Reading Comprehension
The Translation from English into Italian is worth 15 points.
The Translation from Italian into English is worth 5 points.
The Reading Comprehension is worth 10 points.
1.
Read the following article and then answer the questions below.
Hillary Clinton's early front-runner status for the Democratic presidential nomination reflected impressive strengths. She spent eight years in the White House, in what Bill Clinton called a “two for the price of one” presidency. In 2000 she was elected to the Senate, where she has charted a centrist course. But many Americans think that Mrs Clinton will say or do anything to win power. They point to her initial support for the war in Iraq and the way she put up with her husband's philandering.
On the campaign trail she has shown that her grasp of policy is second to none. But she has had trouble countering Barack Obama's message of “change” and “hope”. After swapping victories in the early-voting states, they fought to a draw on Super Tuesday. Since then, Mr Obama has gained momentum, but Mrs Clinton has won most of the big states, including Ohio and Texas. After a barely perceptible victory in Indiana, a state she needed to carry triumphantly, Mrs Clinton's campaign is surely close to its end.
- According to the writer, what factors make Hillary Clinton a suitable presidential candidate? (2.5 points)
- What does the article say about the problems Clinton has encountered during the campaign? (2.5 points)
- Write a short comment on the Democratic presidential nomination, mentioning the race, gender and age of the candidates. (5 points)
2.
Read the following article and then answer the questions below.
Barack Obama's success shows that the ceiling has risen for African-Americans. But many are still too close to the floor.
Why are African-Americans so much less prosperous than whites? Why do so many black children flounder in school? Why do so many young black men languish behind bars?
Black and white Americans tend to produce different answers to these questions, and there is also heated disagreement within both groups. Some blacks think their glass is three-quarters full; others think it three-quarters empty. Optimists can point to obvious improvements. Little more than four decades ago, blacks in the South could not vote. This year, a black man may be elected president. Under segregation, southern blacks were barred from white schools, neighbourhoods and opportunities. Now, racial discrimination is both illegal and taboo. Blacks have pierced nearly every glass ceiling. The secretary of state, the boss of American Express and the country's most popular entertainer (Oprah Winfrey) are all black. Bill Cosby, a veteran comedian, tours the country urging blacks to concentrate on improving themselves: to study hard, to work hard and—especially—to shun the culture of despair that grips the ghetto.
1. Explain the meaning of "Some blacks think their glass is three-quarters full; others think it three-quarters empty" and provide the Italian equivalent. (2.5 points)
2. Explain the meaning of "Blacks have pierced nearly every glass ceiling". (2.5 points)
3. Write a short comment on the racial problem. (5 points)
3.
Read the following article and then answer the questions below.
Local elections in England and Wales, such as those that took place on Thursday May 1st, are generally such complicated affairs, with contradictory trends visible in different parts of the country, that they manage to offer both solace and chagrin to all the main political parties. Not this time. The Labour Party, and its leader, Gordon Brown, have been comprehensibly humbled. The prime minister's day will get even worse if, as looks likely, Labour also loses its biggest prize: the mayoralty of London. That result is due on Friday evening.
Preliminary results from the 159 local authorities that held elections (local polls are staggered so that not everyone votes at the same time) suggest that Labour has scored its worst performance in local elections for 40 years. Labour seems to have polled just 24% of the total, a full 20 points behind the opposition Conservatives and a point behind the Liberal Democrats. It has done badly even in some regions where it has traditionally been invulnerable, such as industrial bits of Wales, losing more council seats than even the most pessimistic predictions envisaged. The Conservatives, meanwhile, have made some symbolic gains in hitherto hostile territory in the north of England. David Cameron, the Tory leader, described the result as “a big moment”. A “bad” and “disappointing” night, said Mr Brown.
1. Explain the meaning of "to offer solace and chagrin" in line 3. (2.5 points)
2. Explain the meaning of the word "invulnerable" as used in line 11. (2.5 points)
3. Write a short comment on British politics. (5 points)
4.
Read the following article and then answer the questions below.
It is time to stand up for bears
SIR, We are deeply offended by your newspaper's persistent use of the term “bear market” to describe falling share prices. The Economist's claim, for example, that this is the worst bear market of all times (measured by the loss of equity wealth as a share of GDP) is embarrassing to us. Your cheap headlines, such as “the bears show their teeth” or “grin and bear it” are insulting. Being associated with a weak stockmarket is seriously damaging the reputation of all bears. Please stop being so beastly.
After all, we bears have invested years building up a more popular, huggable image and ditching the grizzly one. Indeed, we would argue that the true “bear market” is exactly 100 years old. In November 1902 President Teddy Roosevelt, while out on a hunting trip, refused to shoot a poor defenceless bear. After this became the subject of a cartoon in the Washington Post, the “teddy bear” was born—one of the most successful relaunches of any brand in history. These things are always easier with presidential help.
Why, then, do so many of you scribblers think that investors who expect share prices to fall should be known as bears? It probably dates back to the American fur-trading industry, when a despicable group called bearskin jobbers used to sell bearskins in advance before actually shooting us. The label “bears” was later extended to speculators who sold shares they did not yet own, on the expectation that prices would fall so they could buy back the shares more cheaply. In those days bear- and bull-baiting were popular sports, so bulls soon came to mean the opposite of bears.But this terminology is outdated in the modern world. Worse still, it has encouraged the belief that “bulls” are virile, astute investors, whereas a bear market is so named because, when bears wake up after their winter hibernation, they are grouchy and bad-tempered. That is a load of bull.
1. Explain the meaning of "These things are always easier with presidential help". (line 8)
2. Explain the meaning of "That is a load of bull". (line 14)
3. Explain in your own words what are the bears complaining about.
5.
Read the following article and then answer the questions below.
Did the Americans like Pope Benedict XVI more than Europeans do? By some indicators, when he went to the US last April he certainly was able to count on a better reception in the United States than he gets in his home continent, where he had to cancel a lecture at a Rome campus (“La Sapienza”) because of protesters who called him a science-hating obscurantist.
Whether or not they have paid close attention to his ideas, many Americans like the pope.
Of American Catholics polled by the Pew Research Center, 74% give Pope Benedict a favorable rating. But the survey points out that he's not as highly regarded as his predecessor.
For one, their personalities are different. John Paul was known for his charisma. Benedict is known as an intellectual and introvert.
"He doesn't quite get the same energy from crowds that John Paul II got," said Cardinal Francis George, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. "John Paul II was extroverted and got energy talking to people, and the present Holy Father loses energy. He has to rest between all these encounters."
The energy factor is partly due to age. Benedict turned 81 a few months ago. When John Paul became pope, he was only 58 and was able to keep a much more rigorous schedule traveling around the globe.
He held private talks with George Bush, with whom he agreed that terrorism is an unacceptable weapon for any cause or religion. The two leaders also share common ground in opposing terrorism, abortion, gay marriage and embryonic cell research. But they disagree over the war in Iraq, the death penalty and the US embargo against Cuba.
1. Explain the meaning of “he certainly was able to count on a better reception in the United States than he gets in his home continent” in lines 2-3, (2.5 points)
2. Explain the meaning of “John Paul was able to keep a much more rigorous schedule traveling around the globe” in lines 15-16 (2.5 points)
3. Do you think the visit of the Pope to the US was an important step? Express your opinion. (5 points)