英美概況期末考題

1、Questions for the final examination (26items) American Beginnings1. What were the new and powerful social forces which led to the awakening of Europe and the discovery of America?p34The first new force was the development of capitalism; the second major force that brought about the modern developmen

2、t of Europe was the Renaissance, which marked a changing outlook on life; the third influential force was the Religious Reformation, a religious reform movement that started from Germany.on the one hand, the English and freedom. On the other hand, fighting for their own freedom2. What was the unique

3、 American phenomenon? How did it come into being? Do you think it still exists in today s American society?The unique American phenomenon is that, other Europeans went to North America for seeking these very white people who were seeking and deprived black Africans of their freedom.On July 30, 1619,

4、 the first meeting of an elected legislature, a representative assembly, was held in Virginia. A month later, still in Virginia, a Dutch ship brought in over 20 Negroes as servants for a term of years to make a start toward the enslavement of Africans within what was to be the American republic.raci

5、alThis phenomenon still exists in today Amserican society, such as the discrimination.Until now, the black people still receive the unfair prejudice. However, the society in America is full of freedom, especially to the white people. They have a lot of rights in their life.often Godsa strain of shou

6、ld enforceof the Sabbath and3.In what way did Puritanism influence American culture?p37-38Williams, one of theNew England established another American tradition intolerant moralism. The Puritans believed that governments morality. They strictly punished drunks, adulterers, violators other religious

7、believers different from themselves. RogerPuritans who protested that the state should not interfere with religion, was driven out of Massachusetts. In 1635, he set up Rhode Island colony, which guaranteed religious freedom and the separation of church and state. The Puritans also have left rich cul

8、tural heritage to future Americans. The American values such as individualism, hard work, respect of education owe very much to the Puritan beliefs.4.In what way did the pattern of founding of Maryland influence American culture?In 1649, the Maryland Toleration Act, which assured freedom of worship

9、to all who believed in Jesus Christ, was passed. Because the Protestant majority were capitalistic-minded people and refused to carry out the feudal plan, and because the wilderness of North America provided plenty of land while labor was scarce, Maryland like other colonies in North America, follow

10、ed a capitalist development road, that is to say, America was on a capitalist road.The Political System1. What is a federal system?P52A federal system is one in which power is shared between a central authority and its constituent parts, with some rights reserved to each. The Constitution specifiede

11、xactly what power the central government had and which power was reserved for the states.2. How did the delegates from the early British colonies design the constitution?In the course of the Convention, the delegates designed a new form of governme nt for the United States.The plan for the governmen

12、t was written in very simple language in document call ed the Constitution of the United States.The Constitution set up a federal system with a strong central government. In writing the constitution ,the delegates deal with two fears shared by most A mericans.3. What were the two main fears shared b

13、y Americans while writing the constitution and how did they deal with them?p52-53One fear was that one person or group, including the majority, might become too powerful or be able to seize control the country and create a tyranny. To guard agai nst this possibility, the delegates set up a governmen

14、t consisting of three parts, or branches, the executive, the legislative and the judicial.Each branch has a way ofcounteracting and limiting any wrongful action by another branch.Another fear was that the new central government might weaken or take away the power of the state government to run their

15、 own affairs. To deal with this the Consti tution specified exactly what power the central government had and which power wa s reserved for the state.The state governments were allowed to run their owngovernments as they wished, provided that their governments were republicans.4. What is the Executi

16、ve Branch?P54The chief executive of the United State is the president, who, together with th e vice president, is elected to a four-year term. Under a Constitutional Amendment passed in 1951, a president can be elected to only two terms. Except for the right o f succession to the presidency, the vic

17、epresident only sconstitution duties are to serve as the presiding officer of the Senate; the vice president may vote in the Sena te only in the event of a tie.Rightsconstitution. It consists of 10 very and individual rights and government. Each paragraph5. What is the Bill of Rights? Why is it nece

18、ssary to write the Bill of explicitly into the US Constitution?forbidis anIt s another basic foundation in Americans short paragraphs which guarantee freedom interference with lives of individuals by the amendment to the original Constitution.The Bill of Rights and subsequent constitutional amendmen

