雅思阅读第016套P1-THE EVOLUTION OF LANGUAGE

READING PASSAGE 1

You should spend about 20minutes on Questions 1-13, which are based on Reading Passage 1below.

THE EVOLUTION OFLANGUAGE

A. Language everywhere changes overtime; it has to. A central reason that necessitates modification is to allowfor developments in our world to be expressed. For example, the technologicalrevolution alone has been responsible for the addition of a plethora of wordsto our vocabulary: hard drive, software, modem to name just a few. The Japanesewriting script katakana, which was originally introduced in the 9th century asa means by which Buddhist monks could correctly interpret Chinesepronunciations, is now most commonly used to embrace foreign words for whichthere is no original Japanese character; pizza or hamburger for example.Likewise the western world’s exposure to and familiarity with foreign culturesnow means that words such as sushi, nam bread and kebab, for example, are usedby diners on a regular basis.

B. However, expansion of our vocabularyis just one element involved in how and why language evolves. Given thevariation of dialects or regional accents present in most language systems, itis clear that an individual’s interpretation of what is actually correct andcommonly used will vary quite dramatically, since this perception is based upona combination of factors including the age, educational level and region of thecountry a person is from. As we go about our daily lives and interact withothers from different backgrounds and experiences, the language we hear isoften taken on board and incorporated into the way in which we communicateourselves. Many phrases with American origins are now commonplace in BritishEnglish for example, due to the frequency with which they are heard ontelevision and in the movies.

C. Changes in language are often drivenby the young and many such changes are commonly considered by older people tobe a disintegration of standards rather than an evolution and an improvement.Let’s consider an Americanism commonly used by youngsters in all pans of theEnglish speaking world. Used as an alternative to “Tom said…” it is nowcommonplace to hear “Tom goes, the pay rise was unacceptable.” or, “Tom wasall, the pay rise was unacceptable.”; much to the horror of manytraditionalists. However, this modification could also be considered to beadding to and not detracting from our ability to communicate effectively. Toillustrate, let’s consider the original phrase “Tom said”; it is used solely toshow’ the listener that we are reporting the words of Tom, while the modernvariation, “Tom goes” has literally the same meaning. However, if the speakerchooses instead to use the latter phrase, “Tom was all”, they are also able toconvey the message that Tom had an emotional reaction to the situation they arereporting, therefore a much more effective method of communicating informationhas been created, some may say. However, should the now’ commonly used textingabbreviations such as 'gr8t’ (great) and 'l8r’ (later) become permanentreplacements of the original words, it is likely that even the most liberalamongst us would be horrified.

D. Variations on language are usuallymore readily accepted into informal language prior to them being absorbed for usein formal writing. Examples of words that we now commonly use, but were onceconsidered incorrect, are 'pea’ and 'hopefully’. Let’s take pea; it derivedfrom the word 'pease’, which being an uncountable noun has the same formregardless of whether one or more pease were being spoken about. However, thiswas commonly overlooked and misunderstood, and through error the singular formof the vegetable became 'pea’. More recently 'hopefully’ was considered by manyto be an inappropriate alternative to 'I hope’; at best only accepted ininformal use. The word hopefully is now’ fully acceptable in both informalspeech and formal writing.

E. Some people believe that traditionalusages of language are always more superior and refined than modern variationseven when the reasons behind the rule were dubious in the first place. Forexample, it was once seriously frowned upon to split an infinitive in asentence and even today it is considered grammatically incorrect to do so. Todemonstrate, let’s consider the following sentence: 'The examiner asked me toquietly leave the room’; this was considered incorrect as the word 'quietly’splits the infinitive of the verb 'to leave’. The origins of this rule hailback to the 17th century when scholars believed that the English languageshould be adapted to follow the rules of Latin; then considered the perfectlanguage. Since splitting infinitives in Latin is impossible, it was decidedthat splitting infinitives in English, even though possible, was notacceptable, Given that initial motivations behind the rule were questionableand the clarity of meaning of the sentence is not compromised in the'incorrect’ form, it could be argued that this grammar rule is a prime exampleof an unnecessary sanction which is likely to be abandoned in the future.

F. As language evolves, changes ingrammar structures which would result in confusion of the actual meaning of thesentences are unlikely; however, the meanings of words are often modified oraltered beyond recognition by different generations and can be easilymisinterpreted by other social groups. Take, for example, the modern version ofthe word 'bad’ meaning 'great’ when used in contemporary slang. Many slangwords remain dated in the era in which they are developed, for example wordslike 'to beef, meaning to complain (introduced in the 1920’s) are not onlydated but may not even be understood in a modern context, while others such as'guy’ become absorbed into mainstream language. Who knows what futuregenerations will add to the ever changing environment of communication?

SECTION 1: QUESTIONS 1-13

Questions 1-4

Reading Passage 1 has sixparagraphs A-F.

Choose the correct heading forparagraphs B, C, E and F from the list of headings below.

Write the correct number i-viii inboxes 1-4 on your answer sheet.

List of Headings

i

Historical acceptance of change

ii

The Generation Gap

iii

Influences on speech

iv

Ancient writing in Asia

v

Cultural evolution and its impact on language

vi

Slang expected in the future

vii

Questioning logic

viii

Lifespan of vocabulary

Example: Paragraph A; Answer: v

1 ____________ Paragraph B

2 ____________ Paragraph C

Example: Paragraph D; Answer: i

3 ____________ Paragraph E

4 ____________ Paragraph F

Questions 5-10

Do the following statements reflectthe claims of the writer in Reading Passage 1? Write:

YES

if the statement agrees with the views of the writer

NO

if the statement contradicts the views of the writer

NOT GIVEN

if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

Write the correct answer YES,NO or NOT GIVEN in boxes 5-10 on your answer sheet.

5 ________________ If language were static, itwould negatively affect our ability to incorporate other cultures into our ownway of life.

6 ________________ The language we grow up knowingand that we adopt through new experiences have equal effects on the way wespeak.

7 ________________ English used in Britain haschanged more than American English over recent years.

8 ________________ Some older variations oflanguage are more expressive than more modern forms.

9 ________________ All modern adaptations oflanguage are suitable for mainstream use.

10 ________________ All word usage has changed overtime due to misunderstandings of meaning.

Questions 11-13

Complete the summary of paragraphs Eand F with the list of words A-H below.

Write the correct letter A-H inboxes 11-13 on your answer sheet.

Some grammar rules such asavoiding 11 ______________ aredeeply entrenched in history and were created by academics who wished to perfectthe English language.

It is likely, however, sincethey do not impact on the 12 ______________ ofthe sentence that such rules are likely to be 13 ______________ in the future. In the same way, manycontemporary words in common usage today are likely to become defunct.

A

Slang

B

Split infinitives

C

Grammatically incorrect

D

Meaning

E

Recognition

F

Disregarded

G

Misinterpreted

H

Confusion

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9分达人阅读第16套P1-T-rex: Hunter or Scavenger?

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雅思阅读第016套P1:THE EVOLUTION OF LANGUAGE