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  3. The term "folk custom "is very broad, but it has been used by folklorists to refer to those shared patterns of behaviors in a pa

The term "folk custom "is very broad, but it has been used by folklorists to refer to those shared patterns of behaviors in a pa

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问题     The term "folk custom "is very broad, but it has been used by folklorists to refer to those shared patterns of behaviors in a particular folk group. Those patterns of behaviors are regarded as the traditional and established ways of members of the particular folk group. Folk custom is transmitted by word of mouth, demonstration or imitation. The folklore and folk customs of England are rich and varied. Many customs are ancient, passed down, generation to generation from our Germanic and Celtic ancestors. Others are more modern creations.
    One of the greatest problems in assessing most accounts of folk customs is that they tend to give only the antiquary’s point of view. After all, to most observers, the people they were looking at were simple and illiterate, unmindful of the true significance of the customs they had preserved. Why question them at length if they didn’t understand the essential nature of what they were doing? So a folklorist is likely to emphasize aspects of a tradition which reflect his or her own interests or which fit in with preconceived ideas, while possibly ignoring or giving only passing mention to aspects which may, in fact, be of equal importance.
    One aspect which generally gets left out of accounts is the viewpoint of the participants themselves: for instance, why they indulge in a particular activity at a particular time of year or of their lives and what feelings they experience while doing so. And now, ideas deriving from folklore studies are so widespread that they may easily have become an integral part of the attitude of the participants in a custom. So the folklorist is rather like a man staring at a scene in a mirror who must be aware, to fully understand that scene, that his own reflection is a major part of what he is looking at.
    It is, however, also true to say that many contemporary students of folklore are fully aware of the problems which beset their enquiries. Like true scientists they draw their conclusions by looking at available evidence, rather than selecting evidence which fits in with existing theories. Some have also looked away from the "obviously" ancient and turned their attention to folklore where it thrives, in the social life of modern cities, in industry and sport, etc. They may, for example, end up looking at the lore of the motor car, or of popular music, and at customs which, though they have no hints of paganism, nevertheless have much in common with older activities which do.
    Many folklorists have gradually come to the conclusion that folklore is not necessarily a thing of the past, a relic of ancient and outmoded ways of thinking, but the means by which people try to make sense of the world (or to confront its lack of sense) and try to alleviate boredom and suffering.  
Why is it difficult to study folklore today?
选项 A、Because participants are now influenced by earlier studies of their activities.
B、Because participants insist on the accuracy of their own interpretations.
C、Because folklorists are too concerned to justify their own theories.
D、Because folklorists are often misled by unreliable earlier studies.
答案A
解析 推断题。第三段倒数第二句指出，现在民俗研究的成果如此之多，这些观点很容易成为某一民俗参与者的观点中不可或缺的部分。因此可以推断出今天民俗学研究的难点在于早期的研究成果会影响民俗参与者，故[A]为答案。文中没有提及民俗学家坚持自己的解释正确，也没有提及论证理论的正确性问题，也没有指出早期的观点不可信，故排除[B]、[C]和[D]。
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