A
My son is 7 years old, and since he was six months old, people have been asking us, “When are you having another?” first, I’d answer “we’ll see,” because at the time, we were undecided not financially stable, and just learning how to be parents. Over time we decided that one is good for us. “Poor baby he’s going to be so lonely!” I have grown accustomed to these remarks.
But this week, I read a post that made my head spin. Jean Leo, a blogger at The Stir, said, “Parents who choose to have one child are just being selfish.” He says, “I understand some people are unable to have more than one kid due to medical or financial circumstances. I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about the couple who decide it’s a lot of work and they like having their freedom, so they stop at one.”
I absolutely disagree. First, it is a very hard job to raise a child. Even in a two-income-earning household, the stress of having a child is huge just to meet a child’s basic needs. Let’s not get into all the extras that start piling on as they grow older. Second, and just as equally important, is time. Carving out time for just yourself is hard enough, but when you have a family, you want to be there for everything. If you are a working parent, it’s hard balancing act between career, play, kids, and also spending time with your partner. For me, wouldn’t be able to do half the things if I had more children. There are some parents that do this well, and I high five them. But that is not me.
Whether it be one child or twenty, this parenting business is no joke and not everyone can handle what comes in the job description. I believe recognizing that you only have the strength to raise one child, and raise that child to the best of your ability is actually something to be admired.
1. According to Jean Leo, all of the following statements are false EXCEPT ________.
A. some parents are not allowed to have more than one child
B. some parents choose to have more than one child for their own freedom
C. parents who choose to have one child are selfless
D. parents choose to have only one child for different reasons
2. It can be inferred from the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 that the author ________.
A. complains about his or her headache B. shows his or her anger
C. tells us his or her disapproval D. expresses his or her unsatisfaction
3. Which of the following statement is TRUE?
A. The author’s son is very lonely as he is the only child in the family.
B. The author subscribes to Jean Leo’s view.
C. The author speaks highly of those parents who can carve out time well for the whole family.
D. The author wants to talk about the stress of all the extras that start piling on as the children grow older.
4. Which of the following may the author agree with according to the last paragraph?
A. It is worth admiring if you try your best to raise the only child of you.
B. No one can deal with the trouble of raising twenty children.
C. If you have only one child, it is an easy job to be a parent.
D. It is less difficult to meet children’s basic needs in a two-income-earning household.
【答案】1. D 2. C 3. C 4. A
【解析】
这是一篇议论文。文中主要讨论了作者的育儿观，作者认为，养育孩子是一项非常辛苦的工作，即使在一个两个人都有收入的家庭里，仅仅为了满足孩子的基本需求，生孩子的压力也是巨大的。此外，自己的时间也同样重要，为自己腾出时间已经够难的了。作者认为如果你尽力抚养你唯一的孩子，那是值得赞赏的。
【1题详解】
细节理解题。根据第二段Jean Leo, a blogger at The Stir, said, “Parents who choose to have one child are just being selfish.” He says, “I understand some people are unable to have more than one kid due to medical or financial circumstances. I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about the couple who decide it’s a lot of work and they like having their freedom, so they stop at one.”可知The Stir的博主Jean Leo说：“选择生一个孩子的父母是自私的。他说：“我理解有些人由于医疗或经济状况无法生育一个以上的孩子。”我不是在说他们。我指的是那些觉得工作繁重而又喜欢自由的夫妇，所以他们只生一个孩子。”由此可知，选项中关于Jean Leo的说法中，D选项“父母选择只生一个孩子有不同的原因”正确。故选D。
【2题详解】
推理判断题。根据第二段后文Jean Leo, a blogger at The Stir, said, “Parents who choose to have one child are just being selfish.” He says, “I understand some people are unable to have more than one kid due to medical or financial circumstances. I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about the couple who decide it’s a lot of work and they like having their freedom, so they stop at one.”(The Stir的博主Jean Leo说：“选择生一个孩子的父母是自私的。他说：“我理解有些人由于医疗或经济状况无法生育一个以上的孩子。”我不是在说他们。我指的是那些觉得工作繁重而又喜欢自由的夫妇，所以他们只生一个孩子。”)以及第三段中I absolutely disagree.可知我绝对不同意。由此能从第二段中划线的句子中可以推断出，作者告诉我们他或她不赞成Jean Leo的说法。故选C。
【3题详解】
细节理解题。根据倒数第二段中If you are a working parent, it’s hard balancing act between career, play, kids, and also spending time with your partner. For me, wouldn’t be able to do half the things if I had more children. There are some parents that do this well, and I high five them.可知如果你是一个有工作的父母，很难在事业、玩耍、孩子和和伴侣相处之间取得平衡。对我来说，如果我有更多的孩子，我就不能做一半的事情。有些父母在这方面做得很好，我和他们击掌庆贺。由此可知，C选项“作者高度赞扬那些能为全家人腾出时间的父母”正确。故选C。
【4题详解】
推理判断题。根据最后一段中I believe recognizing that you only have the strength to raise one child, and raise that child to the best of your ability is actually something to be admired.可知我相信，认识到你只有力量抚养一个孩子，并且尽你最大的能力抚养这个孩子，实际上是一件令人钦佩的事情。由此可推知，A选项“如果你尽力抚养你唯一的孩子，那是值得赞赏的”作者可能会认同。故选A。
