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  3. Prior to the 20th century, many languages with small numbers of speakers survived for centuries. The increasingly interconnected

Prior to the 20th century, many languages with small numbers of speakers survived for centuries. The increasingly interconnected

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问题     Prior to the 20th century, many languages with small numbers of speakers survived for centuries. The increasingly interconnected modern world makes it much more difficult for small language communities to live in relative isolation, a key factor in language maintenance and preservation.
    It remains to be seen whether the world can maintain its linguistic and cultural diversity in the centuries ahead. Many powerful forces appear to work against it: population growth, which pushes migrant populations into the world’s last isolated locations; mass tourism; global telecommunications and mass media; and the spread of gigantic global corporations. All of these forces appear to signify a future in which the language of advertising, popular culture, and consumer products become similar. Already English and a few other major tongues have emerged as global languages of commerce and communication. For many of the world’s peoples, learning one of these languages is viewed as the key to education, economic opportunity, and a better way of life.
    Only about 3,000 languages now in use are expected to survive the coming century. Are most of the rest doomed in the century after that?
    Whether most of these languages survive will probably depend on how strongly cultural groups wish to keep their identity alive through a native language. To do so will require an emphasis on bilingualism (mastery of two languages). Bilingual speakers could use their own language in smaller spheres—at home, among friends, in community settings—and a global language at work, in dealings with government, and in commercial spheres. In this way, many small languages could sustain their cultural and linguistic integrity alongside global languages, rather than yield to the homogenizing forces of globalization.
    Ironically, the trend of technological innovation that has threatened minority languages could also help save them. For example, some experts predict that computer software translation tools will one day permit minority language speakers to browse the Internet using their native tongues. Linguists are currently using computer-aided learning tools to teach a variety of threatened languages.
    For many endangered languages, the line between revival and death is extremely thin. Language is remarkably resilient, however. It is not just a tool for communicating, but also a powerful way of separating different groups, or of demonstrating group identity. Many indigenous communities have shown that it is possible to live in the modern world while reclaiming their unique identities through language.
In the author’s view, many endangered languages are________.
选项 A、remarkably well-kept in this modern world
B、exceptionally powerful tools of communication
C、quite possible to be revived instead of dying out
D、a unique way of bringing different groups together
答案C
解析 本题的题干关键词是endangered languages，题目问的是作者对于濒危语种的观点，答案线索可以定位到第六段。根据第六段第一、二句，对于许多濒危语种而言，复兴还是消亡只是一线之差。然而，语言具有强大的复原能力(remarkably resilient)。第一句话虽然提到濒危语种有可能复兴也有可能消亡，但是第二句话锋一转，认为小语种有强大的复原能力，因此复兴是有可能的。而且下文第四句话提到，通过小语种来重获本民族特性是可以实现的(possible)。因此，选项C与原文含义相同，是正确答案。选项A属于正反混淆，因为本文开篇就提及，联系日益密切的现代世界 (increasingly interconnected modern world)使小语种族群更难(much more difficult)在相对独立的环境中生存(live)，所以小语种在现代世界保存得并不完好。选项B来自第六段第三句话，濒危语种不仅仅是交流的工具(a tool for communicating)，也是划分不同种族群或展现种族群特征的有力方法(powerful way)，但原文只提到濒危语种是一种交流工具，并没有强调“强大”，“强大”出自下半句对“保护族群特征”的形容，所以选项B属于偷换概念，无中生有。选项D属于曲解文意，因为原文提及小语种不仅仅是交流的工具，也是划分(separate)不同种族群(different groups)或展现 (demonstrate)种族群特征(group identity)的有力方法，即小语种是为了划分不同种族群，展现出不同种族群的特征，而不是将不同种族群团结起来的方法。第六段：复兴小语种有可能实现。
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