TP0-10-阅读-详解

                                           Chinese Pottery

原文

China has one of the world's oldest continuous civilizations—despite invasions and occasional foreign rule. A country as vast as China with so long-lasting a civilization has a complex social and visual history, within which pottery and porcelain play a major role.


The function and 【status】 of ceramics in China varied from dynasty to dynasty, so they may be utilitarian, burial, trade-collectors', or even ritual objects, according to their quality and the era in which they were made. The ceramics fall into three broad types—earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain—for vessels, architectural items such as roof tiles, and modeled objects and figures.In addition, there was an important group of sculptures made for religious use, the majority of which were produced in earthenware.

{The earliest ceramics were fired to earthenware temperatures, but as early as the fifteenth century B.C., high-temperature stonewares were being made with glazed surfaces. During the Six Dynasties period (AD 265-589), kilns in north China were producing high-fired ceramics of good quality. Whitewares produced in Hebei and Henan provinces from the seventh to the tenth centuries【evolved】 into the highly prized porcelains of the Song dynasty (AD. 960-1279), long regarded as one of the high points in the history of China's ceramic industry.【The tradition of religious sculpture extends over most historical periods but is less clearly delineated than that of stonewares or porcelains, for it embraces the old custom of earthenware burial ceramics with later religious images and architectural ornament.】 Ceramic products also include lead-glazed tomb models of the Han dynasty, three-color lead-glazed vessels and figures of the Tang dynasty, and Ming three-color temple ornaments, in which the motifs were outlined in a raised trail of slip- as well as the many burial ceramics produced in imitation of vessels made in materials of higher intrinsic value.}

-》Trade between the West and the settled and prosperous Chinese dynasties introduced new forms and different technologies. One of the most far-reaching examples is the impact of the fine ninth-century AD.Chinese porcelain wares imported into the Arab world.So admired were these pieces that they encouraged the development of earthenware made in imitation of porcelain and【instigated】 research into the method of their manufacture. From the Middle East the Chinese acquired a blue pigment—a purified form of cobalt oxide unobtainable at that time in China—that contained only a low level of manganese. Cobalt ores found in China have a high manganese content, which produces a more muted blue-gray color. In the seventeenth century, the trading activities of the Dutch East India Company resulted in vast quantities of decorated Chinese porcelain being brought to Europe, which stimulated and influenced the work of a wide variety of wares, notably Delft. The Chinese themselves adapted many specific vessel forms from the West, such as bottles with long spouts, and designed a range of decorative patterns especially for the European market.




{Just as painted designs on Greek pots may seem today to be purely decorative,【whereas】in fact they were carefully and precisely worked out so that at the time, their meaning was clear, so it is with Chinese pots. To twentieth-century eyes, Chinese pottery may appear merely decorative,yet to the Chinese the form of each object and its adornment had meaning and significance.The dragonrepresented the emperor, and the phoenix, the empress; the pomegranate indicated fertility, and a pair offish, happiness; mandarin ducks stood for wedded bliss; the pine tree, peach, and crane are emblems of long life; and fish leaping from waves indicated success in the civil service examinations. Only when European decorative themes were introduced did these meanings become obscured or even lost.}

From early times pots were used in both religious and secular contexts. The imperial court commissioned work and in the Yuan dynasty (A.D. 1279-1368) an imperial ceramic factory was established at Jingdezhen. Pots played an important part in some religious ceremonies. Long and often lyrical descriptions of the different types of ware exist that assist in classifying pots, although【these】sometimes confuse an already large and complicated picture.

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分析

The function and 【status】 of ceramics in China varied from dynasty to dynasty, so they may be utilitarian, burial, trade-collectors', or even ritual objects, according to their quality and the era in which they were made. The ceramics fall into three broad types—earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain—for vessels, architectural items such as roof tiles, and modeled objects and figures.In addition, there was an important group of sculptures made for religious use, the majority of which were produced in earthenware.

The word 【status】 in the passage is closest in meaning to

origin

importance

quality

design

Accordingto paragraph 2, which of the following is true of Chinese ceramics?

Thefunction of ceramics remained the same from dynasty to dynasty.

Theuse of ceramics as trade objects is better documented than the use of ceramicsas ritual objects.

Therewas little variation in quality for any type of ceramics over time.

Somereligious sculptures were made using the earthenware type of ceramics.

{The earliest ceramics were fired to earthenware temperatures, but as early as the fifteenth century B.C., high-temperature stonewares were being made with glazed surfaces. During the Six Dynasties period (AD 265-589), kilns in north China were producing high-fired ceramics of good quality. Whitewares produced in Hebei and Henan provinces from the seventh to the tenth centuries【evolved】 into the highly prized porcelains of the Song dynasty (AD. 960-1279), long regarded as one of the high points in the history of China's ceramic industry.【The tradition of religious sculpture extends over most historical periods but is less clearly delineated than that of stonewares or porcelains, for it embraces the old custom of earthenware burial ceramics with later religious images and architectural ornament.】 Ceramic products also include lead-glazed tomb models of the Han dynasty, three-color lead-glazed vessels and figures of the Tang dynasty, and Ming three-color temple ornaments, in which the motifs were outlined in a raised trail of slip- as well as the many burial ceramics produced in imitation of vessels made in materials of higher intrinsic value.}

Theword 【evolved】in the passage is closest in meaningto

divided

extended

developed

vanished

Whichof the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the【highlighted sentence】 in the passage? Incorrect 

divided

extended

developed

vanished

choices change the meaning inimportant ways or leave out essential information.

