涂麗平

俄羅斯的文化是豐富多彩的——有著聞名世界的文學(xué)作品、芭蕾舞蹈、繪畫藝術(shù)和古典音樂等。

主題語境：歷史與文化 篇幅：337詞 建議用時(shí)：6分鐘

1 Russia has a long and rich culturalhistory， steeped in literature， ballet， paintingand classical music. Here is a brief overviewof Russian customs and traditions.

2 When many people think of Russia，they think of vast frozen tundra. Thats not allthere is to the countrys geography. There areplains， taigas， steppes， plains and mountains. An amazing feature of Russias geography isLake Baikal. It is the worlds largest lake and holds 20 percent of the worlds supply offresh water. It is also the worlds oldest lake， which is home to approximately 1700 to 1800endemic plant and animal species.

3 Ballet is a popular notable art form coming out of Russia. Founded in 1776， the BolshoiBallet is a classical ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow andknown throughout the world. Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky， a 19thcenturyRussian composer，is world renowned for Swan Lake and 1812 Overture. There are several museums， includinghis childhood home， showcasing his personal belongings and musical artifacts.

4 Russian nesting dolls are wellknownsymbols of the country. These sets of dollsconsist of a wooden figure that can be pulled apart to reveal another smaller version of thesame image inside， and so on， often with six or more dolls nested inside one another. Thepainting of each doll usually symbolizes a Russian peasant girl in traditional costume.

5 If you are invited to a Russian home for a meal， bring a small gift. Male guests areusually expected to bring flowers. Dont bring yellow flowers， as some Russians see them assignifying separation or betrayal. Do not give a baby a gift until after the baby is born. Itsbad luck to do so sooner. Russians often protest when they are offered a gift. Replying that“its just a little something” and offering the gift again will usually be graciously accepted.

Reading Check

1. What does paragraph 2 mainly talk about Russia？

A. Literature. B. Geography. C. Economy. D. Climate.

2. What genre of music is Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky famous for？

A. Rock music. B. Jazz music.

C. Classical music. D. Pop music.

3. Russian nesting dolls are symbolic of .

A. the Russian military

B. Russian urban lifestyle

C. Russian political figures

D. Russian peasant girls in traditional costume

4. When youre invited to a Russian home for a meal， what is considered bad luck？

A. Bringing a small gift.

B. Giving a gift to a baby before its born.

C. Offering the host flowers.

D. Asking the host to give a gift back.

Language Study

Ⅰ. 日積月累

steeped adj. 浸透的；沉浸在……中的

endemic adj. 地方性的；某地特有的

renowned adj. 有名的；著名的

showcase v. 展示

artifact n. 人工制品；手工藝品

graciously adv. 親切地；和藹地

frozen tundra 凍土；苔原

fresh water supply 淡水供應(yīng)

classical ballet company 古典芭蕾舞團(tuán)

personal belongings 個(gè)人物品

it's just a little something 這只是一點(diǎn)小意思

Ⅱ. 語法填空

Many of us think we can recognize Russian folk music when we hear 1. ______.Plenty of people assume its all accordions （手風(fēng)琴） and 2.______ （violin）， and melodiesthat sound like the theme song from Tetris. Russian folk music often 3.______ （feature）the balalaika， a threecorneredstring instrument， and the bayan， 4.______ accordion.Songs tell stories of daily life， nature 5. ______Russian past. They can be fast danceslike the“ troika” or slow， 6.______（emotion） songs. Russian singers use a wide range7. ______vocal styles. During festivals， music comes with traditional dances with8.______ （color） costumes and lively steps. Russian folk music is a key part of thenations heritage， full of history and emotion.

Most of us， too， are familiar with Cossack dancing 9. ______（involve） a combinationof skillful squatting， kicking and slapping manoeuvres （技術(shù)動(dòng)作）. Many tourists who areeager to participate have gotten this one wrong. But for those with a love of folk music，classical music， opera and ballet， Russia offers so much more 10.______the stereotypicalsongs and dances that are so typically used to represent Russia in TV and film.