2. 职称英语
  3. Some recent historians have argued that life in the British colonies in Ameri

Some recent historians have argued that life in the British colonies in Ameri

游客2025-01-07  25
问题    Some recent historians have argued that life in the British colonies in America from approximately 1763 to 1789 was marked by internal conflicts among colonists. Inheritors of some of the viewpoints of early twentieth century Progressive historians such as Beard and Becker, these recent historians have put forward arguments that deserve evaluation. The kind of conflict most emphasized by these historians is class conflict. Yet with the Revolutionary War dominating these years, how does one distinguish class conflict within that larger conflict? Certainly not by the side a person supported. Although many of these historians have accepted the earlier assumption that Loyalists represented an upper class, new evidence indicates that Loyalists, like rebels, were drawn from all socioeconomic class. (It is nonetheless probably true that a larger percentage of the well-to-do joined the Loyalists than joined the rebels.) Looking at the rebels side, we find little evidence for the contention that lower-class rebels were in conflict with upper-class rebels. Indeed, the war effort against Britain tended to suppress class conflicts. Where it did not, the disputing rebels of one or another class usually became Loyalists. Loyalism thus operated as a safety valve to remove socioeconomic discontent that existed among the rebels. Disputes occurred, of course, among those who remained on the rebel side, but the extraordinary social mobility of eighteenth—century American society (with the obvious exception of slaves) usually prevented such disputes from hardening along class lines. Social structure was in fact so fluid—though recent statistics suggest a narrowing of economic opportunity as the latter half of the century progressed—that to talk about social classes at all requires the use of loose economic categories such as rich, poor, and middle class, or eighteenth-century designations like" the better sort." Despite these vague categories one should not claim unequivocally that hostility between recognizable classes cannot be legitimately observed. Outside of New York, however, there were very few instances of openly expressed class antagonism.
   Having said this, however, one must add that there is much evidence to support the further claim of recent historians that sectional conflicts were common between 1763 and 1789. The" Paxton Boys" incident and the Regulator movement are representative examples of the widespread, and justified, discontent of western settlers against colonial or state governments dominated by eastern interests. Although undertones of class conflict existed beneath such hostility, the opposition was primarily geographical. Sectional conflict—which also existed between North and South—deserves further investigation.
   In summary, historians must be careful about the kind of conflict they emphasize in eighteenth-century American. Yet those who stress the achievement of a general consensus among the colonists cannot fully understand the consensus without understanding the conflicts that had to be overcome or repressed in order to reach it. [br] The passage suggests that the author would be likely to agree with which of the following statements about the social structure of eighteenth-century American society? Ⅰ. It allowed greater economic opportunity than it did social mobility. Ⅱ. It permitted greater economic opportunity prior to 1750 than after 1750. Ⅲ. It did not contain rigidly defined socioeconomic divisions. Ⅳ. It prevented economic disputes from arising among members of the society.
选项 A、Ⅰand Ⅳ only.
B、Ⅱand Ⅲ only.
C、Ⅲ and Ⅳ only.
D、Ⅰ, Ⅱ, and Ⅲ only.
答案 B
解析 该题问：本文暗示，关于七，八世纪美国社会结构的描述，作者将同意哪种观点?
   Ⅰ．与社会流动性相比，它允许更多的经济社会。在本文中并没有此比较。
   Ⅱ．与1750年以后相比，1750年之前它允许更多的经济社会。这在本文的第一段中可以找到线索though re cent statistics suggest a narrowing of economic opportunity as the latter half of the century progressed意为“尽管最近的统计数据表是，18世纪后期经济机会趋于减少”。因此可知Ⅱ为正确的。
   Ⅲ．它不包括严格定义的社会经济划分。在本文的第一段中可以找到线索that to talk about social classes at dl requires the use of loose economic categories such as rich, poor, and middle class, or eighteenth-century designations like the better sort意为“以致于在讨论社会阶段时，需要使用一些较含糊的经济范畴，如富人、穷人和中间阶段，或者用18世纪的‘较好的阶级’这类名称”。因此可知Ⅲ为正确的。
   Ⅳ．它阻止了社会成员之间经济纠纷的发生。在本文的第一段中有线索usually prevented such disputes from hardening along class lines意为“通常使这些争执不至于在阶级路线上僵硬地发展下去”。这说的是阻止恶化，而不是阻止产生。因此不正确。因此比较A、B，C、D四项，B项为正确选项。
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