首页
登录
职称英语
Somehow California is always at the cutting edge, be it in the flower-power
Somehow California is always at the cutting edge, be it in the flower-power
游客
2024-10-17
38
管理
问题
Somehow California is always at the cutting edge, be it in the flower-power days of the 1960s or the dotcom boom of the 1990s. As Kevin Starr points out in his History of the State, California has long been "one of the prisms through which the American people, for better and for worse, could glimpse their future".
Mr. Starr is too good a historian to offer any pat explanation; instead, he concentrates on the extraordinary array of people and events that have led from the mythical land of Queen Calafia, through the rule of Spain and Mexico, and on to the governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, an iron-pumping film star with an Austrian accent. Moreover, he does so with such elegance and humor that his book is a joy to read.
What emerges is not all Californian sunshine and light. Think back to the savage violence that accompanied the 1849 Gold Rush; or to the exclusion orders against the Chinese; or to the riots that regularly marked industrial and social relations in San Francisco. California was very much the Wild West, having to wait until 1850 before it could force its way to statehood.
So what tamed it? Mr. Starr’s answer is a combination of great men, great ideas and great projects. He emphasizes the development of California’s infrastructure, the development of agriculture; the spread of the railroads and freeways; and, perhaps the most important factor for today’s hi-tech California, the creation of a superb set of public universities.
All this, he writes, "began with water, the sine qua non of any civilization." He goes on cheerfully to note the "monumental damage to the environment" caused by irrigation projects that were "plagued by claims of deception, double-dealing and conflict of interest".
One virtue of this book is its structure. Mr. Start is never trapped by his chronological framework. In-stead, when the subject demands it, he manages deftly to flit back and forth among the decades. Less satisfying is his account of California’s cultural progress in the 19th and 20th centuries: does he really need to invoke so many long-forgotten writers to accompany such names as Jack London, Frank Norris, Mark Twain or Raymond Chandler?
But that is a minor criticism for a book that will become a California classic. The regret is that Mr. Starr, doubtless pressed for space, leaves so little room--just a brief final chapter--for the implications of the past for California’s future. He poses the question that most Americans prefer to gloss over: is California governable? "For all its impressive growth, there remains a volatility in the politics and governance of California, which became perfectly clear to the rest of the nation in the fall of 2003 when the voters of California recalled one governor and elected another."
Indeed so, and Mr. Start wisely avoids making any premature judgment on their choice. Ills such as soaring house prices, grid locked freeways and "embattled" public schools, combined with the budgetary problems that stem from the tax revolt of 1978 would test to the limit any governor, even the Terminator. As Mr. Starr notes, no one should cite California as an unambiguous triumph: "There has al-ways been something slightly bipolar about California. It was either utopia or dystopia, a dream or a night-mare, a hope or a broken promise--and too infrequently anything in between." [br] From the text we can learn that Mr. Starr is very ______ as a historian.
选项
A、conservative
B、cunning and shrewd
C、objective and canny
D、critical and aggressive
答案
C
解析
推理判断题。根据文章第二段的前两句话可以看出他很客观,用事实说话,第八段第一句话也说他避免做出不成熟的结论,这些都说明他客观、谨慎、负责,而不是狡猾、保守,所以排除了选项A 和B ;Mr.Starr并没有咄咄逼人、特别具有批判性,所以排除选项D ;在赞扬加州美丽的同时也不回避其缺点,说明他作为历史学家很客观,故选择C 。
转载请注明原文地址:https://tihaiku.com/zcyy/3804584.html
相关试题推荐
Shealwaysputhermedicationonthetopoftheshelflestthechildren______it
SomehowCaliforniaisalwaysatthecuttingedge,beitintheflower-power
SomehowCaliforniaisalwaysatthecuttingedge,beitintheflower-power
WehaveahighregardforProf.Josephbecausehealways______hisprinciples.A、
Heisafunny-lookingmanwith______cheerfulfaceandalwaysencourages______
"HowdidJamesBondescapefromthelockedconfine?""Oh,youknowhealwaysmana
Inthedigitalrealm,thingsseemalwaystohappenthewrongwayround.Wher
Inthedigitalrealm,thingsseemalwaystohappenthewrongwayround.Wher
Maryisas______asapeacockandalwayswantstobethefocusofattention.A、b
Thecriminalalwayspaid______cashsothepolicecouldnottrackhimdown.A、on
随机试题
From:PatShimizu[agent@tripfinder.com]To:MayaO’Brien[otamaya@linkweb.com]
Moreandmoreforeignstudentsexperiencetheirindependentlifeintheques
Thehistorianmayhopethatlaboratoriesmayhavehadcapaciouscupboardsintow
下列属于稿酬所得的是()。A.个人提供著作权的使用权取得的所得 B.个人
温经汤中配伍半夏的主要用意是()A.燥湿化痰而和胃 B.和胃降逆而止
属于真核细胞型微生物是( )。A.衣原体 B.立克次体 C.支原体 D.
线路带电作业时重合闸()。
2003年6月份,“国房景气指数”达到107.04,比5月份上升0.76点,比去
客户投诉率属于( )的绩效考评指标。A.行为过程型 B.品质特征型 C.工
背景资料 某海港集装箱码头,采用沉箱重力式结构,沉箱尺寸为15m}(22m×
最新回复
(
0
)