Lehanne says shed like to see psychology cafes all over France. “If people had normal lives， these cafes wouldnt exist”， she says， “If life werent a battle， people wouldnt need a special place just to speak.” But then， it wouldnt be France.

35. Why are psychology cafes becoming popular in Paris？

A. They bring people true friendship.

B. They give people spiritual support.endprint

C. They help people realize their dreams.

D. They offer a platform for business links.

[解析]利用题干的“psychology cafes”找到“The citys psychology cafes， which（because they ）offer great comfort， are among the most popular places”，大意是这些心理咖啡馆给了（人们）极大的安慰，变得很受欢迎。这与先项B. They give people spiritual support（给人们以心灵慰藉）意思一致。

三、利用to do解题

当题目需要学生找到做某事的原因，利用题目中相关的单词定位至相关句子后，如果出现to do时，可能它就是答案所在，因为不定式to do可以表目的，因此不定式to do也是解题线索之一。

[例8]2013年全国卷I

Some people will do just about anything to save money. And I am one of them. Take my familys last vacation. It was my six-year-old sons winter break from school， and we were heading home from Fort Lauderdale after a weeklong trip. The flight was overbooked， and Delta， the airline， offered us $400 per person in credits to give up our seats and leave the next day. I had meetings in New York，So I had to get back. But that didn't mean my husband and my son couldnt stay. I took my nine-month-old and took off for home.

The next day， my husband and son were offered more credits to take an even later flight. Yes， I encouraged—okay， ordered—them to wait it out at the airport， to“earn” more Delta Dollars. Our total take： $1，600. Not bad， huh？

56. Why did Delta give the authors family credits？

A. They took a later flight.

B. They had early bookings.

C. Their flight had been delayed.

D. Their flight had been cancelled.

[解析]利用“give ... credits”及題目顺序，我们定位至第一段“The flight was overbooked， and Delta， the airline， offered us $400 per person in credits to give up our seats and leave the next day.”，其中的不定式“to give up our seats and leave the next day”表示目的，航空公司希望他们坐第二天的飞机；另外，本文的第二段再次出现了“The next day， my husband and son were offered more credits to take an even later flight”，可知答案为选项A。

[例9]2017年全国卷I

Some of the worlds most famous musicians recently gathered in Paris and New Orleans to celebrate the first annual International Jazz Day. UNESCO （ United Nations Educational， Scientific and Cultural Organization） recently set April 30 as a day to raise awareness of jazz music， its significance， and its potential as a unifying（联合） voice across cultures.

28. Why did UNESCO set April 30 as International Jazz Day？

A. To remember the birth of jazz.

B. To protect cultural diversity.

C. To encourage people to study music.

D. To recognize the value of jazz.

[解析]用题干中的April 30”及出题顺序，找到“set April 30 as a day to raise awareness of jazz music， its significance， and its potential as a unifying（联合） voice across cultures”，利用表目的to raise awareness of jazz music， its significance可知，认识爵士音乐的重要性，故选D。

四、其他

[例10]2017全国卷I

I got a rescue call from a woman in Muttontown. She had found a young owl（猫头鹰） on the ground. When I arrived， I saw a 2-to 3-week-old owl. It had already been placed in a carrier for safety.

I examined the chick（雏鸟）and it seemed fine…

25. Why was the author called to Muttontown？

A. To rescue a woman.

B. To take care of a woman.

C. To look at a baby owl.

D. To cure a young owl.

[解析]问作者去Muttontown的原因，利用call及题目顺序，定位至第二段，找到如下句子“I got a rescue call from a woman in Muttontown. She had found a young owl（猫头鹰）on the ground.”句子告诉我们，作者接到的是一个a rescue call，而且后一句告诉我们，打电话的人发现了a young owl，再根据下段首句I examined the chick（雏鸟）and it seemed fine可知，正确答案为C，其中examine与look at同义。

总之，找原因的题目，考生需要利用题干中相关的单词定位相关句子，利用好because， to do等相关表达。如果没有这些表达，则利用好前一句或后一句。笔者建议此类题目“不要过多阅读”，一来减少答题时间，二来对于基础较弱的学生来说，有时阅读的内容越多，越容易被干扰选项迷惑，反而更容易出错。

责任编辑 蒋小青endprint