Whilestonewares and porcelains are foundthroughout most historical periods, religious sculpture is limited to theancient period.

Religioussculpture was created in most periods, but its history is less clear than thatofstonewares or porcelains because some oldforms continued to be used even when new ones were developed.

Whilestonewares and porcelains changed throughouthistory, religious sculpture remained uniform in form and use.

Thehistorical development of religious sculpture is relatively unclear becausereligious sculptures sometimes resemble earthenware architectural ornaments.

Paragraph3 supports all of the following concerning the history of the ceramic industryin China EXCEPT:

Theearliest high-fired ceramics were of poor quality.

Ceramicsproduced during the Tang and Ming dynasties sometimes incorporated multiplecolors.

Earthenwareceramics were produced in China beforestonewares were.

TheSong dynasty period was notable for the production of high quality porcelainceramics.

-》Trade between the West and the settled and prosperous Chinese dynasties introduced new forms and different technologies. One of the most far-reaching examples is the impact of the fine ninth-century AD.Chinese porcelain wares imported into the Arab world.So admired were these pieces that they encouraged the development of earthenware made in imitation of porcelain and【instigated】 research into the method of their manufacture. From the Middle East the Chinese acquired a blue pigment—a purified form of cobalt oxide unobtainable at that time in China—that contained only a low level of manganese. Cobalt ores found in China have a high manganese content, which produces a more muted blue-gray color. In the seventeenth century, the trading activities of the Dutch East India Company resulted in vast quantities of decorated Chinese porcelain being brought to Europe, which stimulated and influenced the work of a wide variety of wares, notably Delft. The Chinese themselves adapted many specific vessel forms from the West, such as bottles with long spouts, and designed a range of decorative patterns especially for the European market.

Theword 【instigated】in the passage is closest in meaningto

Improved

investigated

narrowed

caused

Accordingto paragraph 4, one consequence of the trade of Chinese ceramics was

thetransfer of a distinctive blue pigment from China to the Middle East

animmediate change from earthenware production to porcelain production inEuropean countries

Chineseproduction of wares made for the European market

adecreased number of porcelain vessels available on the European market

{Just as painted designs on Greek pots may seem today to be purely decorative,【whereas】in fact they were carefully and precisely worked out so that at the time, their meaning was clear, so it is with Chinese pots. To twentieth-century eyes, Chinese pottery may appear merely decorative,yet to the Chinese the form of each object and its adornment had meaning and significance.The dragonrepresented the emperor, and the phoenix, the empress; the pomegranate indicated fertility, and a pair offish, happiness; mandarin ducks stood for wedded bliss; the pine tree, peach, and crane are emblems of long life; and fish leaping from waves indicated success in the civil service examinations. Only when European decorative themes were introduced did these meanings become obscured or even lost.}

Theword 【whereas】in the passage is closest in meaningto

while

previously

surprisingly

because

Inparagraph 5, the author compares the designs on Chinese pots to those on Greekpots in order to

emphasizethat while Chinese pots were decorative. Greek pots were functional

arguethat the designs on Chinese pots had specific meanings and were not justdecorative

arguethat twentieth-century scholars are better able to understand these designsthan were ancient scholars

explainhow scholars have identified the meaning of specific images on Chinese pots

Whichof the following is mentioned in paragraph 5 as being symbolically representedon Chinese ceramics?

Chineserulers

loveof homeland

loyaltyto friends

successin trade

Paragraph5 suggests which of the following about the decorations on Chinese pottery?

Theyhad more importance for aristocrats than for ordinary citizens.

Theirsignificance may have remained clear had the Chinese not come under foreigninfluence.

Theycontain some of the same images that appear on Greek pots

Theirsignificance is now as clear to twentieth-century observers as it was to theearly Chinese.

From early times pots were used in both religious and secular contexts. The imperial court commissioned work and in the Yuan dynasty (A.D. 1279-1368) an imperial ceramic factory was established at Jingdezhen. Pots played an important part in some religious ceremonies. Long and often lyrical descriptions of the different types of ware exist that assist in classifying pots, although【these】sometimes confuse an already large and complicated picture.

Theword 【these】in the passage refers to

religiousceremonies

descriptions

typesof ware

pots

Lookat the four squares [■]that indicate where the followingsentence could be added to the passage.

Directions: An introductory sentence for abrief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary byselecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in thepassage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideasthat are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage.Thisquestion is worth 2points.

Ceramicshave been produced in China for a very long time.

。

。

。

TheChinese produced earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain pottery, and they usedtheir ceramics for a variety of utilitarian, architectural, and ceremonialpurposes.

As aresult of trade relations. Chinese ceramic production changed, and Chineseceramics influenced the ceramic production of other countries.

BeforeChina had contact with the West, the meaning of various designs used todecorate Chinese ceramics was well understood.

Theshape and decoration of ceramics produced for religious use in China wereinfluenced by Chinese ceramics produced for export.

Chineseburial ceramics have the longest and most varied history of production and werefrequently decorated with written texts that help scholars date them.

Ceramicsmade in imperial factories were used in both religious and non-religiouscontexts.