导入话题：＂Did you hear what happened to Adam last Friday?＂ Lindsey whispers to Tori.With her eyes shining, Tori brags, ＂You bet I did. Sean told me two days ago.＂Who are Lindsey and Tori talking about? It just happens to be yours truly, Adam Freedman. I can tell you that what they are saying is (a) not nice and (b) not even true. Still, Lindsey and Tori aren’t very different from most students here at Linton High School, including me.
14.The author uses a conversation at the beginning of the passage to __________.A.introduce a topic B.present an argumentC.describe the characters D.clarify his writing purpose
14、作者在文章开头使用对话的目的是___________。A. 引入话题 B. 呈现观点 C. 描述特征 D. 阐明写作目的
论点：Many of our conversations are gossip(闲话). I have noticed three effects of gossip: it can hurt people, it can give gossipers a strange kind of satisfaction, and it can cause social pressures in a group. 我注意到八卦的三个影响:它可以伤害人，它可以给说闲话的人一种奇怪的满足感，它可以在一个群体中造成社会压力。
原文+翻译＂Did you hear what happened to Adam last Friday?＂ Lindsey whispers to Tori.With her eyes shining, Tori brags, ＂You bet I did. Sean told me two days ago.＂Who are Lindsey and Tori talking about? It just happens to be yours truly, Adam Freedman. I can tell you that what they are saying is (a) not nice and (b) not even true. Still, Lindsey and Tori aren’t very different from most students here at Linton High School, including me. Many of our conversations are gossip(闲话). I have noticed three effects of gossip: it can hurt people, it can give gossipers a strange kind of satisfaction, and it can cause social pressures in a group.An important negative effect of gossip is that it can hurt the person being talked about. Usually, gossip spreads information about a topic — breakups, trouble at home, even dropping out — that a person would rather keep secret. The more embarrassing or shameful the secret is, the juicier the gossip it makes. Probably the worst type of gossip is the absolute lie. People often think of gossipers as harmless, but cruel lies can cause pain.If we know that gossip can be harmful, then why do so many of us do it? The answer lies in another effect of gossip: the satisfaction it gives us. Sharing the latest rumor(传言) can make a person feel important because he or she knows something that others don’t. Similarly, hearing the latest rumor can make a person feel like part of the ＂in group.＂ In other words, gossip is satisfying because it gives people a sense of belonging or even superiority(优越感).Gossip also can have a third effect: it strengthens unwritten, unspoken rules about how people should act. Professor David Wilson explains that gossip is important in policing behaviors in a group. Translated into high school terms, this means that if everybody you hang around with is laughing at what John wore or what Jane said, then you can bet that wearing or saying something similar will get you the same kind of negative attention. The do’s and don’ts conveyed through gossip will never show up in any student handbook.The effects of gossip vary depending on the situation. The next time you feel the urge to spread the latest news, think about why you want to gossip and what effects your ＂juicy story＂ might have. “你听说上周五亚当发生了什么事吗?” 琳赛小声对托丽说。 托丽眼睛闪闪发亮，吹嘘道:“我当然知道。 肖恩两天前告诉我的。” 琳赛和托丽在说谁? 正好是你真正的朋友，亚当·弗里德曼。 我可以告诉你，他们所说的(a)不好听，(b)甚至不真实。 不过，Lindsey和Tori和林顿高中的大多数学生没有什么不同，包括我。 我们的谈话中有许多流言蜚语(闲话)。 我注意到八卦的三个影响:它可以伤害人，它可以给说闲话的人一种奇怪的满足感，它可以在一个群体中造成社会压力。 八卦的一个重要的负面影响是，它会伤害被谈论的人。 通常，八卦传播的是一个人宁愿保密的话题——分手、家里的麻烦、甚至辍学。 秘密越尴尬或可耻，它就会制造出更多的八卦。 可能最糟糕的八卦类型是绝对的谎言。 人们通常认为说长道短的人是无害的，但残酷的谎言可以造成痛苦。 如果我们知道八卦是有害的，那么为什么我们中有那么多人还这样做呢? 答案在于八卦的另一种效果:它带给我们的满足感。 分享最新的谣言(传言)可以让一个人感觉很重要的,因为他或她知道一些别人不知道的事情。 同样，听到最新的谣言会让人觉得自己是“圈子里的一员”。 换句话说,八卦是令人满意的,因为它给人一种归属感,甚至优势(优越感)。 八卦还有第三个作用:它加强了关于人们应该如何行动的不成文、不成文的规则。 大卫·威尔逊教授解释说，八卦对于监督一个群体的行为很重要。 翻译成高中术语，这意味着如果你周围的每个人都在笑约翰穿什么或简说什么，那么你可以打赌，穿着或说类似的话会给你带来同样的负面关注。 通过八卦传达的该做和不该做的事情永远不会出现在任何学生手册上。 闲话的影响因情况而异。 下次当你感到有传播最新消息的冲动时，想想你为什么想要八卦，以及你的“有趣的故事”可能会有什么影响。
