托福阅读常考话题及练习题推荐一：希腊与罗马（3）

1托福阅读常考话题-希腊与罗马练习题

Paragraph 4: This art had a major impact on the native peoples, and one of the most importance factors was a change in the scale of buildings. Pre-Roman Britain was highly localized, with people rarely traveling beyond their own region. On occasion large groups amassed for war or religious festivals, but society remained centered on small communities. Architecture of this era reflected this with even the largest of the fortified towns and hill forts containing no more than clusters of medium-sized structures. The spaces inside even the largest roundhouses were modest, and the use of rounded shapes and organic building materials gave buildings a human scale. ■But the effect of Roman civil architecture was significant. The sheer size of space enclosed within buildings like the basilica of London must have been astonishing. ■This was an architecture of dominance in which subject peoples were literally made to feel small by buildings that epitomized imperial power. ■Supremacy was accentuated by the unyielding straight lines of both individual buildings and planned settlements since these too provided a marked contrast with the natural curvilinear shapes dominant in the native realm. ■

8. In paragraph 4, why does the author mention that “Pre-Roman Britain was highly localized, with people rarely traveling beyond their own region”?

A. To suggest that the Roman conquest of Britain increased the standard of living for natives

B. To indicate that pre-Roman Britain was more interested in festivals and community life than conquering other regions

C. To explain why architecture during this period was not built to be particularly large

D. To illustrate how the traditional roundhouse evolved under the influence of Roman civil architecture

9. The word “modest” in the paragraph in closet in meaning to

A. comfortable

B. limited in number

C. poorly lit

D. not large

10. According to paragraph 4, people in pre-Roman Britain lived, for the most part, in

A. architecture that seemed imperial in size

B. small communities

C. large roundhouses

D. fortified towns

11. According to paragraph 4, why did straight lines in buildings and settlements emphasize the dominance of those who introduced them?

A. Because straight lines were in contrast to the shapes found in pre-Roman architecture

B. Because unlike curved lines, which are shaped in all sorts of different ways, straight lines do no differ

C. Because the dominant lines in entire settlements were the same as those in individual buildings

D. Because building and settlements were easier to construct when the dominant lines were straight lines

12. According to paragraph 4, buildings from the pre-Roman period differed sharply from buildings reflection Roman civil architecture in each of the following respects EXCEPT

A. their outside and inside dimensions

B. the impact they had on people

C. the geometric shapes in which they were built

D. the positioning of buildings in clusters

13. Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the paragraph.

Practical and unimpressive, most were barely taller than the average adult.

Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a square [■] to add the sentence to the paragraph.

14. Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the paragraph is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the paragraph. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the paragraph or are minor ideas in the paragraph. This question is worth 3 points.

The conquest of Britain by the Roman Empire resulted in significant cultural change.

Answer Choices

A. New objects entering Britain ranged from mass-produced articles for everyday use to works of art, and they were widely-and enthusiastically-accepted by native Britons.

B. Constructing and furnishing buildings in the Roman style required skills that native workers did not at first have, so workers were brought in from other parts of the empire.

C. Native Britons traveled to Gaul to learn Classical stone-carving and building techniques.

D. The conquest was followed by a building boom, and enough villas and temples in the Italian style were built that a visitor from Rome would have felt quite at home in post-conquest Britain.

E. An important symbol of Roman supremacy was Roman architecture, whose enormous size, emphasized by the use of straight lines, made the natives feel insignificant.

F. Characteristically Romano-British concepts took hold in architecture; roundhouses were built much larger than before, and straight lines began to be used in interior spaces.