Passage One

26.

A. The art of saying thank you.

B. The secret of staying pretty.

C. The importance of good manners.

D. The difference between elegance and good manners.

27.

A. They were nicer and gentler.

B. They paid more attention to their appearance.

C. They were willing to spend more money on clothes.

D. They were more aware of changes in fashion.

28.

A. By decorating our homes.

B. By being kind and generous.

C. By wearing fashionable clothes.

D. By putting on a little make-up.

Section B

Passage One

[26/27]Do you remember a time when people were a little nicer and gentler with each other? I certainly do. And I feel that much of the world has somehow gotten away from that. Too often I see people rushing into elevators without giving those inside a chance to get off first, or never saying "thank you" when others hold a door open for them. We get lazy and in our laziness we think that something like a simple "thank you" doesn't really matter. But it can matter very much. The fact is that no matter how nicely we dress or how beautifully we decorate our homes, we can't be truly elegant without good manners, because elegance and good manners always go hand in hand. In fact, I think of good manners as a sort of hidden beauty secret. [28]Haven't you noticed that the kindest, most generous people seem to keep getting prettier? It's funny how that happens, but it does. Take the long-lost art of saying "thank you" like wearing a little make-up, or making sure your hair is neat. Getting into the habit of saying "thank you" can make you feel better about yourself. [26]Good manners add to your image, while an angry face makes the best-dressed person look ugly.

Questions 26 to 28 are based on the passage you have just heard.

26. What is the passage mainly about?

正确答案：C

解析：主旨题。关键是要听到首尾句及核心词。第1句中作者对于“人与人之间曾经更友好、更和气的时代”的怀念和最后一句中“礼貌能提升你的形象”，都说明good manners的重要性，所以答案为C。作者建议养成说“谢谢”的习惯，而不是在讲述说“谢谢”的艺术，故A不正确；作者说“我把讲礼貌看成一种深藏不露的美丽秘诀”，并不是告诉我们保持美丽的秘密，故B不正确；文中说“优雅与礼貌是一致的”，故D不正确。

27. What does the speaker say about people of the past?

正确答案：A

解析：题目询问作者认为以前人们是怎么样的。关键是要听到文章首句：“你们记得以前那个人与人之间曾经更友好、更和气的时代吗？”其中就包含选项A中的nicer and gentler。选项B、C、D的内容文中均未提及。

28. According to the speaker, how can we best improve our image?

正确答案：B

解析：题目询问根据作者的说法，我们怎样才能最好地提升自己的形象。关键是要听到“你们没注意到最和善、最大方的人看上去越来越漂亮吗？”其中包含选项B中的kind和generous，而keep getting prettier对应题目中的improve our image。