19、ts guarantee the American people the fullest possible opportunity to enjoy fundamental human rights.In the Bill of Rights, Americans are guaranteed freedom of religion, of speech a nd of the press.They have a right to assemble in public places, to protest government actions, and to demand change.The

20、y have the right to own weapons if they wish.Becauseof the Billof rights, either police nor soldiers can stop and search a person without good reason. They also cannot search a persons home without a legal permission from a court.Economy1. What is the current economic position of America in the worl

21、d?2. What are the five stages of industrial development?p65-67One key development was the introduction of the factory system;A second deve lopment was the American systemof mass production;A third development was the application of new technologies to industrial tasks;A fourth development was the em

22、 ergency of new forms of business organization;Finally,the construction of railroads began,marking the start of a new era for the United States.3. What are the roots of affluence in America?P69Bountiful resources,the geographical size of the country and population trends h ave all contributed to the

23、se successes.Religious, social and political traditions;the in stitutional structures of government and business;and the courage,hard work and de termination of countless entrepreneurs and workers have also played a part.4. What are the main sectors of industry in America? Name some of the important

24、 cities representing each sector.Manufacturing : ChicagoAviation : Dallas and HoustonCar industry : DetroitHigh tech industry :Los Angeles and San FranscicoService industries. New York and SeattleHeavy Industry : PittsburghEducation1. How did America change the way of education to teach the children

25、 to be world citizens? P122intoIn 1954, the Supreme Court ruledthat the practice of segregating blacksseparate schools was unconstitutional. Between 1950 and 1960, more new knowledge was developed than in all of the worlds history before 1950.Schools were asked not only to teach this new information

26、, but to help students ask their own questions about it. More science courses were added to the curriculum. The federal government began to spend millions for the development of new science curricula and for training teachers to use them.2. How do Americans apply for a university?p1233. What are the

27、 categories of higher institutions in America?p123The university, the four-yearundergraduate institution, the technical traininginstitution, the two-year, or community college4. What factors that determine the best prestige of a universityP?124The factors determ ine whether an in stituti on is p res

28、tigious are quality of teach ing f aculty , quality of research facilities ,am ount of funding available for libraries ,sp eci al p rograms and the comp ete nee and the nu mber of app lica nts for admissi on and how selective the in stitutio n can be in choos ing its stude nts.5. How to select a col

29、lege or a university? Name all the members of the Ivy League.When selecti ng a college or a uni versity , you should take the followi ng factors into account :a schoolehtsnee requirements (and its fees)degrees the schooloffer and how long it takes to earn curricula a college or uni versity offers an

30、d req uireme nts for earning a degree p ublic in stituti on or p rivate one .Brow nUni versity, ColumbiaUni versity, Corn ellUni versity, DartmouthCollege,HarvardUni versity, PrincetonUni versity, the Uni versityof Penn sylva nia,and Yale Uni versity-6. Ex pl ai n why America ns res pect educati on.

31、In America, educati on is a n ati onal concern, a state respon sibility and a local function.7. What degrees do un dergraduate colleges and graduate schools offer?un dergraduate colleges:bachelordegreegraduate schools: master s or a doctoral s degree8. What are the fun cti ons of the boards of educa

32、tio n?They make p olicies for schools at the state and district level, also, make decisi ons about the school curriculum, teacher standards and certification,and the overallmeasureme nt of stude nt p rogress.America n Way of Life1. What are the stereotypes about the USA?All America ns are rich. Amer

33、ica n society is viole nt. America n families are in disarray . America ns are all religious . America ns are op timistic.2. What are the metaphors that have been used as the national self-images and why did they lose their credibility?“ melt ing po t because its anglop hilic values no Ion ger held

34、for a clear majority ofthe peop le.salad bowl because the characteristics of differe nt culture quickly dec ay . mosaic because an image for a n ati on should imply cha nges of any one of its co mponents . But the mosaic ,once made ,n ever cha nge.kaleidosc opebecause the kaleidosc opic cha nges too

35、 p roblematically ,so it is difficult to make peopletake it seriously.4.Why is the Internet an up-to-date meta phor used to encap sulate the USA?Because the Internet has several characteristics that seem consonant with theUSAin dividualtoday . The WWW has no cen ter. No one is reliably in charge . Each must take the respon sibility for w