2. 外语
  3. An "apple polisher" is one who gives gifts to win friendship or special treatment. It is not exactly a bribe(贿赂), but is close t

An "apple polisher" is one who gives gifts to win friendship or special treatment. It is not exactly a bribe(贿赂), but is close t

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问题     An "apple polisher" is one who gives gifts to win friendship or special treatment. It is not exactly a bribe(贿赂), but is close to it.
    All sorts of people are apple polishers, including politicians and people in high offices—just about everybody. Oliver Cromwell, the great English leader, offered many gifts to win the support of George Fox and his party, but failed.
    There are other phrases meaning the same thing as "apple-polishing"—"soft-soaping" or "buttering-up". A gift is just one way to "soft-soap" somebody, or to"butter him up". Another that is just as effective is flattery, giving someone high praise—telling him how good he looks, or how well he speaks, or how talented and wise he is.
    Endless are the ways of flattery. Who does not love to hear it? Only an unusual man can resist the thrill of being told how wonderful he is. In truth, flattery is good medicine for most of us, who get so little of it.
    We need it to be more sure of ourselves. It cannot hurt unless we get carried away by it. But if we just lap it up for its food value and nourishment, as a cat laps up milk, then we can still remain true to ourselves.
    Sometimes, however, flattery will get you nothing from one who has had too much of it., A good example is the famous 12th century legend of King Canute of Denmark and England. The king got tired of listening to the endless sickening flattery of his courtiers(朝臣). They overpraised him to the skies, as a man of limitless might.
    He decided to teach them a lesson. He took them to the seashore and sat down. Then he ordered the waves to stop coming in. The tide was too busy to listen to him. The king was satisfied. This might show his followers how weak his power was and how empty their flattery.
Which of the following statements about flattery is true according to the author?
选项 A、Too much flattery can carry us away.
B、Flattery is too empty to do people any good.
C、Flattery can get you nothing but excessive pride.
D、Flattery is one of the ways to apple-polish people.
答案D
解析 由文章第3段可知，apple-polish和soft-soap是同义词，而flattery是soft-soap的另一个途径，由此可以推断出答案。本题最具干扰的选项是A，第5段第2句虽有提到get carried away by it，但作者并未说明“Too much flattery can carry us away”，因此选项A不正确。第4段最后一句与第5段第1句表明选项B和C不对。
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大学英语四级

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